Flora of Altai (flora)
Completed by: Shabanova Marina Gennadievna, primary school teacher, MBOU Sarasinskaya secondary school, Sarasa village, Altai district, Altai Territory 2014

The flora of the Altai Territory is rich and varied. The vegetation here was influenced by the geological history of the development of the territory, and the climate, and a peculiar relief. In Altai, there are almost all types of northern and Central Asia, East Kazakhstan, the European part of Russia. Forests cover most of the Altai Territory. The only ribbon pine forests in the entire territory of Russia grow here - a unique natural formation, the like of which is not found anywhere else on our planet.

The origin of ribbon pine forests has interesting story, which is associated with the period when there was a large sea in the south of the West Siberian Lowland, the flow of water from it passed through deep hollows towards the Aral Basin. The overflowing water carried sand, and when the climate became warmer, and the Ob again flowed into the seas of the Arctic Ocean, pines began to grow on the sand-filled hollows of the ancient runoff. Thus, five ribbons of pine forests were formed, which stretch parallel to each other from the Ob near Barnaul in a southwestern direction towards the Irtysh and the Kulunda lowland.

Woody vegetable world in the mountainous part of Altai is richer than in the plains. Cedar-fir forests grow here with admixtures of birch and in large numbers- pines. This is the so-called black taiga, which is not found in other forest regions of the country. In the black taiga, many shrubs grow - raspberries, mountain ash, viburnum, currants, bird cherry.

A very common tree in Altai is larch. Larch wood is hard and durable, retains its qualities well both in the ground and in water. Larch is a valuable building material: houses are built from it that can stand for centuries, dams are made, bridges, piers are built, used for manufacturing railway sleepers and telegraph poles. Larch forests are light and clean and resemble natural parks in which each tree grows apart.

Siberian cedar pine, cedar - the famous tree species of the Altai forests. This is a mighty tree with a dark green crown, with long prickly needles. Forms frequent, solid cedar forests on mountain slopes or occurs as an admixture in deciduous and fir forests.

In the forests of the Altai Territory, the most common hardwoods are birch, aspen and poplar. In the flat part of Altai, both birch and mixed pegs are found everywhere - small groves of trees of these species with abundant shrubs.

There are several dozen species of shrubs in the region, many of which produce edible berries - raspberries, blackberries, currants, honeysuckle, blueberries, lingonberries. The slopes of the mountains are beautiful in early spring, covered with evergreen maral (Siberian rosemary, Daurian rhododendron) blooming bright raspberry-purple color.

Often there are thickets of juniper, cinquefoil, meadowsweet. The region is famous for abundant thickets of useful shrubs - sea buckthorn, which gives berries, from which valuable medicine- sea buckthorn oil.

On taiga meadows with mountain forbs, bees collect exclusively fragrant honey, the fame of which is known far beyond the borders of our country. In spring and early summer, the plains and slopes of the Altai mountains are a beautiful carpet of colorful flowers: bright orange lights, dark blue and pink tulips, blue bells, carnations, daisies, white and yellow buttercups.

The project "Tape forests of Altai - a unique natural heritage of Russia", supported by the Russian Geographical Society, is nearing completion. Its goal was to preserve the natural complexes of the Altai ribbon forests, their landscape and biodiversity. At present, the processing of the rich factual material collected during the expeditions is being completed, but it is already possible to sum up the preliminary results of the project.

Seen from space

If you look at a satellite image of the south of Western Siberia, the eye is involuntarily attracted by several dark green forest strips parallel to each other, in sharp contrast with the surrounding agricultural landscapes. Upon closer inspection, you can see that there are four such strips in total: the two largest ones stretch from the Ob valley, merging near the border with Kazakhstan into a single massif, which continues southwest to the Irtysh. Two smaller ribbons, also starting off the banks of the Ob, end in the expanses of the Kulunda Plain. Two more sections of the pine forest are very small, traditionally called selections, they look more not like ribbons, but like emerald islands lost in a sea of ​​endless fields.

For the Altai Territory, tape burs are one of the main brands, an object that can be seen from space, as they say, "with the naked eye". The secret of the unusual linear arrangement of these forests is that they occupy the bottoms of narrow and long hollows of the ancient runoff with thick deposits of sand, according to the most common version, left by the water flows of the ice ages. Experts are still arguing about the age and origin of pine forest sands and the pine forests themselves. Indisputable, however, remains the fact of the uniqueness of tape burs not only on the scale of Siberia, but throughout Russia.

