Features of flora and vegetation of steppe-desert landscapes of the lower Kuma. report 2. (East Precaucasus)

Abstract

The article reflects the results of the study of grass communities of steppe-desert landscapes in the lower part of the Kuma River within the Nizhnekumsko-Prikaspian landscape region (Northern Caucasus). The floristic and ecological structure of phytocenoses on clayey sandy loam and sandy substrates is discussed. As a result of the research carried out in 2021, at least 56 species of higher plants were identified in the modern flora of the specified territory. Descriptions of seven survey sites are given. The phytocenotic table is presented, the characteristic of the communities is given, and their structure is described. The abundance of species and their distribution in relief elements and communities were determined expertly on the basis of field information. The peculiarities of communities and reasons of their spatial differentiation were revealed. The system of natural landscape components of the territory under study has been significantly changed by man, especially the vegetation cover. It was suggested that the factors determining the current state of vegetation in the studied region, in addition to the zonal position and physical and geographical factors of the environment (parent rock, high insolation, low ecotope moisture), are the degree of degradation and anthropogenic disturbance of the soil and vegetation cover. Meanwhile, steppe-desert landscapes are important for the preservation of the biological diversity of the region, as a habitat for typical zonal cenoses and rare taxa.