Title
Crimean-west Caucasian Oriental hornbeam-downy oak forests (Quercus pubescens, Carpinus orientalis) with Pistacia mutica, Rhus coriaria
Geographical distribution
Country/territory
Ukraine: south-eastern Crimea peninsula; Russia: Black Sea coast
area frequency
4 polygons.
Scientific names of main plant communities and their most common synonyms (with author citation)
Junipero (excelsae)-Quercion pubescentis Jakucs 1961; Carpino orientali-Quercion pubescentis Korženevskij & Šeljag-Sosonko 1983.
Structural feature of the main community(ies) (layers, life-forms, etc.)
Low-growing (to 15 m) open, two- to three-layered forests or shrub forests with many sub-Mediterranean and Mediterranean species.
Dominant and most frequent species in different layers
Tree layer
Quercus pubescens, (Quercus petraea), Carpinus orientalis, Fraxinus excelsior, Juniperus excelsa, Sorbus torminalis
Shrub layer
Pistacia mutica, Juniperus oxycedrus, Cotinus coggygria, Jasminum fruticans, Rhus coriaria, Ruscus aculeatus, Paliurus spina-christi, Rhododendron luteum, Cistus creticus subsp. eriocephalus, Staphylea pinnata, Corylus avellana, Cornus mas
Lianas
Hedera helix, Clematis vitalba
Herb layer
Lithospermum purpurocaeruleum, Sesleria anatolica, Brachypodium pinnatum subsp. rupestre, Stipa bromoides, Carex flacca subsp. serrulata, Carex halleriana, Laser trilobum, Physospermum cornubiense, Ornithogalum ponticum, Dorycnium herbaceum, Lathyrus laxiflorus, Cephalanthera rubra, Epipactis helleborine, Epipactis microphylla, Primula acaulis, Clinopodium vulgare, Elymus nodosus
Moss layer (incl. lichens)
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Diagnostically important species
Quercus pubescens, Carpinus orientalis; Pistacia mutica, Rhus coriaria, Ruscus aculeatus, Cistus creticus subsp. eriocephalus; Ornithogalum ponticum, Cephalanthera rubra, Epipactis microphylla, Carex halleriana
Ecological variants
No details
Geographical variants (geogr. differential species)
On the Crimean peninsula there the forms are altitudinally differentiated with Mediterranean species in the lower belt and Querco-Fagetea herb species in the upper belt; Crimean type with Colutea cilicica, Rhus coriaria, Juniperus oxycedrus, Ruscus aculeatus, Cistus creticus subsp. eriocephalus, Stipa bromoides; Caucasian form with Caucasian species (Dictamnus caucasicus, Helleborus caucasicus, Stachys atherocalyx, Argyrolobium biebersteinii, Campanula alliariifolia, Campanula oblongifolia).
Natural accompanying vegetation (most important units in complex with the name giving mapping unit, scientific names)
Quercus petraea and Quercus iberica forests, Pinus nigra subsp. pallasiana forests, on stony soils forests with Juniperus excelsa, Pistacia mutica; steppe communities in the eastern part of the upper Crimea.
Adjoining climax and permanent vegetation (with numbers of mapping units)
species-rich beech and mixed beech forests (F150, F157), Oriental beech forests (F164), mixed hornbeam-oak forests (F167), black pine forests (K20), open juniper woodland (K32), forst steppes (L16, L17).
Land use, substitute communities
forestry (substitute communities, plantations of economic tree-species, scrub)
Heavily degraded Juniperus excelsa, Pistacia mutica low forest, Schibljak substitute communities with Carpinus orientalis, Paliurus spina-christi; Pinus forestry.
grassland (meadows, pastures, herb-rich communities)
Dry pastures with Festuca valesiaca, Bothriochloa ischaemum, Poa angustifolia, Thymus spp.
arable land (characteristic weed communities)
Vineyards and orchards, cereal fields, plantations of Lavandula spp., Salvia spp. etc.
settlements (typical ruderal vegetation)
No details
Site conditions of the mapping unit
Landscape type, geomorphology
mountainous country with slopes of different inclination and exposure
Altitudinal belt and/or altitudinal range
colline-submontane (montane); to 500 (800) m
Geology (bedrock)
carbonate rocks (Upper Cretaceous)
soil type, also the depth of fine textured earth (soil), stone content; (international nomenclature)
brown to grey-brown forest soils, chernozeme above limestone; (chromic cambisols; chromic luvisols; haplic and luvic chernozems)
soil texture
loamy, clayey
soil moisture, water balance
dry
soil reaction
weakly acidic, neutral
soil fertility
meso-eutrophic, eutrophic
Climate incl. local climate
climate type (following Walter & Lieth)
IV(VI), VI(VII)3
average annual temperature
10-14 °C
average annual precipitation
300-700 mm
average temperature of the warmest month
July 19-23 °C
average temperature of the coldest month
January -2 to +2 °C
local climate or other climatic peculiarities
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Importance for nature protection
Present state and development trend of natural vegetation (degree of endangerment)
Forests usually in a heavily degraded state (low forest), but with an important soil protective function.
endangered communities, species worthy of protection in natural vegetation
All nearly-natural forests are worthy of protection among other things because of their very rare species: Paeonia daurica, Anacamptis pyramidalis, Cephalanthera damasonium, Cephalanthera longifolia, Platanthera chlorantha, Orchis simia, Orchis pallens, Orchis purpurea, Ophrys oestrifera, Ophrys mammosa subsp. mammosa, Comperia comperiana among others
causes of endangerment
Clearing, forest grazing, low forest management, forest fires.
required measures for protection and restitution
Cessation of low forest management, forest grazing and clearing; protection from fire.
Localities of representative stands (loci typici) with state of protection
of the natural vegetation
Ukraine: Crimea (Mys Martjan, Berg Soglasija, Zapovedniks Jaltinskij and Karadagskij).
of characteristic substitute communities worthy of protection
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Most important references (author, year)
Ivanenko 1952; Kočkin 1967; Korženevskij & Šeljag-Sosonko 1983
Compiled by
N. Doniţă based on documents by Ja.P. Diduch and Z. Neuhäuslová
