Title
Northwest Caspian psammophytic desert steppes (Stipa anomala, Stipa capillata, Leymus racemosus) with Stipa caspia, Eremosparton aphyllum, Imperata cylindrica
Geographical distribution
Country/territory
Russia: north of the Terek lower course
area frequency
4 polygons.
Scientific names of main plant communities and their most common synonyms (with author citation)
Stipeta (borysthenicae, capillatae) subdeserta arenoso-herbosa.
Structural feature of the main community(ies) (layers, life-forms, etc.)
Unlike more northern (Pontic) sandy locations, on the west Caspian sands one sees a strong influence of Aralo-Caspian (Turanian) deserts and the Caucasus bordering to the south. Species occurring here: the annual Agriophyllum squarrosum occurring in Turanian and Central-Asiatic deserts, the subtropical species Imperata cylindrica, the Turanian desert shrub Eremosparton aphyllum as well as Stipa caspia, a species generally distributed in Transcaucasia, Juniperus communis subsp. oblonga and Astragalus hyrcanus which are also generally distributed in Caucasia. The absence of species typical for the Pontic and sometimes the Kazakh psammophytic steppes is typical here (e.g. Festuca beckeri, Koeleria sabuletorum).
Dominant and most frequent species in different layers
Tree layer
Salix ledebouriana (close to lakes), Calligonum aphyllum (on barchans)
Shrub layer
Eremosparton aphyllum, Juniperus communis subsp. oblonga
Herb layer
Stipa anomala, Stipa capillata, Agropyron cristatum, Artemisia taurica; on sand hills: Agropyron fragile, Leymus racemosus, Herniaria glabra, Artemisia marschalliana, Rhus coriaria; in depressions: Elymus repens, Glycyrrhiza glabra, Inula germanica; on solontchak: Atriplex verrucifera, Frankenia hirsuta, Ofaiston monandrum
Moss layer (incl. lichens)
No details
Diagnostically important species
Stipa anomala, Stipa capillata, Stipa caspia, Imperata cylindrica, Agriophyllum squarrosum, Astragalus hyrcanus; Eremosparton aphyllum, Juniperus communis subsp. oblonga
Ecological variants
---
Geographical variants (geogr. differential species)
Hilly sands and barchan dunes with Calligonum aphyllum in the south-east.
Natural accompanying vegetation (most important units in complex with the name giving mapping unit, scientific names)
Agropyron steppes with Agropyron fragile. In wind-blown basins, Stipa caspia, Juniperus oxycedrus, Rhamnus cathartica and Crataegus monogyna grow. Phragmites australis and Salix ledebouriana stands. "Pody": genuine or halophilous meadows with Elymus repens, solontchak communities (Anabasis aphylla, Atriplex verrucifera, species of the genuses Petrosimonia and Suaeda).
Adjoining climax and permanent vegetation (with numbers of mapping units)
mixed hornbeam-oak forests (F168, F170), steppes (M13, M18), salt vegetation (P31, P35), brackish water reed vegetation (R3), alluvial forests (U21).
Land use, substitute communities
forestry (substitute communities, plantations of economic tree-species, scrub)
---
grassland (meadows, pastures, herb-rich communities)
Mugwort communities, pasture grounds.
arable land (characteristic weed communities)
Fields.
settlements (typical ruderal vegetation)
---
Site conditions of the mapping unit
Landscape type, geomorphology
hilly sandy locations (dunes up to 50 m high and some kilometres long, as well as barchan dunes).
Altitudinal belt and/or altitudinal range
lowland; the altitude decreases from the north-west to the south-east from120 to 87 m
Geology (bedrock)
fluviatile (river valley sands) and eolian carbonate-rich sands (Pleistocene, Pleistocene above Tertiary)
soil type, also the depth of fine textured earth (soil), stone content; (international nomenclature)
carbonate-rich chestnut- and light chestnut soils; (haplic chernozems; haplic sodic kastanozems)
soil texture
loamy-sandy, sandy
soil moisture, water balance
very dry
soil fertility
oligo-mesotrophic
Climate incl. local climate
climate type (following Walter & Lieth)
VII1b
average annual temperature
9-10 °C
average annual precipitation
300-400 mm
average temperature of the warmest month
July 23-25 °C
average temperature of the coldest month
January -5 to -3 °C
local climate or other climatic peculiarities
The Climate is dry, continental, passing over to the climate of Turanian (aralo-Caspian) deserts.
Importance for nature protection
Present state and development trend of natural vegetation (degree of endangerment)
Areas with loamier-sandy soils have been transformed into arable land. On older uncultivated lands, mugwort communities (Artemisia marschalliana) dominate.
endangered communities, species worthy of protection in natural vegetation
Communities with Central-Asiatic species as well as sites with rare species (e.g. Imperata cylindrica, Juniperus oxycedrus) are particularly worthy of protection.
causes of endangerment
Overgrazing.
required measures for protection and restitution
No details
Localities of representative stands (loci typici) with state of protection
of the natural vegetation
No details
of characteristic substitute communities worthy of protection
---
Most important references (author, year)
Gožev 1930; Kameneckaja 1956; Lavrenko 1940; Lavrenko 1980; Novopokrovskij 1926; Novopokrovskij 1927; Rožanec 1936
Compiled by
Z. Neuhäuslová based on documents by Z.V. Karamyševa
