Forest rare coenotic diversity of Ukraine: national aspect of protection

Abstract

Introduction. It is noted that a problem of biodiversity conservation is defined as the priority for Ukraine at the National level because of situation in the country as for it state is one of the worst in Europe. It is showed that now the conservation of coenotic diversity as functional, first of all, energetic biosphere base is the priority and key approach to conserve the biotic diversity. Pursuant to global forest importance as resources and environment formation factor the transition of the forest resources use of Ukraine into the way of their sustainable development is impossible without re-orientation of available resources forest use on biosphere principle. It is in need of re-orientation of forest use technology to coenotic diversity conservation, first of all, rare. The first formal publication of the “Green Data Book of Ukraine” (2009) is the significant stage in recognition of importance of syntaxonomical protection of rare vegetation at the system level.

Methods. The purpose of research is the synfitosozological analysis of rare phytocoenotic pool of forest vegetation of Ukraine and its protection. The investigations are based on referrals critical factual material that: 1) published in scientific papers (monographs, articles, books), 2) collected during field research the authors vegetation. The studies were conducted generally field methods (trip, geobotanical description of key territories, sozological analysis) and cameral methods.

Results. It is pointed out that the rare phytocoenotic fund of the forest vegetation in it is represented by 308 associations belonged to 22 formations. Forest rare associations in Ukraine are distributed irregularly. Mainly they are concentrated in the Ukrainian Carpathians (134 associations) and the Mountain Crimea (59). Forest rare coenotic diversity by indicators of dominant associativity character, botany-geographical importance, sozological status, belonging to sozological categories, by potential of natural renewal has been analyzed. It is noted that rare communities of Ukraine’s forests in typological and syntaxonomical aspects are representatively protected in the nature-conservation system areas of the top range. Among the nature regions of Ukraine the forest associations is mostly protected in the mountain ecosystems.

Conclusions. It is accented that the organization of the rare forest coenotic fund protection will help to support phytocoenogenetic potential of forests, formation of biologically resistant communities, stabilization of ecological region state etc. Moreover, it is noted that now the contemporary state of many forest rare communities, which are beyond the nature-conservation fund, are remaining insufficiently studied.