SPECIES STRUCTURE AND VITAL STATE OF THE FOREST COMMUNITIES OF KOSHKA MOUNTAIN

The research was carried out in the coastal zone of the Mountainous Crimea in historically heavily populated areas, where the negative effect of anthropogenic changes in the natural environment is most pronounced. Using the methods of field geobotany and forest taxation, the state assessment of arboreal plants we studied the species composition, vital features and taxation characteristics of woody plantations of the Mediterranean vegetation type. The objective of the research was to assess the species composition and the current vital state of forest plantations in the coastal part of Koshka Mountain and to work out recommendations for their protection and maintenance of their sustainable development. When assessing the composition of the studied phytocenoses, it was found that they were formed by representatives of autochthonous species of arboreal plants, of which three are listed in the Red Book of Russia. The results of the study of taxation indicators and features of the living condition of forest plantations in the coastal part of Koshka Mountain showed that currently many trees in this area have significant damage: sawn branches, mechanical chipping of the trunk surface, individual plants of high juniper are affected by fungal diseases. Disorganized recreational activities, the formation of a dense pathway network determines the physical destruction of plants, compaction and destruction of the soil layer, which generally causes degradation of the unique plant phytocenoses of the coastal part of Koshka Mountain.