The diversity of mesic and wet grasslands for the north part of the steppe zone in the Southern Bug River basin is characterized by the example of Buzkyi Gard National Nature Park and adjacent territories. I classified 39 vegetation relevés with quantitative classification methods (JUICE, TWINSPAN modified algorithm) and obtained seven clusters, which represent three associations, three communities and one derivate community within six alliances (Agrostion vinealis, Althaeion officinalis, Arrhenatherion elatioris, Convolvulo arvensis-Agropyrion repentis, Potentillion anserinae, Veronico longifoliae-Lysimachion vulgaris). Using Canonical Correspondence Analysis (CCA), Detrended Correspondence Analysis (DCA) and Didukh’s ecological scales, I determined the main environmental factors, which explain differentiation of the resulted vegetation units: variability of damping, salt regime of a soil, soil moisture, soil aeration, carbonate content in a soil, light. Characterized vegetation corresponds to six habitat types of the EUNIS classification (R21, R22, R35, R36, R55, V38). I also reviewed the major factors of negative impact on the meadow vegetation of the territory, in particular the changes of traditional land use in the last decades and their consequences. The main measures of management for studied communities should be mowing, moderate grazing, and removal of tree and shrub species if necessary.

Supplementary Material. Electronic Supplement (Tables E1–E2, e14–e17) is available in the online version of this article.

Keywords: mesic grasslands, Molinio-Arrhenatheretea, ordination, phytoindication, Southern Bug, steppe zone, syntaxonomy, TWINSPAN, vegetation, wet grasslands