Bors are of great socio-economic importance for the western part of the Altai Territory. They serve as the main source of timber for the inhabitants of the steppe zone; have a softening effect on the climate of the surrounding areas (near the tape forests, about 50 mm more precipitation falls than in treeless areas), are a traditional place for recreation, picking berries and mushrooms.

Thanks to the contrast natural conditions within the limits of intrazonal ribbon pine forests, natural complexes, which are very different from each other, coexist. Steppe areas with feather grass and xerophytic forbs are sometimes located near the sphagnum bog, and a sun-dried salt marsh can be located a couple of kilometers from a shady green moss.

In secluded places, remote from settlements, in the shade of centuries-old pines, you can find a whole bunch of northern orchids - from inconspicuous at first glance nest flowers and cassava, to spectacular venus slippers. The role of ribbon pine forests in the conservation of populations of such globally rare species of animals included in various Red Data Books, such as the imperial eagle, greater spotted eagle, white-tailed eagle, eagle owl, black stork, and other vulnerable bird species, is significant.

Need a special approach

Unfortunately, the high economic development of tape forests has led to the fact that many valuable natural complexes, populations of rare animal and plant species are endangered, despite formal protection.

The first specially protected natural areas (zakazniks of regional significance) were created in ribbon forests in the 60-70s of the last century. Then paramount importance was given to the reproduction of hunting and commercial species of animals, later boron reserves received the status of complex (landscape). However, so far the main view economic activity- logging was carried out in forest reserves in the same mode and with the same intensity as in all other areas of the forest that do not have the status of specially protected natural areas. This could not but affect the state of protected objects.

Yes, quite recently South part The Kulundinsky Ribbon Forest (Zavyalovsky Reserve) was the only area in the world where the nesting group of the Greater Spotted Eagle remained larger than that in all of foreign Europe, and the eagles nested here with a maximum density for the species - 1-1.5 km between neighboring nests. Currently, more than half of the spotted eagle habitats have been destroyed. Therefore, the preservation of the remaining valuable sites is of particular importance. It is obvious that the reserves, or even only their individual parts (where the habitats of rare species are still preserved) need a special approach.

Thanks to the grant support of the Russian geographical society, this year a large-scale survey of the territories of regional reserves located in tape forests was carried out. The main idea was to identify areas with the maximum density of "Red Books" for their subsequent allocation to specially protected areas of wildlife sanctuaries and especially protective areas forests.

Employees of the Altai Branch of the Russian Geographical Society took part in the research (including a member of the Permanent Environmental Commission of the Russian Geographical Society - Dr. geographical sciences Dmitry Chernykh), Institute of Water and environmental issues SB RAS, Tigireksky Reserve, Altai State University, students, volunteers (including schoolchildren - participants of the program "Adopt a Reserve", implemented by the Gebler Ecological Society and the Tigireksky Reserve).

On the territory of the Kasmalinsky Reserve, more than 270 points of growth of 13 species of plants and fungi included in the Red Books of Russia and the Altai Territory (feathery feather grass, klobuch nest-flower, three-cut horse, helmet-bearing orchis, venus slippers of this, large-flowered and drip, curly sparassis and other rare and endangered species). Within the same reserve, occupied nesting sites of the Eastern Imperial Eagle, Greater Spotted Eagle and Eagle Owl were found.

By now, a scientific justification for changing the regime of protection and nature management has already been prepared for the Kasmalinsky Reserve, in particular, the allocation of a special protection zone, where key habitats of rare species and reference areas close to the natural state of natural complexes of the Kasmalinsky Ribbon Forest will be preserved.

In the Kulunda reserve, more than fifty points of growth of five plant species listed in the Red Books of Russia and the Altai Territory have been identified. Complexes of sphagnum bogs, rare for ribbon pine forests, have been noted. Of considerable value are the massifs of old-growth pine forests, located along the edges of the forest near the fairly extensive steppe areas that have been preserved in this part of the region. It is these places, due to the ecotone effect, that are the zones of concentration of biological diversity, including those that serve as shelters for rare and endangered species of plants and animals.

Mamontovsky and Kornilovsky reserves, thanks to a combination large lakes and forest complexes are extremely important for the conservation of habitats for rare and endangered species of large raptors. There are nesting sites of such species included in the Red Books of Russia and the Altai Territory as the white-tailed eagle, golden eagle, imperial eagle, greater spotted eagle, eagle owl, gray owl, as well as such a rare forest bird as the black stork. Areas of old-growth pine forests on the border with wetlands that are not disturbed by cuttings are subject to special protection here. In the crowns of the largest patriarchal pines, rare birds arrange their massive nests, and on lakes and swamps they get food to feed their chicks.

