Home – Home – Jornals – Flora and Vegetation of Asian Russia 2020 number 3

The study of the fl ora of Novosibirsk Oblast provided the records of new species of Stipa genus: S. dasyphylla , S. lessingiana , S. pulcherrima , S. praecapillata , as well as new finds of the rare and endangered S. zalesskii . Th e work was based on the studies of vegetation cover in the territory of Novosibirsk Oblast that had been conducted since 1987. In the course of those studies, a database of georeferenced geobotanical relevés was compiled in IBIS 7.2 environment. It facilitated the query of vegetation plots containing Stipa plants. In the given study, we show the distribution of Stipa species within Novosibirsk Oblast, give their phytocoenotic and ecological characteristics, and provide the identification key to nine species growing in the region. At present, nine Stipa species grow in the territory of Novosibirsk Oblast. Three of them are widely distributed within the steppe and forest-steppe zones: S. capillata , S. pennata , and S. zalesskii . Five species are known from a limited number of sites. Th e species S. dasyphylla rarely occurs as a component of rich forb - bunchgrass meadow steppes confined to dry valley slopes on the right bank of the Ob’. Th e species S. pulcherrima was recorded in rich forb - bunchgrass steppes covering the only dry valley network. Th e species S. borysthenica is a facultative psammophyte characteristic for sandy steppes of the steppe zone. In the territory of Novosibirsk Oblast, it prevails in Stipa steppes confined to sandy soils in Kupinsk District. The three species, Stipa lessingiana , S. praecapillata , and S. korshinskyi , were recorded in forb - bunch grass true steppes in the south-west of the Oblast abut with Kazakhstan. This territory features the least amount of precipitation and high temperatures, while the communities with the rare Stipa species represent the most xeric variants of steppes of Novosibirsk Oblast. Th e species S. dasyphylla and S. pulcherrima are listed in the Red Data book of the Russian Federation (Krasnaya kniga…, 2008) and to be entered to the next edition of the Red Data book of Novosibirsk Oblast. Stipa borys thenica is a dominant species of sandy steppes that are exceptionally rare for Novosibirsk Oblast. Th e species Stipa lessingiana , S. praecapillata and S. korshinskyi that grow in forb - bunchgrass true steppes in the south-west of the Oblast are also rare. High anthropogenic load represents a critical threat to the existence of steppe ecosystems.