Pinus mugo shrubs on peat bogs in the Tatra National Park

Anna Maria Ociepa,Tomasz Zwijacz-Kozica,Antoni Zięba

doi:10.35535/pfsyst-2021-0016

Abstract

Pinus mugo shrubs on peat bogs in the Tatra National Park (TNP) were for the first time described as a separated plant association by Obidowicz (1975) from only two mires. Since then, there have been no studies on peat bogs in the TNP and they have not been mentioned in the list of vegetation types of the Park. The research regarding the dwarf pine shrubs on mires in the Tatra Mountains was carried out in 2019. We mapped all patches of such vegetation (total – ~2 ha) on which we made 26 relevés. P. mugo shrubs on peat bogs occur within the complex of mire habitats, such as Norway spruce bog woodlands, raised bogs and poor fens. The shrub layer is dominated by Pinus mugo with admixture of dwarfish Picea abies. Typical plants of the herb layer are Vaccinium myrtillus, V. vitis-idaea, Eriophorum vaginatum and Oxycoccus palustris, whereas the most common mosses are Sphagnum magellanicum, S. capillifolium, S. russowi, Pleurozium schreberi. P. mugo shrubs on peat bogs in the TNP belong to the association Sphagno magellanici-Pinetum mugo.

Highlights

Pinus mugo shrublands occur in Central Europe in two major types: (1) subalpine, such as Seslerio albicantis- Pinetum mugo (Šoltésová 1974) Šibík in Jarolímek et Šibík 2008, Adenostylo alliariae-Pinetum mugo (Sillinger 1933) Šoltésová 1974, Dryopterido dilatatae-Pinetum mugo Unar et al 1985, Cetrario islandicae-Pinetum mugo Hada 1956, and (2) azonal peat bog communities (Šibík et al 2010)
The aim of this work was to characterize P. mugo shrubs on peat bogs in the Tatra National Park based on the relevés collected within the entire range of these shrublands
This study was conducted in the Tatra National Park, encompassing 211.8 km2 and protecting the entire area of the Polish Tatra Mountains, the highest range of the Carpathians (Fig. 1)

Summary

Introduction

Pinus mugo shrublands occur in Central Europe in two major types: (1) subalpine, such as Seslerio albicantis- Pinetum mugo (Šoltésová 1974) Šibík in Jarolímek et Šibík 2008, Adenostylo alliariae-Pinetum mugo (Sillinger 1933) Šoltésová 1974, Dryopterido dilatatae-Pinetum mugo Unar et al 1985, Cetrario islandicae-Pinetum mugo Hada 1956, and (2) azonal peat bog communities (Šibík et al 2010). Dwarf pine (Pinus mugo) shrubs on peat bogs occur in the Carpathians, Sudetes, Alps, Dinarids, Rila and Pirin Mountains (Šibík et al 2010). They grow in the montane and subalpine zones between 700–1800 m a.s.l. First phytosociological studies in the Tatra Mountains did not include P. mugo shrubs on peat bogs as a separate plant association. Szafer et al (1927) in their work regarding the vegetation of Kościeliska Valley mentioned such a plant community as a successional stage on peat bogs at the foothills of Tatras. In the phytosociological table of dwarf pine shrubs, they included 5 relevés with abundant occurrence of Sphagnum capillifolium

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