{"id":3477,"date":"2025-12-22T16:41:01","date_gmt":"2025-12-22T16:41:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/?p=3477"},"modified":"2026-04-01T19:05:14","modified_gmt":"2026-04-01T19:05:14","slug":"comparative-analysis-of-vegetation-structure-in-mountain-forest-ecosystems-of-northern-mongolia-based-on-the-model-polygons","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/?p=3477","title":{"rendered":"COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF VEGETATION STRUCTURE IN MOUNTAIN FOREST ECOSYSTEMS OF NORTHERN MONGOLIA (BASED ON THE MODEL POLYGONS)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Petukhov I.A., Andreev A.V., Bazha S.N., Bogdanov E.A., Danzhalova E.V., Drobyshev Yu.I., Rupyshev Yu.A., Khadbaatar S.\u00a0Comparative Analysis of Vegetation Structure in Mountain Forest Ecosystems\u00a0of Northern Mongolia (Based on the Model Polygons)\u00a0\/\/ Ecosystems: ecology and dynamics. No 4. 2025. P. 5-62. | <a href=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1-Bazha-abstract-engl.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Abstract<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1-Bazha-articel-rus.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">PDF<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1-Bazha-references-rus.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Reference<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\t\t<style type=\"text\/css\">\n\t\t\t#gallery-1 {\n\t\t\t\tmargin: auto;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t#gallery-1 .gallery-item {\n\t\t\t\tfloat: left;\n\t\t\t\tmargin-top: 10px;\n\t\t\t\ttext-align: center;\n\t\t\t\twidth: 25%;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t#gallery-1 img {\n\t\t\t\tborder: 2px solid #cfcfcf;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t#gallery-1 .gallery-caption {\n\t\t\t\tmargin-left: 0;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t\/* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes\/media.php *\/\n\t\t<\/style>\n\t\t<div id='gallery-1' class='gallery galleryid-3477 gallery-columns-4 gallery-size-thumbnail'><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1_1.jpg'><img width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1_1-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-3483\" srcset=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1_1-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1_1-65x65.jpg 65w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt>\n\t\t\t\t<dd class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-3483'>\n\t\t\t\tA field camp of the Joint Russian-Mongolian integrated biological expedition in a cedar forest\n\t\t\t\t<\/dd><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/2_1.jpg'><img width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/2_1-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-3484\" srcset=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/2_1-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/2_1-65x65.jpg 65w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt>\n\t\t\t\t<dd class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-3484'>\n\t\t\t\tMongolian students at work\n\t\t\t\t<\/dd><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/3_1.jpg'><img width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/3_1-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-3485\" srcset=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/3_1-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/3_1-65x65.jpg 65w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt>\n\t\t\t\t<dd class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-3485'>\n\t\t\t\tIntegrated field study of ecosystems\n\t\t\t\t<\/dd><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/5_1.jpg'><img width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/5_1-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-3486\" srcset=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/5_1-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/5_1-65x65.jpg 65w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt>\n\t\t\t\t<dd class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-3486'>\n\t\t\t\tCowberry-ledum green-moss cedar forest\n\t\t\t\t<\/dd><\/dl><br style=\"clear: both\" \/><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/6_1.jpg'><img width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/6_1-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-3487\" srcset=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/6_1-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/6_1-65x65.jpg 65w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt>\n\t\t\t\t<dd class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-3487'>\n\t\t\t\tRubus arcticus in bloom\n\t\t\t\t<\/dd><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/7_1.jpg'><img width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/7_1-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-3488\" srcset=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/7_1-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/7_1-65x65.jpg 65w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt>\n\t\t\t\t<dd class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-3488'>\n\t\t\t\tCowberry-blueberry green-moss cedar forest\n\t\t\t\t<\/dd><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/8_1.jpg'><img width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/8_1-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-3489\" srcset=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/8_1-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/8_1-65x65.jpg 65w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt>\n\t\t\t\t<dd class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-3489'>\n\t\t\t\tPetrophytic mountain meadow steppe\n\t\t\t\t<\/dd><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/9_1.jpg'><img width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/9_1-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-3490\" srcset=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/9_1-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/9_1-65x65.jpg 65w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt>\n\t\t\t\t<dd class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-3490'>\n\t\t\t\tIce remaining in a mountain-valley spruce forest\n\t\t\t\t<\/dd><\/dl><br style=\"clear: both\" \/><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/12_1.jpg'><img width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/12_1-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-3491\" srcset=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/12_1-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/12_1-65x65.jpg 65w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt>\n\t\t\t\t<dd class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-3491'>\n\t\t\t\tBurnt-out area in taiga, overgrown with birches\n\t\t\t\t<\/dd><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/13_1.jpg'><img