Investigation of Changes in Rangeland Vegetation Regarding Different Slopes, Elevation and Geographical Aspects (Case Study: Yazi Rangeland, Noor County, Iran)
محورهای موضوعی : Relationship between Animal and RangelandHamid Reza Saeedi Goraghani 1 , Mojtaba Solaimani Sardo 2 , Nabi Azizi 3 , Ali Azareh 4 , Sara Heshmati 5
1 - Range Management, Department of Reclamation of Arid and Mountainous Regions, the University of Tehran
2 - Combat Desertification, Faculty of Natural Resources and Earth Science, University of Kashan,
3 - Forestry, University of Tehran
4 - De-Desertification, Department of Reclamation of Arid and Mountainous Regions, the University of Tehran,
5 - Range Management, Agricultural Science and Natural Resources University of Sari
کلید واژه: production, Topographic factors, Plant composition, Yazi Rangeland of Noor,
چکیده مقاله :
In many studies, topographic factors have been considered as an important factor in establishing the vegetation in different ecosystems. So, it affects vegetation composition and diversity by influencing soil moisture, fertility and soil depth. The aim of this research was to investigate the effects of slope, elevation and geographical aspects on species growth, forage production and vegetation cover in Yazi rangeland, Noor province, Iran. Sampling was done along three transects with the length of 150 m in each unit. Along each transect, 15 plots (1 m2) were established with 10 m distances. In each plot, species name, growth form, cover percent and soil surface percent such as percentages of stones, pebbles and amount of litter were recorded. Also, the rangeland production was measured by the clip-and-weigh method. Data were analyzed and mean comparisons were done using Duncan method. Results showed that the geographical aspects had significant impacts on forage production, vegetative form and species composition. Northern aspects had the highest forage production rate and species frequency. Also, elevation had a significant effect on forage production and vegetative form so that the elevation of 1600-1900 m and 2200-2500 m had the highest and lowest effects. Also, according to forage production and vegetative form in the range of slope classes, it is specified that it has also a significant effect on forage production seen in higher slopes.
Ahmadi-Poor, S., 2004. The effect of morphology and soil conditions on vegetation of parts of Vaz watershed rangelands using GIS. M.Sc. thesis, faculty of natural resources and marine sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Noor branch, Iran. (In Persian).
Arab Roshan, R. and Saeedi Garaghani, H. R., 2010. Yazi Range Management Plan, Baldeh district, Nour County. Technical Office of Forests, Rangelands and Watershed Organization of Iran.
Badano, E. I., Cavieres, L. A., Molinga Montenegro, M. A. and Quiroz, C. L., 2005. Slope aspect influences plant association patterns in the Mediterranean matorral of central Chile, Jour. Arid Environments, 62: 93-108.
Barani, H., 1996. Evaluation and comparison of some common methods for assessment the rangeland conditions proportional to the site potential within several climatic zones, Tehran province. M.Sc. thesis, University of Tehran, Iran. (In Persian).
Chang C. R., Lee, P. F., Bai, M. L. and Lin, T. T., 2004. Predicting the geographical distribution of plant communities in complex terrain (A case study in Fushian Experimental Forest, Northeastern Taiwan, Ecography, 27: 577-588.
Faraj Allahi, A., Zare Chahoki, M. A., Yari, R., Gholi Nejad, B., Amamgholi, Kh. and Ghasemi Arian, Y., 2013. Investigation the most important effective soil factors and topographic on the species diversity (Case study: Bijar rangeland). Watershed Management Research Jour., 101(4): 48-58. (In Persian).
Gao, J. F., Maa, K. M., Feng, Z. W. and Feng, Y., 2009. Coupling effects of altitude and human disturbance on landscape and plant diversity in the vicinity of mountain villages of Beijing, China. Jour. Acta Ecologica Sinica, 29: 56–61.
Gracia, M., Montane, F., Piquea, J. and Retana, J., 2007. Overstory structure and topographic gradient determining diversity and abundance of understory shrub species in temperate forest in central Pyrenees (NE Spain). Jour. Ecological Management. 242(2-3): 391-397.
Grytnes, J. A., 2006. Species richness of vascular plants, bryophytes and lichens along an altitudinal gradient in Western Norway, Jour. Acta Oecologica (ACTA OECOL ). 29(3): 241-246.
Haji Hashemi Jazi, M. R., Ahmadi, H., Azarnivand, H. and Shirani, K., 2013. Evaluation the role of topographic and soil factors on vegetation covering of Zavareh rangeland in Ardestan county. Jour. Rangeland, 6 (4): 212-221. (In Persian).
Heidari, G., Saeedi Garaghani, H. R. and Heshmati, S., 2011. Relationship between vegetation diversity and geographical aspect (case study: Rineh-Koh rangeland, Amol County). Proceedings of the Rangeland and watershed National Student Conference Focusing on Desert Sustainable Development in Arid and Mountainous Areas. (In Persian).
Heshmati, G., Karimian A. A., Karami, P. and Amirkhani, M., 2007. Qualitative assessment of hilly range ecosystems potential at Inche-Boron area of Golestan province, Iran. Jour. Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, 14 (1): 23-32. (In Persian).
Jafari, M., Tavili, A., Rostampour, M., Zare Chahooki, M. A. and Farzad-Mehr, J., 2010. Investigation of environmental factors affecting vegetation distribution in the Zirkouh rangelands of Qaen. Jour. Range and Watershed Management, 62(2): 197-213. (In Persian).
Mangurran, A. E., 1988. Ecological Diversity and its Measurement. Princeton University Press.
Moghadam, M. R., 2008. Range and range management. University of Tehran Press, Tehran, Iran. (In Persian).
Pike, D. A., Herrick, J. E., Shaver, P. A. and Pellant, M., 2002. Rangeland health attributes and indicators for qualitative assessment. Jour. Range Manage, 55: 584-597.
Piri-Sahragard, H., Zare Chahooki, M. A., Arzani, H. and Ghomi, S., 2012. Investigation of plant diversity changes with environmental factors in middle rangelands of Taleghan. Watershed Management Research Jour., 64 (1): 1-11. (In Persian).
Small, C. J. and McCarthy, B. C., 2005. Relationship of understory diversity to soil nitrogen, topographic variation, and stand age in an eastern oak forest, USA Forest Ecology and Management, 217 (2/3): 229-243.
Tamrtash, R., Tatian, M. R., Saeedi Garaghani, H. R. and Ghordouie Milan, G., 2012. Investigation of species composition and rangeland conditions under different livestock grazing intensity (Case study: Rineh-Koh countryside rangelands, Amol County), Jour. Forest and Range., 92: 24-29. (In Persian).
Vetas, O. R., 1993. Spatial and temporal vegetation changes along moisture gradient in northeastern Sudan. Biotropica, 25: 164- 175.
Zare-Chahoki M. A., Azarnivand, H., Ghomi, S. and Piri Sahragard, H., 2010. Relationship between vegetation diversity and environmental factors (case study: Arton-Fashandak rangelands of Taleghan county), Scientific Research Jour. Range, 3(2): 171-180. (In Persian).
