Part Two – Fact sheets of regions surveyed
Akharbakhar Hills S Lake Mingäshevir
Artemisia semi-desert
Shiblyak
bare slope
Juniperus sparse forest
bare slope
Shiblyak
bare slope
N
Artemisia steppe
400
300
200
100
[m] a.s.l.
0
1
3
2
Artemisia fragrans
Pistacia mutica
Tamarix sp.
Juniperus exelsa
4
5
[km]
Paliurus spina christi
Fig. 21: Cross section through Akharbakhar Hills
soil and communities of salt-resistant annuals occur on sites with seasonal flooding, especially around Lake Ajinohur.
sin, whereas the salt accumulates. Near the lake, only salt-resistant plants occur. b) Salt shrub semi-deserts: On clayey and badly drained soils, salt accumulates in the upper horizons. Only some salt-resistant annuals and ligneous Chenopodiaceae are adapted to such conditions. Various sub-shrubs such as Halostachys caspica, Kalidium caspicum and Halocnemum strobilaceum depend on groundwater but tolerate high salt concentrations. They often predominate; Parapholis incurva and Psylliostachys spicata grow in their shadow. Between the sub-shrubs grow herbaceous Chenopodiaceae with flowering periods in autumn, e.g. Petrosimonia brachiata or Salicornia europaea.
Due to diverse site conditions, a pattern of sparse forests, scrublands and grasslands with Stipa sp. or Artemisia fragrans covers the lower ridges. On moist sites in the northern part, scrublands called “Shiblyak” grow from about 300 up to 550 m a.s.l., where they blend in with Georgian oak forests. Open woodland with single specimen of Pyrus salicifolia covers the northern slopes of the Dashüz Hills. Fields with weed communities were not investigated. Along the rivers, fl oodplains with cottonwood forests, tamarisk scrublands and reeds form a contrast to the adjacent dry landscape. Tamarix sp. grows everywhere along the shore of Lake Mingächevir.
A one-kilometre-wide belt of Halocnemum strobilaceum grows at the southern edge of Lake Ajinohur and mingles with semi-deserts predominated by Kalidium caspicum and Suaeda microphylla. Sites with K. caspicum can also be found on the Korchay plain south of the Bozdagh ridge.
The following chapters describe habitat types and show their distribution in the investigated area. Cross sections focus on the sequence of vegetation types in dependence on elevation and aspect and show the connections amongst them.
c) Salt herb meadow: Meadows of salt-resistant herbs develop under wet conditions on salty soils. They occur on the western banks of Lake Ajinohur and in some basins of the Jeyranchöl Steppe. Agropyron triticeum, Salsola crassa and Petrosimonia brachiata predominate here.
a) Salt lake: Lake Ajinohur is a shallow steppe lake with changing water levels. It is fed only by surface water from the adjacent hills, which evaporates from the ba-
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