Research and management of thermophilic cork forests in the central-south of the Iberian peninsula

Abstract

The investigated Iberian cork oak forests represent one of the ecosystems of greatest interest in the Iberian Peninsula, not only because of the ecosystem services they provide, but also because they are unique habitats in Europe and North Africa (habitat 9330). Due to the interest, they present, we carried out this study in order to obtain as exhaustive knowledge as possible, and to be able to offer environmental managers more information. We examined 12 cork oak associations in the Iberian Peninsula, both in their floristics, ecology and distribution as well as in terms of their dynamics, and we discovered that there are climaxes of Quercus Suber whose dynamics have not been established. We make a name correction because the name of the taxon used for the binomen Junipero badiae- Quercetum suberis Rivas-Martínez et al. 2002 nom corr, is not valid. We also propose the correction of the name of the association Cheirolopho sempervirentis-Quercetum suberis Pérez Latorre, Cabezudo in Pérez Latorre et al. 2008 nom. corr. The dynamics for the Cheirolopho sempervirentis-Quercetum suberis cork oak forest and the Cheirolopho sempervirentis-Arbutetum unedonis nova and Bupleuro gibraltarici-Quercetum suberis nova associations, and two plant communities are described. Based on the results obtained and the ICPN mandate, we propose to synonymize Oleo sylvestris-Quercetum suberis Rivas Goday, Galiano & Rivas-Martínez ex Rivas-Martínez 1987= (syn: Aro neglecti- Quercetum suberis Rivas-Martínez & Díez Garretas 2011).

Keywords:

• Cork oak
• dynamics
• management
• association
• vegetation series

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).