Сommunities of the class Scheuchzerio–Caricetea nigrae (Nordh. 1936) Tx. 1937 in the East European tundras

There are few publications on the classification of vegetation of Scheuchzerio–Caricetea nigrae class in the Arctic (Daniёls, 1982; Matveyeva, 1994; Zanokha, 2003). In Russia classification of mires is more or less well designed for the taiga zone of the European North and the West Siberia. Communities of sedge-hypnum mires and sedge-sphagnum hollows of flat palsa-bogs in the East European tundra are described in the dominant classification traditions (Andreev, 1932; Bogdanovskaya-Gienef, 1938; Dedov, 2006). N. Yа. Katz (1936) briefly described the vegetation of the Arctic mineral sedge mires on the Vaygach Island.

In present paper the results of the mires classification carried out upon the basis of 148 relevés made in 1998–2014 in 26 sites in the East European tundra along the latitudinal gradient from typical tundra to northern forest-tundra.

The Scheuchzerio–Caricetea nigrae class is divided into 3 alliances: Caricion stantis and Drepano­cladion exannulati of Caricetalia nigrae order and Sphagnion baltici of Scheuchzerietalia palustris order. Sedges Carex aquatilis subsp. stans and C. rariflora and cotton grass Eriophorum polystachion are character species of class occurring syntaxa in all orders and unions. Area distribution of Caricion stantis, proposed for mire vegetation of Siberian sector of the Arctic (Matveyeva, 1994) is expanded on the eastern part of the European North. It geographically coincides with the Arctic mineral sedge mires zone by N. Yа. Katz (1948) and covers also the Vaygach and Dolgiy islands and Yugra Peninsula, allocated by N. Yа. Katz into the separate Bolshezemelskaya province. New syntaxa, associations Carici rariflorae–Limprichtietum revol­ventis and Carici stantis–Limprichtietum revolventis and subassociation Carici stantis–Salicetum reptantis Zanokha 2003 salicetosum myrsinitae, are described within the Caricion stantis alliance.

New syntaxa in Drepanocladion exannulati of Caricetalia nigrae order and in Sphagnion baltici of Scheuchzerietalia palustris order are described in typical (Kolguev Isl. and coastal mainland areas) and southern tundra subzones, those territories coincide with the flat palsa-bogs zone by N. Yа. Katz (1948). Associations Carici stantis–Warnstorfietum exannulatae (with typicum and comaretosum palustris subassociations), Carici stan­tis–Warnstorfietum fluitantis and Carici stantis–Sphagnetum squarrosi are described in Drepanocladion exannulati alliance, that unites the communities of sedge-hypnum mires. They are common on low flat terraces above floodplain of rivers, in depressions around lakes, in flat bottom of hollows, flooded places along rivulets and brooks and rarely in flooded hollows of flat palsa bogs (in sites with running water).

Sphagnion baltici was validated by E. D. Lapshina (2010) for vegetation of sphagnum lawns and hollows mainly ombrotrophic raised bogs and less transitional mires with domination of oligotrophic Sphagnum in boreal Holarctic zone with continental climate. We propose to expand Sphagnion baltici area distribution and to include in it the communities of hollows of small- and flat palsa bogs of the tundra in the rank of the new Caricenion rariflorae suballiance (differential combination of species — Carex rariflora, C. rotun­data, Eriophorum scheuchzeri, E. russeolum, Polytri­chum jensenii, Sphagnum balticum, S. lindbergii and Cetrariella delisei). Associations Carici rariflorae–Sphagnetum lindbergii, Carici rariflorae–Sphagnetum baltici (with 2 subassociations — typicum and sphagnetosum lindbergii) and Carici stantis–Sphagnetum lindbergii) are described within it.

Both order and alliance for new ass. Carici stantis–Aulacomnium palustre are so far not installed.

The problems we faced with the placing the associations into highest syntaxonomic units are discussed. These difficulties exist because of the insufficient data for the Arctic mires and the vague idea on the volumes of the existing orders and alliances. Thus, following the other researchers of the Arctic vegetation (Daniёls, 1982), firstly we put, the sedge-hypnum mires communities in Caricion nigrae of the Caricetalia nigrae order. However, according to E. D. Lapshina (personal comment), the volume and position of Caricion nigrae in the modern system of floristic classification remains indefinite, and it requires serious revision. After the mire vegetation of northern and mountainous regions were taken from the сommunities of plains and foothills of Caricion nigrae and placed into Drepanocladion exannulati Krajina 1933 (Peterka et al., 2016), we classified sedge-moss mires communities with the dominance of mosses Warnstorfia exannulata and W. sarmentosa to Drepanocladion exannulati.

Key words: East European tundras, mire vegetation, Scheuchzerio–Caricetea nigrae, Braun-Blanquet classification

Section: Articles

How to cite

Lavrinenko O. V., Matveyeva N. V., Lavrinenko I. A. 2016. Сommunities of the class Scheuchzerio–Caricetea nigrae (Nordh. 1936) Tx. 1937 in the East European tundras // Vegetation of Russia. N 28. P. 55–88. https://doi.org/10.31111/vegrus/2016.28.55

Received July 9 2015

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