Kiril Vassilev

Effect of land abandonment on the vegetation of upland semi-natural grasslands in the Western Balkan Mts., Bulgaria

Abstract The area of semi-natural grasslands in Bulgaria has decreased tremendously in the past century due to agricultural intensification or abandonment. As these grasslands host valuable biodiversity, conservation measures are needed for their sustainable maintenance. We studied the effect of pastureland abandonment on plant communities at the Ponor Mt., a part of the Balkan Mts., Bulgaria. Data on floristic composition, vegetation structure and several abiotic parameters were collected in 137 randomly located 16-m2 plots in 2008. Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) was used to analyse how species composition is related to abiotic and land use factors. Analyses of covariance (ANCOVAs) were used to test for the effects of sheep grazing vs. abandonment on vegetation structure and composition. The main environmental factors explaining the compositional variation were related to the altitude, sheep grazing and soil depth. Pastureland abandonment led to an increase in vegetation height and of the richness of mesophytes and leafy plants, and red-list species. Grazed plots had higher total species richness, more xerophytes, rosette forming and spring-flowering species. To ensure the persistence of the species of both the open grasslands and mid-successional grassland communities, the management should be carried out in an extensive way and with a zonation regime.

Management Regimes within Syntaxa of Semi-Natural Grasslands in West Bulgaria

Abstract This study focuses on mesic and xeric grasslands of mostly secondary origin, and that are influenced by human activity. Mesic grasslands are traditionally used for hay-making, and xeric ones for pastures. Over the last 20 years, livestock farming in Bulgaria has significantly declined so that less grass is needed. Many types of grasslands are no longer used and lots of abandoned fields can be found nowadays in Bulgaria. The analyses in this study are based on 868 releves collected on xeric and mesic grasslands according to the methodological approach of Braun- Blanquet. As a result, five alliances within two classes are recognized: the class Festuco-Brometea, represented by three alliances, namely Cirsio-Brachypodion pinnati, Chrysopogono-Danthonion calycinae and Festucion valesiacae, and the class Molinio-Arrhenatheretea, represented by two alliances, namely Arrhenatherion elatioris and Cynosurion cristati. The majority of the managed grasslands are situated in close proximity to settlements. Most of the abandoned areas (30%) are found within Cirsio-Brachypodion alliance. These grasslands are characterized by the highest values of total cover of vegetation. They are located in the most distant and least accessible areas. If use is not resumed, all the abandoned grasslands will be under threat of extinction in the near future. At the same time, many arable lands have been abandoned and turned into grasslands by the processes of secondary succession. Izvleček V raziskavi smo se osredotočili na mezična in kserična travišča večinoma sekundarnega nastanka, ki so pod vplivom človekovih aktivnosti. Mezična travišča se tradicionalno uporabljajo za seno, kserična pa kot pašniki. V Bolgariji je živinoreja v zadnjih 20 letih močno upadla in je potreba po krmi manjša. S številnimi tipi travišč ne gospodarijo več in danes je v Bolgariji moč najti številne opuščene površine. V analizi smo zbrali 868 vegetacijskih popisov kseričnih in mezičnih travišč, narejenih z Braun-Blanquetovo metodo. Uvrstili smo jih v pet zvez in dva razreda: razred Festuco-Brometea, ki ga predstavljajo tri zveze Cirsio-Brachypodion pinnati, Chrysopogono- Danthonion calycinae in Festucion valesiacae in razred Molinio-Arrhenatheretea z dvema zvezama Arrhenatherion elatioris in Cynosurion cristati. Večina vzdrževanih travišč se nahaja v bližini naselij. Večino opuščenih površin (30%) uvrščamo v zvezo Cirsio-Brachypodion in za te travnike je značilno, da imajo največjo skupno pokrovno vrednost in se nahajajo v najbolj oddaljenih, težko dostopnih območjih. Če jih ne bomo ponovno začeli uporabljati, bodo v bližnji prihodnosti izginili. Obenem se opuščajo tudi številne obdelovalne površine, ki se spreminjajo v travnike v procesu sekundarne sukcesije.

GIS-based Valuation of Ecosystem Services in Mountain Regions: A Case Study of the Chepelare Municipality in Bulgaria

This work has shown that using a methodology that considers complex variables such as Visual Fragility and Visual Quality, gives the possibility to establish a zoning including the landscape factor in spatial planning processes. In addition, it has shown that it is possible to adapt this general methodology to the specific circumstances of the area. The proposed model allowed its application in large, mid-scale or even in particular cases by the modification of the scale at which the source variables are obtained. For the three areas of study, there have been simulated 600 points of view including a population of 152,500 fixed observers and a million of mobile observers, systematically reinforced by 300 viewshed of densification. The calculation of Visual Fragility Acquired by superimposing a large number of viewshed reduced the subjectivity and provided a great consistency to the results. With the consistent and comparable results in three areas, taking into account their differences in topography, morphology, land use and population pressure, indicated that the model could be applied in almost all the coastal area of Galicia. Keywords: geographic information systems, landscape planning, infrastructures effects

Vegetation patterns along agricultural land abandonment in the Balkans

1Department of Environmental & Natural Resources Management, University of Patras, Agrinio, Greece 2Department of Applied Geoinformatics and Spatial Planning, Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague, Czech Republic 3Division of Plant Biology, Department of Biology, University of Patras, Patras, Greece 4Plant and Fungi Diversity and Resources Department, Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research, Sofia, Bulgaria 5Faculty of Natural Sciences, Tirana University, Tirana, Albania 6Division of Conservation Biology, Vegetation and Landscape Ecology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria 7Department of Biological Applications and Technology, University of Ioannina, Ioannina, Greece