Floristic Composition of Woody Biotopes in the Ganos Mountain (Tekirdag, Turkey)

Abstract

In our day. revealing the current situation and the problems of nature and natural areas where human pressure is seen intensively is becoming more and more important. It is possible to identify a natural landscape and to reveal human-induced environmental degradation with the help of ecosystem based maps. This research identifies the woody biotopes on Ganos Mountain, which makes up the vast majority of forest potential of Tckirdag (Turkey), their ecology and vegetation. Representative and Selective Mapping of Biotope Mapping Methods and Braun-Blanquct Method for vegetation information were used in the study. 242 plant species (tree: 31, shrub: 24 and herbaceous plant: 187) were collected from 54 research areas with different floristic and ecological characteristics (Shrub biotopes: 10. coniferous forest biotopes: 8. broad-leaved forest biotopes: 33. afforestation areas: 3) within the scope of this study. In the research area, the altitude increases as we move from south to north and depending on the elevation, plant communities forming vegetation differentiate. Shrubs with Mediterranean vegetation and brutia forests, semihumid arid plants and moist forest vegetation were observed on the southern and southeastern slopes, at mid- altitudes and high altitudes respectively. Besides, species diversity, density, structure and composition of the vegetation in ecosystems have been revealed and species representing each biotope were identified. Access to information about the vegetation of Ganos Mountain, where anthropogenous pressures are increasing, is important for determining the current flora of the forest and providing a comparison for possible changes in flora. Such forest vegetation maps should take their place in the management of natural resources for planning and conservation of nature.