In general, as a result of the project, a database was created on the distribution of rare species of plants and animals in the ribbon forests of the region; within the above-mentioned reserves, the most valuable areas in terms of nature conservation have been identified. Currently, justifications and proposals for improving the protection regimes for forest reserves are being finalized.

It should be noted that in the authorized body of power - in the Main Directorate natural resources and ecology of the Altai Territory - supported the initiative of the environmental community to strengthen the protection of forest ecosystems. Documentation is currently being prepared to change the regime of the Kasmalinsky Reserve in terms of limiting logging. In addition, this year three new natural monuments have been created within the Barnaul Ribbon Forest, and a positive conclusion from the state environmental review has been issued on projects for the creation of two more monuments.

Results of the project "Tape Burs of Altai - a unique natural heritage Russia" will be in demand in real environmental practice and will serve as a sustainable conservation of tape pine forests in all their diversity.

The material was prepared by Lyudmila Nehorosheva, project manager "Tape forests of Altai - a unique natural heritage of Russia".

The flora of the Altai Territory is rich and diverse. The vegetation here was influenced by the geological history of the development of the territory, and the climate, and a peculiar relief. Almost all types of vegetation of northern and central Asia, Eastern Kazakhstan, and the European part of Russia are found in Altai. Forests cover most of the Altai Territory. grow here the only ribbon pine forests in the whole territory of Russia- a unique natural formation, the like of which is nowhere on our planet. Origin ribbon pine forests has an interesting history, which is connected with the period when there was a large sea in the south of the West Siberian Lowland, the flow of water from it passed through deep hollows towards the Aral Basin. The overflowing water carried sand, and when the climate became warmer, and the Ob again flowed into the seas of the Arctic Ocean, pines began to grow on the sand-filled hollows of the ancient runoff.

Thus, five ribbons of pine forests were formed, which stretch parallel to each other from the Ob near Barnaul in a southwestern direction towards the Irtysh and the Kulunda lowland.

The woody flora of the mountainous part of Altai is richer than on the plain. grow here cedar-fir forests with birch admixtures and in large numbers - pines. This so-called black taiga, which is not found in other forest areas of the country. In the black taiga grows many shrubs - raspberries, mountain ash, viburnum, currants, bird cherry.

A very common tree in Altai - larch. Its wood is hard and durable, perfectly retaining its qualities both in the ground and in the water. Larch is a valuable building material: it is used to build houses that can stand for centuries, make dams, build bridges, piers, use it to make railway sleepers and telegraph poles.

Larch forests are light and clean and resemble natural parks in which each tree grows apart. Shrub undergrowth in deciduous forests differs in density, and the surface of the earth in such a forest is covered with a continuous grassy carpet.

Siberian cedar pine, cedar - the famous tree species of the Altai forests. This is a mighty tree with a dark green crown, with long prickly needles. Forms frequent, solid cedar forests on mountain slopes or occurs as an admixture in deciduous and fir forests.

Cedar wood is highly valued - light, durable and beautiful, it is widely used in folk crafts for the manufacture of various products. From cedar board make furniture, food containers, make a pencil board. Pine nuts are very popular, from which they produce valuable oil, which is used in medicine and in the manufacture of high-precision optical devices. Cedar resin is a raw material for balm.

In the forests of the Altai Territory, from deciduous species, the most common are birch, aspen and poplar. In the flat part of Altai, both birch and mixed pegs are found everywhere - small groves of trees of these species with abundant shrubs.

There are several dozen species of shrubs in the region, many of which give an edible berry - raspberries, blackberries, currants, honeysuckle, blueberries, cranberries. The slopes of the mountains are beautiful in early spring, covered with blooming bright raspberry-violet evergreen flowers. maralnik (Siberian wild rosemary, Daurian rhododendron).

