The Effect of Afforestation on Biodiversity in Malatya, Turkey

Abstract

Since 1960s, the Tepehan (Turkey) region had long been suffering from serious soil erosion. Therefore, large-scale afforestation with mainly coniferous species has continued during the past decades in order to control soil erosion and it has yielded quite successful results. However, since it has been unknown how afforestation influences biodiversity so far this study investigated it. Braun-Blanquette method was used to select a plot in each stratum which represents the vegetation characteristic of the whole area of the forest and to assess vegetation parameters. The results of the survey show that 77 species belonging to 58 genera were recorded in different layers including 7 trees, 4 shrubs and 66 herbs in the study area. Diversity index was used for measuring biological diversity and was found consistently and significantly greater in native Quercus forests than in exotic coniferous plantation forests. These results show that afforestation has a negative influence on species diversity. Therefore, it is recommended to develop strategies for biodiversity conservation in afforestation work in the country to maintain habitats and minimize loss of native species.

A major tool for afforestation of semi-arid and anthropogenic steppe areas in Turkey: Pinus nigra J.F. Arnold subsp. pallasiana (Lamb.) Holmboe

“…The steppe proportion in the Anatolian peninsula accounted for around 17% in the years 10 000 BC but it has increased to 35% today (Çepel 1995). Inconsistent land management with deforestation and erosion in semi-arid areas resulted in soil degradation and the loss of plant species (WMO 2007;Mutlu 2019). Semi-arid and steppe regions have been created by climatic and anthropogenic factors in the historical processes (Yıldız 2019).…”

“…However, diversity index was found significantly greater in native Quercus spp. forests than in exotic coniferous afforestation (Mutlu 2019). The black pine is one of the most widely used tree species for afforestation and reforestation in the Republic of North Macedonia, but considering the elevation and the local environmental factors, the species develop much better features at higher altitudes (altitude of 500 m a.s.l.…”

Ağaçlandırma çalışmalarında fidan kalitesinin hayatta kalmaya etkisi

“…2018). Ağaçlandırmanın başarısı, saha hazırlığı, tür seçimi, tohum kaynağı ve dikim yöntemleri de dahil olmak üzere dikkatli planlama ve uygulamaya bağlıdır (Mutlu 2019). Elaeagnus angustifolia ve Amygdalus orientalis'in umut verici sonuçlar verdiği Türkiye'nin farklı bölgelerinde ağaçlandırma için çeşitli ağaç ve çalı türleri test edilmiştir (Gençay 2020).…”

Effects of silvicultural thinning on stand structure and coarse woody debris in the deciduous Arasbaran forest, Iran

“…Numerous studies in many countries have shown that reforestation can provide habitats for a wide range of native forest plants, animals and fungi and can support a diverse array of native understorey plants (Mutlu 2019, Gayo 2022. Reforestation programmes are widely implemented in many parts of the world to create microhabitats for different types of fauna (Msanga et al 2018).…”