Leonova N.
RJEE Vol. 6 (2). 2021 | DOI: 10.21685/2500-0578-2021-2-3
Abstract | PDF (Rus) | Additional files
Receipt date 25.02.2021 | Publication date 26.06.2021
SUCCESSIONAL STATE OF FORESTS IN THE UPPER PLATEAU OF THE VOLGA UPLAND
N. A. Leonova
Penza State University, 40 Krasnaya street, Penza, 440026, Russia
na_leonova@mail.ru
Abstract. Background. Long-term and intense anthropogenic impact on the forest-steppe nature of the Russian Plain has led to destruction of vast areas with natural vegetation and significant reduction in their biological diversity. Forests as a component of forest-steppe complexes have undergone the most significant transformation. Materials and methods. The biodiversity analysis was based on geobotanical descriptions obtained as a result of route and stationary studies of forest vegetation. The structural diversity of communities was assessed by the ratio of ecological-coenotic groups (ECGs) of species in the vegetation cover. To assess the successional state, we used the following parameters: representativeness of potential flora, rate of participation of R-species (explents) in the tree layer, dominance degree, proportion of demographically full-member and immoral populations. Results and conclusions. The modern vegetation cover of the upper plateau of the Volga Upland is represented by four formations (pine, birch, aspen, and black alder forests), one group of formations (broad-leaved forests), 34 groups of associations, and 112 associations. It was revealed that the forest flora includes 423 plant species belonging to 257 genera and 85 families. The maximum species richness is noted in the communities of association groups of all the formations dominated by nemoral species. A distinctive feature of the landscape communities of erosion and denudation plains (EDP) is the high constancy of the nemoral species Convallaria majalis in the herbaceous cover. Formation of modern forests is regulated by human. Their transformations are caused by a complex combination of felling of different types and intensity, plowing, grazing, and fires. The existing differences in the succession status of forests of different formations are manifested in changing species composition of stands and floristic diversity of all community synusiae (trees, shrubs, grasses).
Keywords: upper plateau of the Volga Upland, forest vegetation, succession status, floristic diversity, synusia
For citation: Leonova N.A. Successional state of forests in the upper plateau of the Volga Upland. Russian Journal of Ecosystem Ecology. 2021;6(2). Available from: https://doi.org/10.21685/2500-0578-2021-2-3