Environmental Researches

Environmental Researches

The Effects of Topography on Species Composition and Stand Structure in Central Zagros Forests

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
1 Graduated Student of forestry, Faculty of Natural Resources and Earth Sciences, Shahrekord University, Iran
2 Associate professor, Department of forestry, Faculty of Natural Resources and Earth Sciences, Shahrekord University , Iran
3 Associate professor, Department of environment, Faculty of Natural Resources and Earth Sciences, Shahrekord University , Iran
10.22034/eiap.2024.393251.2500
Abstract
The study encompassed multiple forests within a 24,000-ha area in Ardal and Kiar counties, Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province, Iran. It involved the analysis of tree and stand indices to assess the spatial characteristics of the forests along topographic gradients. The findings indicated that the forest stands exhibited irregular and heterogeneous patterns at the plot level, particularly in terms of diameter, height and uniformity indices. However, the density and tree species composition were consistent across all forest stands. The influence of slope on tree- and stand-based indices was generally not statistically significant, except for the height diversity index, which displayed higher values in forests situated on steep slopes. Changes in the geographic aspect and altitude did not exert significant effects on tree and forest indices, except for the tree diameter diversity index, which exhibited variations with altitude. The dominant tree species observed in all forests was Quercus brantii, followed by Pistacia atlantica. The presence of certain species was influenced by topographical factors, such as Daphne mucronata being exclusive to southern slopes and plains, Fraxinus angustifolia being limited to lower altitudes, and wild almond species being restricted to specific altitude ranges. Statistical analysis revealed no significant variation in plant species distribution across the topographical factors. Notably, families including Asteraceae, Poaceae, and Fabaceae exhibited the highest species counts within the entire study area.
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