Home – Home – Jornals – Contemporary Problems of Ecology 2020 number 1

The primary successions of vegetation have been investigated in the continental conditions of the North-Chuya center of present-day glaciation (the Central Altai) from the colonization of deglaciated terrains by the first plants and the formation of simple plant groups to the primary plant communities. The observations were carried out for 15 years on the young moraines of the valley glaciers of Maly Aktru (2200-2250 m) and Bolshoi Left Aktru (2370-2500 m above sea level), in chrono-sequences from the ends of glaciers to the moraines of the mid-19th century. Three stages and four sub-stages of the primary succession of vegetation were identified, the species composition of vascular plants, mosses and ground lichens was identified, the dominant species, the peculiarities of primary vegetation were characterized. The ideas about the course of successions and their peculiarities at different altitudes in the upper part of the forest and sub-chalet belts are obtained. It was identified that in the 150 period a young forest community is formed on new moraines in the upper part of the forest belt, and a combination of microcenoses similar to tundra communities are formed in the alpine belt. Primary succession of vegetation on both glacier forelands has some similarities, especially in early stages of ecosystems development (pioneer species composition, three-stage structure of successions); the strong differences appear during the late stages of succession. The primary succession of vegetation on the foreland of the Malyi Aktru glacier involves 146 species of vascular plants, 44 species of mosses and 6 species of lichens; on the foreland of Bolshoi-Levyi Actru 128 species of vascular plants, 26 species of mosses and 8 ground lichens were recorded.