width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/13_1-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-3492\" srcset=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/13_1-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/13_1-65x65.jpg 65w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt>\n\t\t\t\t<dd class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-3492'>\n\t\t\t\tMountain steppe meadow\n\t\t\t\t<\/dd><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/16_1.jpg'><img width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/16_1-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-3493\" srcset=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/16_1-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/16_1-65x65.jpg 65w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt>\n\t\t\t\t<dd class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-3493'>\n\t\t\t\tSparse larch forest on a mountain ridge\n\t\t\t\t<\/dd><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/17_1.jpg'><img width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/17_1-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-3494\" srcset=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/17_1-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/17_1-65x65.jpg 65w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt>\n\t\t\t\t<dd class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-3494'>\n\t\t\t\tMountain meadow steppe on the southern slope\n\t\t\t\t<\/dd><\/dl><br style=\"clear: both\" \/>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">In this research we conducted large-scale mapping (1:10,000-1:50,000) and description of natural ecosystems at the junction of two belts, forest and forest-steppe mountain, in the Selenga River Basin, Northern Mongolia. Part of broader studies on the forest growth conditions of the Lake Baikal Basin, this research took place in 2019 and 2022 across 4 model polygons: Zelter in the eastern Dzhida Range, Chandmani-Under in the central Eastern Khuvsgul Region, Zunkhara in the foothills of Western Khentii Highlands, and Selbe in the southwestern Khentii Upland.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u201cSelbe\u201d and \u201cChandmani-Under\u201d encompass 3 forest vegetation altitudinal belts: mountain-taiga, sub-taiga, and forest-steppe. The low-mountain \u201cZelter\u201d and \u201cZunkhara\u201d lack the mountain-taiga belt. Distinctively, unlike most mountain forest areas in Mongolia where only 1-2 coniferous species typically form the primary forest stands, the indigenous forest types in the upper Selbe River Basin are comprised of 4 coniferous species: <em>Pinus sibirica<\/em>, <em>Larix sibirica<\/em>, <em>Pinus sylvestris<\/em> and <em>Picea obovata<\/em>. In \u201cChandmani-Under\u201d and \u201cZelter\u201d, <em>Larix sibirica<\/em> is the dominant coniferous species, while in \u201cZunkhara\u201d it is <em>Pinus sylvestris<\/em> and <em>Larix sibirica<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The large-scale mapping data from the model polygons clearly demonstrated a regular altitudinal succession of altitudinal belts, transitioning from mountain-taiga forests at higher elevations of middle-mountain slopes, through sub-taiga, to forest-steppe communities bordering the steppe belt. As\u00a0aridity increases from north to south, the lower boundaries of these altitudinal belts, including forest vegetation zones, shift upwards. For instance, taiga forests on north-facing slopes of \u201cSelbe\u201d are\u00a0located above 1600 m a.s.l. (and above 1650 m on the south-facing slopes), whereas in \u201cChandmani-Under\u201d, situated over 200 km further north, such forests descend steep north-facing slopes to below 1250 m.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The forest-covered area of the model polygons exceeds 70%. However, there is a significant proportion of secondary pyrogenic small-leaved forests, primarily dominated by <em>Betula pendula<\/em> subsp. <em>mandshurica<\/em> and <em>Populus tremula<\/em>. These secondary birch stands and early-stage post-fire successional forests account for 20-24% of the total forest area in \u201cSelbe\u201d and \u201cChandmani-Under\u201d, over 50% in \u201cZelter\u201d, and as high as 98% in \u201cZunkhara\u201d, where indigenous mountain pine-larch and larch-pine sub-taiga forests are entirely absent.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Analysis of the maps depicting forest ecosystems with destroyed indigenous stands at various stages of recovery, alongside their legends characterizing topo-ecological development conditions, enables an assessment of forest degradation scales. This provides a basis for determining natural and technical restoration possibilities, methods, and volumes, and for selecting the most suitable forest cultures for restoration based on the dominant species in the original stands.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><em>Funding.<\/em> This work was carried out within the framework of the scientific program of the Joint Russian-Mongolian Integrated Biological Expedition of the Russian Academy of Sciences and the Mongolian Academy of Sciences, and the state task of the Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences, topic No. FFER-2024-0025\u00a0\u201cBiogeocenology and Ecosystem Evolution\u201d.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><em>Keywords:<\/em> mountain forest ecosystems, topo-ecological conditions, altitudinal belts, forest-forming species, secondary stands, large-scale mapping.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>DOI:<\/strong><strong> 10.24412\/2542-2006-2025-4-5-62<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>EDN:<\/strong><strong> ADAUJU<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Petukhov I.A., Andreev A.V., Bazha S.N., Bogdanov E.A., Danzhalova E.V., Drobyshev Yu.I., Rupyshev Yu.A., Khadbaatar S.\u00a0Comparative Analysis of Vegetation Structure in Mountain Forest Ecosystems\u00a0of Northern Mongolia (Based on the Model Polygons)\u00a0\/\/ Ecosystems: ecology and dynamics. No 4. 2025. P. 5-62. <span class=\"excerpt-dots\">&hellip;<\/span> <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/?p=3477\"><span class=\"more-msg\">Read next<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3495,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[618],"tags":[637,638,501,636,639,499],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3477"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3477"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3477\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3498,"href":"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3477\/revisions\/3498"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3495"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3477"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3477"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.ecosystemsdynamic.ru\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3477"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}