Diversity and ecological differentiation of mixed forest in northern Montenegro (Mt. Bjelasica) with reference to European classification

The current state of forests as well as tree species composition in stands is the result of past development and somehow a record of all previous influences. As a base for better projections of future forest development and the development of sustainable management strategies we should recognize developmental processes in forests and understand their drivers. Mixed mountain forests in Montenegro, with an exceptionally large variation of environmental conditions, provide an excellent opportunity to study eastern-Mediterranean mixed mountain forests near their southern distribution limit. The goals of this study were 1) to floristically characterize mountain forests in an Eastern Mediterranean region and 2) to assess their physical site properties as determinants of forest types. Research was based on data collected from 158 sampling plots in the territory of the mountain Bjelasica, north-east Montenegro. The influence of topographic, climatic and edaphic site characteristics on the differentiation of vegetation and formation of forest types was assessed using numerical ordination and classification. Three types of mountain forests were separated based on their floristic composition, which can be easily characterized by the composition of their tree layer: 1) Mixed forests with spruce, silver fir and beech, 2) monodominant beech forests resulting from over-exploitation of type 1, and 3) heliophytic mixed forests with pioneer species (pine, aspen and birch) and European hop-hornbeam. The types are discussed regarding their physical site characteristics and put in a European context. Mountain forests of Montenegro are quite similar to forests in other regions of Europe and can be arranged into the existing “Classification of European beech forests” (WILLNER et al. 2017) and according to WILLNER & GRABHERR (2007).