Broad-leaved forests in the North-Western Caucasus. I. Order Carpinetalia betuli P. Fukarek 1968

Researchers have identified distinct broad-leaved forest communities in the North-Western Caucasus, proposing new suballiances and syntaxa within the alliance Crataego–Carpinion caucasicae. Using 224 relevés collected between 2014 and 2018, they applied Braun-Blanquet classification and DCA-ordination to analyze species composition in relation to environmental variables such as elevation, geographical coordinates, and tree canopy density. The study found that forests in this region, characterized by species like Carpinus betulus, Quercus petraea/hartwissiana/robur, and Fraxinus excelsior, exhibit unique floristic differences compared to similar forests in Central Caucasus, Turkey, the Balkans, and Crimea. These differences are influenced by elevation and longitude, with higher diversity observed in associations like Aro maculati–Carpinetum betuli and Abies nordmanniana–Carpinus betulus communities. The research also clarifies the classification of these forests within the order Carpinetalia betuli, emphasizing their distinctiveness from related forest types.

Shevchenko, N. Ye., & Braslavskaya, T. Yu. (2021). Broad-leaved forests in the North-Western Caucasus. I. Order Carpinetalia betuli P. Fukarek 1968. Vegetation of Russia, (42), 118–145. https://doi.org/10.31111/vegrus/2021.42.118