Title
West Moesian herb-rich sessile oak forests (Quercus petraea agg.), partly with Carpinus betulus, Quercus cerris, Tilia tomentosa, with Cytisus nigricans, Galium pseudoaristatum, Hordelymus europaeus, Ruscus aculeatus
Geographical distribution
Country/territory
Hungary: eastern Mecsek-mountains; Yugoslavia: south Serbia, west Serbia (Fruška Gora, south of Novi Sad), east Serbia; Bosnia-Herzegovina: eastern border to Serbia; north and northeast Albania: Tropoje, Kutces, Mirdite; Macedonia: whole country; southwest Bulgaria: border mountains towards Macedonia, Greece: border mountains to Macedonia and Bulgaria
area frequency
39 polygons.
Scientific names of main plant communities and their most common synonyms (with author citation)
Asperulo taurinae-Carpinetum Soó & Borhidi 1962; Querceto-Carpinetum serbicum Rudski 1949, Querceto petraeae-Carpinetum mecsekense (Soó 1937) A.O. Horvát 1958; Querceto-Carpinetum avalense Jovanoviƒ & Misic 1959, Querceto-Carpinetum timokense Knapp 1944; Querceta dalechampii Bondev 1991, Quercetea pubescentis Loisel 1971, Ostryo-Carpinion orientalis I. Horvat 1954.This mapping unit encloses a group of local communities; it is in need of a profound syntaxonomical revision by moderate comparative-syntaxonomical methods. Especially its relationship towards the closely related east Moesian vicariant (F67) is to be observed and the separation of both units to be carried out. (comment by W. Mat.)
Structural feature of the main community(ies) (layers, life-forms, etc.)
Three- to four-layered high forests with a stepped tree layer (Quercus petraea, Tilia tomentosa and Carpinus betulus). Weakly developed shrub layer, a species-rich herb layer with a coloured spring aspect. The moss layer is insignificant.
Dominant and most frequent species in different layers
Tree layer
Quercus petraea, Carpinus betulus, with admixture of Tilia tomentosa, Quercus cerris, Prunus avium; locally with Quercus dalechampii, Quercus frainetto, Ostrya carpinifolia, Carpinus orientalis, Fraxinus excelsior, Fraxinus ornus, Acer hyrcanum, Acer platanoides, Acer monspessulanum, Fagus sylvatica, Sorbus torminalis, Tilia platyphyllos
Shrub layer
Cornus mas, Viburnum lantana, Crataegus spp., Cornus sanguinea, Corylus avellana, Ligustrum vulgare, Sorbus aria, Syringa vulgaris
Lianas
Hedera helix, Lonicera caprifolium
Herb layer
Asperula taurina, Aremonia agrimonoides, Carex pilosa, Doronicum orientale, Festuca drymeja, Helleborus odorus, Hordelymus europaeus, Lathyrus venetus, Primula acaulis, Ruscus aculeatus, Scrophularia vernalis, Festuca heterophylla, Poa nemoralis, Dactylis glomerata, Stellaria holostea, Allium ursinum, Hieracium racemosum, Hieracium bauhinii, Luzula luzuloides, Silene viridiflora, Digitalis lanata, Digitalis grandiflora, Melittis melissophyllum, Lathyrus vernus, Lathyrus niger, Brachypodium pinnatum
Moss layer (incl. lichens)
Hypnum cupressiforme
Diagnostically important species
Quercus petraea, Carpinus betulus, Tilia tomentosa; Lonicera caprifolium, Tamus communis; Asperula taurina, Aremonia agrimonoides, Helleborus odorus, Lathyrus venetus, Ruscus aculeatus, Scilla vindobonensis subsp. borhidiana, Digitalis lanata, Digitalis grandiflora, Stellaria holostea, Lathyrus vernus
Ecological variants
No details
Geographical variants (geogr. differential species)
Serbian variant with Galium pseudoaristatum, Cytisus nigricans and acidophilous species; Variant in Albania with Erica arborea, Arbutus unedo, Asparagus acutifolius, Ruscus aculeatus.
