Abstract
The Alborz is one of the richest mountain ranges in SW Asia in terms of plant diversity which is mainly due to the heterogeneous topography, climate and wide elevational range. It lies at the intersection of two major phytogeographical regions, as well as two global biodiversity hotspots. A total of 3617 vascular plant species are known from this mountain range and the rate of endemism is ca. 10%. The elevational distribution of vascular plants ranges from 26 m below sea level up to 4850 m above sea level. Different vegetation types can be found on the north and south faces and at different elevational zones. Hyrcanian forests, montane steppe shrublands, wetlands, gypsophilous communities, Juniper woodlands, chasmophytic communities, subalpine tall herb umbelliferous communities, alpine and subnival communities are among the major vegetation types of this mountain range. The Alborz has a high conservation priority due to the high concentration of rare species and at the same time it experiences very intensive land-use and other human activities which threaten its unique and diverse flora.
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Abbreviations
- ES:
-
Euro-Siberian
- IT:
-
Irano-Turanian
- M:
-
Mediterranean
- SS:
-
Saharo-Sindian
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We are very thankful to Dr. Wolfgang Willner and Dr. Franz Essl for their valuable comments to the manuscript.
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Noroozi, J., Talebi, A., Doostmohammadi, M. (2020). The Alborz Mountain Range. In: Noroozi, J. (eds) Plant Biogeography and Vegetation of High Mountains of Central and South-West Asia. Plant and Vegetation, vol 17. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-45212-4_4
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