Biodiversity of Native Forest Types in Strict Scientific Forest Reserves of the Moscow Region

Abstract

A dataset of relevés for native forest types, including spruce, pine, and broad-leaved forests was created as a result of route surveys of strict scientific forest reserves in the Moscow region (boreo-nemoral zone). These relevés can be considered as a “benchmark” of native forest communities in comparison with young, secondary, and anthropogenically disturbed forests. The purpose of the work is to determine the species diversity indicators for undisturbed (by logging or recreation) native forest communities in the main forest types in the Moscow region. Classification of relevés into syntaxa (forest types) was carried out according to the principles of the V.N. Sukachev’s school (based on habitat features and the composition of diagnostic groups of species) with further refinement of the results by ordination of relevés in multidimensional axes of detrending correspondence analysis (DCA). Biodiversity indicators (for an area of 300 m²⁾, such as the alpha diversity, the Shannon index, and the rank abundance curves were calculated for the first time for native undisturbed forests of the Moscow region using a unified approach. The maximum species diversity of the tree layer (A) was observed in mixed coniferous-broadleaved forest types – Pineta composita (4.9) and Piceeta composita (4.4). The maximum species diversity of the shrub layer (B2) was observed in Piceeta composita (6.1) and Piceeta oxalidosa (5.3). The maximum species diversity of the field layer (C) was observed in two nemoral spruce forest types—Piceeta composita and Piceeta oxalidosa (over 29). The maximum species diversity of the bottom layer (D) was observed in Vaccinium-type pine forest (7.6). In general, the maximum species diversity for a forest type (all layers) was observed in the nemoral spruce forest types, Piceeta oxalidosa and Piceeta composita (ca. 43) with the highest values of the Shannon index (ca. 2.8), and the shape of rank abundance curve close to S-shaped. This shape of the curves is characteristic of mature natural communities.