Weeds are often found juniper, cinquefoil, meadowsweet. The region is famous for abundant thickets of useful shrubs - sea ​​buckthorn, which gives berries from which a valuable medicinal product is made - sea buckthorn oil. On taiga meadows with mountain forbs, bees collect exclusively fragrant honey, the fame of which is known far beyond the borders of our country. In spring and early summer, the plains and slopes of the Altai mountains are beautiful colorful carpet: bright orange lights, dark blue and pink tulips, blue bluebells, carnations, chamomile, white and yellow buttercups. From medicinal plants on the territory of the Altai Territory, the most famous are maral and golden root (Rhodiola rosea), bergenia and valerian, dandelion and marin root, spring adonis, licorice, etc. Over ten species relic plants grows in Altai. Among them - European hoof, bruner, fragrant woodruff, circe. High on the slopes of the Altai mountains is found edelweiss.

The vegetation of Kamchatka is determined by a number of important factors: geographic location territory, the impact of a humid oceanic climate, predominantly mountainous terrain, the history of landscape development, the strong impact of volcanism and its attendant phenomena.

Corresponding to the latitude of the peninsula coniferous forests from Cajander larch and Ayan spruce so common in the mainland Far East, in Kamchatka were largely destroyed during the glaciation, which ended about 10 thousand years ago. At present, they are distributed mainly in the Central Kamchatka depression, protected from the east and west by high mountain ranges. Here, as an admixture to coniferous forests, grow aspen and white birch .

On the east coast (the mouth of the Semyachik River) there is a small area coniferous forest educated Sakhalin fir .

The main forest-forming species in the mountain forests and on the plains of Kamchatka is Erman's birch also called stone birch . It forms over a vast extent pure sparse birch forests, the so-called "park" forests. By the sea or upper bound forests in the mountains they change stone birch crooked forest from low-growing trees with intricately curved trunks.

More diverse set tree species are floodplain forests where they meet hairy alder, fragrant poplar, chosenia , several varieties willows .

In the shrub layer of forests are common mountain ash elderberry, cedar and alder elfin, blue honeysuckle and Shamisso, dogrose blunt-eared, Siberian juniper . IN river valleys, on waterlogged soils, thickets are common beautiful willow Andspear-shaped, meadowsweet willow .

On the slopes of the mountains in the subalpine zone dominate pine elfin and shrub alder (alder elfin) , forming often impenetrable thickets. They are accompanied by shorter shrubs: rhododendron golden and Kamchatka, Bover's meadowsweet, arctic willow .

Even higher, the bushes are replaced mountain tundra belt, in which flattened low-growing shrubs and shrubs predominate, alpine meadows, interspersed with extensive snowfields, stone screes and placers, rocks, where plants are found in small scattered groups or singly.

meadows widespread to some extent in all altitudinal zones.

One of the characteristic plant groups for Kamchatka are tall grass thickets often reaching 3 m in height. They are usually located along the valleys of rivers and streams, in ravines, along slopes in places where groundwater is located close to each other. Most often these are pure thickets. meadowsweet kamchatka , which is often combined woolly hogweed, Kamchatka ribwort, forest carrot, hemp-leaved ragwort, Kamchatka bodyak and others. Sometimes such tall grass develops under the canopy of a stone birch forest, but here it is usually lower.

Forb meadows widely distributed on river terraces, forest edges, clearings, swamp margins, coastal slopes both in the forest and subalpine zones. Reed meadows prevail in the clearings between the thickets of alder in the subalps. Widespread in the mountain tundra belt low-grass alpine meadows.

Bogs are found along the entire altitudinal profile, but are most common in the forest belt. The swamps are mainly located in the West Kamchatka lowland, in the valleys major rivers Central and Eastern Kamchatka.

A strip of coastal grassy meadows, turning into forb meadows and shikshevniki.

Most complete altitudinal zonality vegetation is expressed on the volcanoes and mountains of Central Kamchatka: spruce forests found at an altitude of 300 m above sea level (occasionally higher), larch forests and white birch forests- up to 500 m, stone birch forests- from 300 to 800 m.

Higher, up to 1200 m above sea level, dominate shrubbery from alder and cedar elfin that replace mountain tundra, and then - sparse vegetation high deserts.

Zone Average Height eternal snows in the mountains of Central Kamchatka is 2400-3500 m above sea level. In other areas, this border is much lower, and the belt of spruce, larch and white birch forests is completely absent. Quite common in Kamchatka are disturbances in zonation and the placement of plant groups in unusual conditions. Sometimes within the forest belt there are vast areas shrub tundra. Sometimes along the upland terraces in places secluded from the wind, Erman's birch groves are found within the subalpine belt. In South Kamchatka, due to the cross action air masses from the Sea of ​​Okhotsk and the ocean, the climate is more humid and cold than in the region of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. The snow melts here and the plants develop much later. The boundaries of all altitudinal zones are below.

