Classification of plant communities along postfire succession in Pinus brutia(Turkish red pine) stands in Antalya (Turkey)

Abstract

The paper deals with the classification of plant communities that appear along postfire succession of Pinus brutia forests (Turkish red pine). The research took place in the Antalya region in the southern part of Turkey. Samplings were performed in nine areas, with different periods after fire: 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 12, 20, 40 years, and a mature forest with an estimated age of 60 years. Numerical classification and ordination analysis were used to determine the communities and to understand the temporal changes. The vegetation classification showed that separate plant communities can be distinguished along the succession line. It was found that immediately after fire semiruderal, subnitrophilous communities (Ajugo chamaepitys-Lactucetum serriolae, Eryngio falcate-Securigerion securidacae, Carthametalia lanati, Artemisietea vulgaris) appear, which remain until the third year, when low scrub vegetation up to 1-m high develops, dominated by low scrub species and termed garrigue (Phlomido grandiflorae-Cistetum salvifolii, Helichryso sanguinei-Origanion syriaci, Cisto-Micromerietalia julianae, Cisto-Micromerietea julianae); during the following years, up to 5-m-high scrub vegetation called maquis appears (Arbuto andrachnes-Quercetum cocciferae, Arbuto andrachnes-Quercion cocciferae, Pistacio lentisci-Rhamnetalia alaterni, Quercetea ilicis), which remains until the twentieth year when forest vegetation dominated by Pinus brutia (Glycyrrhizo asymetricae-Pinetum brutiae, Quercion calliprini, Quercetalia ilicis, Quercetea ilicis) develops. The work also discusses the classification of vegetation in the wider area of the eastern Mediterranean region by also indicating some syntaxonomical problems in Turkey.