Plant diversity of the Heydari Wildlife Refuge in northeastern Iran, with a checklist of vascular plants

Atashgahi, Zohreh; Ejtehadi, Hamid; Mesdaghi, M; Ghassemzadeh, Fereshteh

doi:10.11646/phytotaxa.340.2.1

Cited by 12 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…Compared to other studies in northeast Iran, for example, those of Atashgahi, Ejtehadi, Mesdaghi, and Ghassemzadeh (), Ghahreman, Heydari, Atar, and Hamzeh'ee (), and Memariani, Joharchi, Ejtehadi, and Emadzade (), the study area had more therophytes. This finding is consistent with the observation that 67.7% of the alien species in the area were therophytes.…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 67%

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Plant community responses to multiple disturbances in an arid region of northeast Iran

et al. 2019

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Various disturbances affect the vegetation in rural areas. However, the responses of plant communities to multiple disturbances have rarely been studied. We investigated the vegetation of a rural landscape in northeast Iran. We established 42 study sites in three land use types using a stratified‐random design: ungrazed abandoned croplands (UACs), grazed abandoned croplands (GACs), and grazed field margins (GFMs). The species richness and canopy cover for all vascular plants and influential disturbances (i.e., grazing, degraded/nondegraded status, distance to the main road, and distance to active cropland) were recorded at each site. We compared multiple facets of the plant communities among land use types. The results showed that there were significant differences among the species compositions of the land use types, with therophytes dominating in all three. Alien species were found in the three land use types, particularly in UACs. GFMs had the highest number of native species. There were no significant differences in the species or phylogenetic diversities among the land use types. Grazing and distance to active cropland were identified as significant factors determining the native species structure in the area, whereas grazing was the only significant factor determining the alien species structure. There was a significant correlation between the native and alien species structure. Our results imply that grazing disperses native and alien plant propagules simultaneously. Neither grazing nor non‐grazing improved biodiversity in the abandoned croplands. The restoration of this landscape requires a community‐specific plan. GFMs are native plant islands that should be prioritized in restoration.

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Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 67%

“…Compared to other studies in northeast Iran, for example, those of Atashgahi, Ejtehadi, Mesdaghi, and Ghassemzadeh (2018), Ghahreman, Heydari, Atar, and Hamzeh'ee (2006), and Memariani, Joharchi, Ejtehadi, and Emadzade (2009), the study area had more therophytes.…”

Section: The Ecological Features and Disturbancecontrasting

confidence: 67%

Plant community responses to multiple disturbances in an arid region of northeast Iran

et al. 2019

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“…In Table 2, we have compared the floristic composition, physical geography and climate of the wild pistachio woodlands in Polgerd and Layen (this study) and Chahchaheh as a part of Jangal‐e Khajeh Protected Area (Saberi et al 2010) with the nearest well‐documented areas in the KK. The P. vera woodlands show a warmer and partly dryer climate and lower species richness than the grasslands and juniper communities in the middle to higher zones of KK mountains in Tirgan (Amiri et al 2009) and Heydari Wildlife Refuge (Atashgahi et al 2018). Despite two pistachio woodlands in the study area and Chahchaheh are more distant than the others, they show higher floristic similarity to each other (53%) compared to the higher mountains.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Floristic composition and phytogeographical spectrum of Pistacia vera L. woodland remnants in northeastern Iran

Atashgahi

Memariani

Polgerd

et al. 2022

Nordic Journal of Botany

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The xerophilic woodlands of wild pistachio Pistacia vera L. remnants occur as several isolated stands in Central Asia. The Kopet Dagh mountain range, northeastern Iran, is the westernmost distribution range of wild pistachio. In this research, we present the annotated checklist of vascular plants of two remnants of P. vera woodlands along the Iran–Turkmenistan borders. We provide the life‐forms, phytogeographical spectrum, endemism and conservation status of the flora. The field surveys were conducted through several field collection efforts during 2018–2020. A map showing the boundaries of the woodlands was prepared. We recorded 348 plant species distributed in 214 genera and 48 families. The richest families were Asteraceae (33 genera with 59 species), Poaceae (22 with 41), Brassicaceae (24 with 28) and Fabaceae (11 with 27), and the two richest genera were Astragalus (ten species) and Galium (nine species). The dominant life‐forms were therophytes (54%) and hemicryptophytes (24%), which confirm a xeric climate condition. Irano–Turanian elements (195 species, 56%) were the most common plants, followed by bi‐regional (21%) elements. Based on our samplings, the Khorassan‐Kopet Dagh endemics represented only four percent of the flora. We recorded 34 endemics/sub‐endemics of plants, eight of which were categorized as threatened or near‐threatened. The results indicated the important role of pistachio remnant woodlands in plant biodiversity and conservation biogeography of northeastern Iran.

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“…Phlomis cancellata is a dominant species in the grazed areas of northeastern Iran 19 . This species is not poisonous and has a hemicryptophyte life form 24 . Euphorbia boissieriana and E .…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“… Euphorbia boissieriana and E . microsciadia (Euphorbiaceae) are two poisonous species with a similar physiognomy (i.e., hemicryptophyte) 24 . These plants remain intact after grazing.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Unpalatable plants induce a species-specific associational effect on neighboring communities

Erfanian

Memariani

Atashgahi

et al. 2021

Sci Rep

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In grazing conditions, unpalatable species may induce either associational defense or neighbor contrast susceptibility in neighboring communities. Using surveys from eight grasslands, we tested whether various unpalatable species have the same impacts on neighboring communities in response to grazing. The studied unpalatable species were: Phlomis cancellata (an unpalatable nonpoisonous plant), Euphorbia boissieriana, E.microsciadia (poisonous plants), and Seseli transcaucasicum (a highly poisonous plant). Our results showed that, in the ungrazed grasslands, communities containing P. cancellata had lower biodiversity than communities without it. In the moderately- and heavily grazed grasslands, P. cancellata induced associational defense in the neighboring communities. In heavily grazed grasslands, both Euphorbia species promoted neighbor contrast susceptibility in the neighboring communities. Similarly, S. transcaucasicum in a heavily grazed grassland, induced neighbor contrast susceptibility. Different responses of plant community vulnerability among the studied unpalatable plants might be due to herbivore different foraging decisions. Accordingly, grazers selectively choose from other patches when facing P. cancellata and other plant individuals when there is a poisonous plant in a patch. Our results suggested that grazing intensity may not substantially affect the foraging decisions of sheep and goats in response to unpalatable species. We recommend monitoring the abundance of poisonous species to maintain the sustainable use of grasslands.

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Plant diversity of the Heydari Wildlife Refuge in northeastern Iran, with a checklist of vascular plants

Cited by 12 publications

References 16 publications

Plant community responses to multiple disturbances in an arid region of northeast Iran

Plant community responses to multiple disturbances in an arid region of northeast Iran

Floristic composition and phytogeographical spectrum of Pistacia vera L. woodland remnants in northeastern Iran

Unpalatable plants induce a species-specific associational effect on neighboring communities

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