FLORISTIC COMPOSITION OF SOME PLANT COMMUNITIES INCLUDING JUNIPERUS SERAVSCHANICA KOM. IN AKSU-ZHABAGLY STATE NATURAL RESERVE

Abstract

The floristic composition of plant communities, including Juniperus seravschanica Kom. from the Aksu-Zhabagly state natural reserve, was studied. Three populations of J. seravschanica represented by 8 cenopopulations have been studied. The list of studied plant communities with the participation of J. seravschanica includes 254 species of 175 genera from 51 families. The majority of them are herbaceous plants (87%), trees, and shrubs – 32 species (13%). The leading position among these species have representatives of 11 main families, constituting 56% of the total list: Apiaceae Lindl., Asteraceae Dumort., Brassicaceae Burnett, Scrophulariaceae Juss., Caryophyllaceae Juss., Fabaceae Lindl., Lamiaceae Lindl., Liliaceae Juss., Poaceae Barnhart, Ranunculaceae Juss. and Rosaceae Juss. It were also revealed that there are other rare species listed in the Red Book of Kazakhstan – Ungernia sewerzowii (Regel) B. Fedtsch., Mediasia macrophylla (Regel ex Schmalh.) Pimenov., Arum korolkowii Regel, Eminium lehmannii (Bunge) O.Kuntze, Centaurea turkestanica Franch., Celtis caucasica Willd., Allochrusa gypsophiloides (Regel) Schischk., Euonymus koopmannii Lauche, Rhaphidophyton regelii (Bunge) Iljin, Colchicum luteum Baker, Medicago tianschanica Vassilcz., Juno coerulea (B. Fedtsch.) Poljak., Tulipa greigii Regel, Tulipa kaufmanniana Regel, Malus sieversii (Ledeb.) M. Roem., and Valeriana chionophila Popov & Kult. Since J. seravschanica plays an important ecological role and has an important forest-forming, water-protective, soil-protective, and anti-mudflow value, the study of the current state of cenopopulations with its participation may be a valuable source of information for the conservation and rational use of genetic resources in the Western Tien Shan. The results obtained in the current study will be used further in the study of the genetic diversity research of wild flora, including species of the genus Juniperus.

Key words: Juniperus seravschanica, species, plant community, cenopopulation, population, Aksu-Zhabagly state natural reserve, floristic composition.