Ecological perspectives of endemic flora of Adjara, Georgia

Abstract

In the floristic region of Ajara 1837 species of vascular plants are distributed, 174 of which are endemic. By geographic structure, they are divided into 5 groups of the Caucasus, Georgia, Colchis, Adjara-Lazeti, Adjara. They are united in 150 genera from 50 families, and make up 9,4% of the ntire flora of Ajara. Among them, 68 species are endemic to Caucasus (39%), 52 to Cholchis (29.9%), 23 to Ajara-Lazeti (13.2%), 21 to Georgia (12%) and 10 to Ajara (5,74%) (Memiadze 2009). According to life forms 136 species are perennial grasses, 6 species are binnials, 6 - annuals, 11 - trees, 13 - bushes, 2 - timbered lianas. They are distributed in different ecological environment: in coastal sand and dunes, coastal lowlands – 8 species, freshwater ponds – 3 species, in peat bogs – 4 species, on the humid, shaded slopes of the coast – 17 species, In thermophilous- mesophilous broadleaf forests – 40 species, Cholchis mesophilous shrubs – 3 species, hemixerophilic biotops of cliffs and scree of the forests – 57 species, biotopes of subalpine forest- valleys – 72 species, alpine valleys – 40 species. In terms of the number of species, the largest percentage comes from Caucasian endemic plants, the center of distribution and origination of which mainly falls on the subalpine belt. Species ndemic to cholchis are mainly distributed on shaded slopes and in the thermophilic-mesophilic forest belt, which must be a habitat of endemic origin for Colchis.