Abstract
Saline habitats of the Pannonian plain are specific regarding their extraordinary biodiversity with many endemic species, yet they are among the most threatened European Communities with limited spatial distribution. These habitats are present in the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina in the North of Serbia, in the area of Srednja Mostonga, and they are in the procedure of protection as the II category protected area - "region of exceptional characteristics". Great variety of rare and endemic species makes this area interesting for recreational and educational activities. In this paper we investigate micrometeorological and outdoor thermal comfort conditions in different natural environments at the area of Srednja Mostonga. This is the first micrometeorological field measurement study conducted in this region. Measurements were performed during the daytime of a sunny autumn day in 2019. The results showed that daytime air temperature was up to 3.4 °C lower in forest compared to steppe, while relative humidity was up to 5-6% higher in forest than in steppe with up to 3.2 m/s lower wind speeds in forest than in steppe area. Micrometeorological values were similar between forest-steppe and steppe. However, the outdoor thermal comfort conditions expressed via Humidex showed that 'some discomfort' was most often observed in forest-steppe during 27% of measurement time, followed with 13% of 'some discomfort' observed in steppe and only 1% of 'some discomfort' was observed in forest. Accordingly, during the warmest daytime hours outdoor activities could be performed in forest, while early morning and evening hours could be spent in steppe and forest-steppe areas of Srednja Mostonga.
Highlights
Saline habitats such as saline steppes and marshes of Pannonian plain in Serbia are strongly impacted by Pannonian climatic conditions characterized by extreme temperatures and aridity in summer
The highest Ta are noticed in more open areas of forest steppe and steppe, while the lowest Ta are observed in oak forest, as expected (Table 3)
Small Ta differences (< 0.5 °C) are obtained between forest-steppe and saline steppe (Figure 5). This is because the forest-steppe is more similar to steppe than to forest area, because it does not contain trees, yet higher and lower grass species
Summary
Saline habitats such as saline steppes and marshes of Pannonian plain in Serbia are strongly impacted by Pannonian climatic conditions characterized by extreme temperatures and aridity in summer. These areas are characterized by lower salt content, but higher alkalinity, and they have been present in the Carpathian Basin since the last Ice Age. These areas are characterized by lower salt content, but higher alkalinity, and they have been present in the Carpathian Basin since the last Ice Age These habitats have specific vegetation, with salt resistant plants, and they occur only in a few other countries in Europe Saline habitats with their mosaic structures give the basis for extraordinarily rich flora and fauna, which contain endemic species (Šefferová Stanová et al, 2008)
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