Natural accompanying vegetation (most important units in complex with the name giving mapping unit, scientific names)
Hungary: Helleboro odoro-Fagetum, Tilio argenteae-Fraxinetum orni, Potentillo micranthae-Quercetum cerris.
Adjoining climax and permanent vegetation (with numbers of mapping units)
Krummholz scrubs (C39), sessile oak-hornbeam forests (F65), species-poor beech forests (F87, F89, F103), species-rich beech and mixed beech forests (F124, F142, F143, F144, F151, F154, F155), sessile oak-bitter oak forests (G16), Balkan oak-bitter oak forests (G19), flowering ash-downy oak forests (G47), Oriental beech-downy oak forests (G57), pine-black pine forests (K13), alluvial and lowland forests (U16, U17, U35).
Land use, substitute communities
forestry (substitute communities, plantations of economic tree-species, scrub)
Middle and low forests, Pinus sylvestris, Pinus nigra, Robinia pseudoacacia plantations; not anything more is known with respect to Greece, but it has presumably been largely degraded to pseudomacchia or low forest; Juniperus communis scrub; Calamagrostis epigejos vegetation.
grassland (meadows, pastures, herb-rich communities)
Arrhenatherion meadows, Anthoxantho-Agrostietumtenuis; pastures with Festuca valesiaca, Cynosurus cristatus; Pteridium aquilinum community.
arable land (characteristic weed communities)
Orchards; cereal and potato fields, flax (Linum usitatissimum) etc.
settlements (typical ruderal vegetation)
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Site conditions of the mapping unit
Landscape type, geomorphology
Hilly and mountainous country, lower altitudes in mountain ranges
Altitudinal belt and/or altitudinal range
colline-submontane (to montane); 250-500 m; Albania: 200-800 m
Geology (bedrock)
lime and sandstone, flysch (Tertiary, Cretaceous, Jurassic; Palaeozoic)
soil type, also the depth of fine textured earth (soil), stone content; (international nomenclature)
brown soils, parabrown soils; (eutric and humic cambisols; orthic luvisols; leptosols)
soil moisture, water balance
fresh to moderately dry, locally periodically moist
soil reaction
moderately acidic to neutral
soil fertility
mesotrophic to eutrophic
Climate incl. local climate
climate type (following Walter & Lieth)
IV(VI), IV(VII), VI2b, VI(VII)
average annual temperature
Hungary: 8,5-10 EC; Albania/Yugoslavia/ Greece: 11-13 EC
average annual precipitation
Hungary: 600-750 mm; Albania/Yugoslavia/ Greece: 700-900 mm
average temperature of the warmest month
July 20-23 EC
average temperature of the coldest month
January -3 to -1 EC
local climate or other climatic peculiarities
Summer-warm, moderately winter-cold, summerly depression in precipitation mostly distinct.
Importance for nature protection
Present state and development trend of natural vegetation (degree of endangerment)
Not particularly endangered in Hungary; greatly endangered in Albania and not protected; Greece: semi-natural stands (rare) are worthy of being protected.
endangered communities, species worthy of protection in natural vegetation
Species worthy of protection: Asperula taurina, Doronicum orientale, Hepatica nobilis, Lonicera caprifolium, Muscari botryoides, Neottia nidus-avis, Orchis pallens, Platanthera bifolia, Primula acaulis, Scilla vindobonensis subsp. borhidiana.
causes of endangerment
Clearing, woodland grazing, low forest management, agricultural use.
required measures for protection and restitution
Preservation of representative semi-natural stands.
Localities of representative stands (loci typici) with state of protection
of the natural vegetation
Hungary: landscape reserve in the central and east Mecsek-mountains, nature reserve Szársomlyó near Villány; Albania: Tropoje; Greece: probably Voras-mountains and Kerkini-mountains north of Thessaloniki.
of characteristic substitute communities worthy of protection
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Most important references (author, year)
Borhidi 1963; Borhidi 1965; Horvát 1972; Soó 1962; Soó 1964a; Vangjeli 1993
Compiled by
A. Borhidi; Z. Neuhäuslová based on documents by I. Bondev, completed by J. Vangjeli; Th. Raus