Full text: PDF (Ukr) 4.89M

1. Botta-Dukát Z., Chytrý M., Hájková P., Havlová M. 2005. Vegetation of lowland wet meadows along a climatic continentality gradient in Central Europe. Preslia, 77(1): 89–111.
2. Chytrý M., Tichý L., Hennekens S.M., Knollová I., Janssen J.A.M., Rodwell J.S., Peterka T., Marcenò C., Landucci F., Danihelka J., Hájek M., Dengler J., Novák P., Zukal D., Jiménez-Alfaro B., Mucina L., Abdulhak S., Aćić S., Agrillo E., Schaminée J.H.J. 2020. EUNIS Habitat Classification: Expert system, characteristic species combinations and distribution maps of European habitats. Applied Vegetation Science, 23(4): 648–675. https://doi.org/10.1111/avsc.12519
3. Derkach O.M. 1990. Ukrainian Botanical Journal, 47(6): 84–85.
4. Didukh Ya.P. 2011. The ecological scales for the species of Ukrainian flora and their use in synphytoindication. Kyiv: Phytosociocentre, 176 pp.
5. Didukh Ya.P., Borsukevych L.M., Davydova A.O., Dziuba T.P., Dubyna D.V., Iemelianova S.M., Kuzemko A.A., Kolomiychuk V.P., Kucher O.O., Khodosovtsev O.E., Pashkevych N.A., Moysiyenko I.I., Fitsailo T.V., Tsarenko P.M., Chusova O.O., Shapoval V.V., Shyriaeva D.V. 2020. Biotopy stepovoi zony Ukrainy. Kyiv – Chernivtsi: DrukArt, 392 pp.
6. Didukh Ya.P., Shelyah-Sosonko Yu.R. 2003. Ukrainian Botanical Journal, 60(1): 6–17.
7. Dierschke H. 1996. Syntaxonomische Stellung von Hochstauden – Gesellschaften, insbesondere aus der Klasse Molinio-Arrhenatheretea (Filipendulion). Berichte der Reinhold-Tüxen-Gesellschaft, 8: 145–157.
8. Drabyniuk G.V. 2012. NPP Buzkyi Hard. In: Fitoriznomanittya zapovidnykiv i natsionalnykh pryrodnykh parkiv Ukrainy. Natsionalni pryrodni parky. Kyiv: Phytosociocentre, pp. 49–60.
9. Dubyna D.V., Dzyuba T.P. 2007. Rastitelnost Rossii, 10: 7–22.
10. Dubyna D.V., Dziuba T.P., Iemelianova S.M., Bagrikova N.O., Borysova O.V., Borsukevych L.M., Vynokurov D.S., Gapon S.V., Gapon Yu.V., Davydov D.A., Dvoretskyi T.V., Didukh Ya.P., Zhmud O.I., Kozyr M.S., Konishchuk V.V., Kuzemko A.A., Pashkevych N.A., Ryff L.E., Solomakha V.A., Felbaba-Klushyna L.M., Fitsailo T.V., Chorna H.A., Chorney I.I., Shelyag-Sosonko Yu.R., Iakushenko D.M. 2019. Prodrome of the Vegetation of Ukraine. Eds D.V. Dubyna, T.P. Dziuba. Kyiv: Naukova Dumka, 782 pp.
11. Ellmauer T., Mucina L. 1993. Mollinio-Arrhenatheretea. In: Die Pflanzengesellschaften Österreichs. Teil I. Jena: Gustav Fischer Verlag, pp. 297–401.
12. Golub V.B. 1995. Halophytic, desert and semi-desert plant communities on the territory of the former USSR. Russian Academy of Sciences, Institute of Ecology of the Volga River Basin, Togliatti, 32 pp.
13. Hájková P., Hájek M., Blažková D., Kučera T., Chytrý M., Řezníčková M., Šumberová K., Černý T., Novák J., Simonová D. 2007. Louky a mezofilní pastviny (Molinio-Arrhenatheretea). Meadows and mesic pastures. In: Vegetace České republiky. 1. Travinná a keříčková vegetace [Vegetation of the Czech Republic, vol. 1. Grassland and Heathland Vegetation]. Praha: Academia, pp. 166–280.
14. Hennekens S.M., Schaminée J. 2001. TURBOVEG, a comprehensive data base management system for vegetation data. Journal of Vegetation Science, 12: 589–591. https://doi.org/10.2307/3237010
15. Kovalenko O.A. 2016. Flora, vegetation and fitosozological aspects of National nature park "Pyryatynsky": Cand. Sci. Diss. Abstract. Kyiv, M.M. Gryschko National Botanical Garden, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, 25 pp.
16. Kuzemko A.A. 2009. Roslynnist Ukrainy. Luchna roslynnist. Klas Molinio-Arrhenatheretea. Kyiv: Phytosociocentre, p. 376.
17. Kuzemko A.A. 2011a. Naukovi Zapysky NaUKMA. Biologiya ta ecologiya, 119: 59–69.
18. Kuzemko A.A. 2011b. Visnyk Donetskoho Natsionalnoho Universytetu. Series A: Pryrodnychi nauky, 1: 141–150.
19. Kuzemko A.A. 2012a. Luchna roslynnist lisovoi ta lisostepovoi zon rivnynnoi chastyny Ukrainy: struktura ta antropohenna transformatsiya. Dr. Sci. Diss. Kyiv, M.G. Kholodny Institute of Botany NAS of Ukraine, 380 pp. (manuscript).
20. Kuzemko A.A. 2012b. Ukrainian Botanical Journal, 69(2): 190–202.
21. Kuzemko A.A. 2012c. Ukrainian Grasslands Database. In: Special Volume: Vegetation databases for the 21st century. Eds J. Dengler, J. Oldeland, F. Jansen, M. Chytrý, J. Ewald, M. Finckh, F. Glöckler, G. Lopez-Gonzalez, R.K. Peet, J.H.J. Schaminée. Biodiversity & Ecology, 4: 430–430. https://doi.org/10.7809/b-e.00217
22. Kuzemko A. 2016. Classification of the class Molinio-Arrhenatheretea in the forest and forest-steppe zones of Ukraine. Phytocoenologia, 46(3): 241–256. https://doi.org/10.1127/phyto/2016/0083
23. Kuzemko A.A., Didukh Ya.P., Onyshchenko V.A., Sheffer Ya. (eds.). 2018. National Habitat Catalogue of Ukraine. Kyiv: FOP Klymenko Yu.Ya., 442 pp.
24. Mucina L., Bültmann H., Dierßen K. Theurillat J.-P., Raus T., Čarni A., Šumberová K., Willner W., Dengler J., Gavilán García R., Chytrý M., Hájek M., Di Pietro R., Iakushenko D., Pallas J., Daniëls F.J.A., Bergmeier E., Santos Guerra A., Ermakov N., Valachovič M., Schaminée J.H.J., Lysenko T., Didukh Y.P., Pignatti S., Rodwell J.S., Capelo J., Weber H.E., Solomeshch A., Dimopoulos P., Aguiar C., Hennekens S.M., Tichý L. 2016. Vegetation of Europe: hierarchical floristic classification system of vascular plant, bryophyte, lichen, and algal communities. Applied Vegetation Science, 19 (1): 1–783. https://doi.org/10.1111/avsc.12257
25. Novosad V.V., Krytska L.I., Shcherbakova O.F. 2013. Fitobiota natsionalnoho pryrodnoho parku ″Buzkyi Hard″. Kyiv: Fiton, 256 pp.
26. Proekt orhanizatsii terytorii natsionalnoho pryrodnoho parku "Buzkyi Hard", okhorony, vidtvorennya ta rekreatsiynoho vykorystannya yoho pryrodnykh kompleksiv ta ob'yektiv. 2011. Kirovohrad: DP "Kirovohradskyi naukovo-doslidnyi ta proektnyi instytut zemleustroyu", vol. 3, 168 pp.
27. Protopopova V.V., Didukh Ya.P., Tkachenko V.S., Shevera M.V., Kucher O.O., Zavialova L.V., Biatov A.P. 2021. Grindelia squarrosa in Ukraine: current distribution and ecological and coenotic peculiarities. Hacquetia, 20(2): 263–272. https://doi.org/10.2478/hacq-2021-0014
28. Reichert H., Gregor T., Meierott L. 2018. Euphorbia saratoi (= E. podperae, E. pseudovirgata auct., E. virgata var. orientalis, E. virgultosa) – in Mitteleuropa und Nordamerika ein Neophyt unklarer Herkunft. Kochia, 11: 1–36.
29. Roleček J., Tichý L., Zelený D., Chytrý M. 2009. Modified TWINSPAN classification in which the hierarchy respects cluster heterogeneity. Journal of Vegetation Science, 20: 596–602. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1654-1103.2009.01062.x
30. Shapoval V., Kuzemko A. 2021. Syntaxonomy of steppe depression vegetation of Ukraine. Vegetation Classification and Survey, 2: 87–108. https://doi.org/10.3897/VCS/2021/62825
31. Sobko V.H. 1972. Ukrainian Botanical Journal, 29(5): 624–630.
32. Solomakha V.A., Drabynyuk H.V., Vinichenko T.S., Moysiyenko I.I., Derkach O.M. 2006. Ukrainskyi phytocenotychnyi zbirnyk. Series C, 24: 70–86.
33. Tichý L. 2002. JUICE, software for vegetation classification. Journal of Vegetation Science, 13: 451–453. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1654-1103.2002.tb02069.x
34. Velev N., Apostolova I., Fajmonová Z. 2011. Alliance Arrhenatherion elatioris in West Bulgaria. Phytologia Balcanica, 17(1): 67–78.