Influence of volcanism on vegetation is expressed in the most different manifestations. Thus, as a result of the explosion of the Ksudach volcano in 1907, vegetation was completely destroyed in tens of square kilometers to the north of it. At present, part of this area is occupied by almost lifeless pumice-slag fields, in other areas lichen tundras have developed, alder thickets and (only in river valleys) stone birch forests are being restored. Large disturbances of vegetation occur as a result of large eruptions, outpourings of lavas, mudflows, the activity of dry rivers, etc.

According to the latest data The flora of Kamchatka includes 90 families, over 300 genera and about 1300 species. The last glaciations led to the extinction of a number of heat-loving species, but they also contributed to the massive penetration of many arctic-alpine and even alpine species into Kamchatka. The modern Kamchatka flora is formed by species with different types of distribution, among which circumpolar, Far Eastern and Asian American species predominate. There is also a small group of endemics - plants found only in Kamchatka.

The most numerous are representatives of three families: Compositae, cereals and sedge . Less rich in number of species pink, ranunculus, clove, cruciferous, rush, willow, heather, saxifrage. Other families contain up to 20 species, and many of them are represented by only one or two plant species.

The Okhotsk region belongs to the forest-tundra zone, the predominant species is larch, forest stands are characterized by uniform composition, light forests. The forests of the Okhotsk region do not form continuous massifs, under the influence of severe climatic conditions they grow in small areas depending on the relief and exposure of the slope. The area of ​​forests is 2500.7 thousand hectares, or 18% of the district, and taking into account the sparse areas with Siberian dwarf pine in the undergrowth, the percentage of forest cover will be 34%. A significant part of the territory is covered with mosses and lichens.

Vegetation

The region is located in various natural areas. One of its main wealth is forests, which occupy more than half of the area (forest cover of the region is 62.9%) and make up 17% of the forest area of ​​the Far East. The vegetation of the region is rich and varied. Its main features are the abundance of plant species and the contrast of vegetation cover. The flora includes about 2000 species of higher plants, of which 21 rare view listed in the Red Book. Representatives of several floras converge, mutually penetrate and mix here: Manchurian, Okhotsk-Kamchatka, East Siberian, Pacific and Mongolian-Daurian, that is, plants of three climatic zones coexist - subarctic, temperate and subtropical.
In the Quaternary period geological history, when a significant part of the Eurasian continent was subjected to glaciation, warming breath Pacific Ocean stopped the advance of ice in the Amur region. Thanks to this, such plants of the Tertiary period as Amur grapes, actinidia kolomikta, Chinese magnolia vine, Komarov lotus and many others have been preserved. And from the north, larch, Siberian spruce, and dwarf pine penetrated into the territory of the region. Thus, the plants of the north and south converged with us.
The richest and most diverse Manchurian flora consists of heat-loving plant species, the closest relatives of which are common in the subtropics, partly even in the tropics of East Asia, as well as in the corresponding zones. North America. Representatives of this flora - Amur velvet, Manchurian walnut, Chinese lemongrass, Amur grape, Korean cedar pine, spiny eleutherococcus and many others - are distributed mainly in the east of the Zeya-Bureya and Arkharinskaya plains, along the spurs of the Bureinsky Range and Lesser Khingan and much less frequently on the islands and floodplains of large rivers. The East Siberian flora is poorer and more monotonous; it prevails in the northwest of the region, in the upper and middle parts of the Zeya basin and upstream Amur, its main representatives are Gmelin larch (Daurian) and Siberian spruce. In the alpine and subalpine altitudinal zones mountainous areas there are representatives of the Pacific flora - cedar elfin, Cassiopeia, several types of rhododendrons, including the Redovsky rhododendron, listed in the Red Book, siversia, chokeberry shik-sha. The Mongolian-Daurian flora is represented by plant species of steppe origin - bicolor lespedeza, Baikal and Far Eastern feather grass, Siberian tansy, Baikal skullcap. They are usually found in the steppe areas of the Zeya-Bureya Plain. Individual representatives of this flora are also found on the southern slopes of the Amur-Zeya Plain. Less diverse is the Okhotsk-Kamchatka flora, which is distributed in the east and northeast of the region. It contains many ancient species - Ayan spruce, white fir, several types of birch, known under the combined name of stone. They form taiga forests similar to the taiga forests of the Pacific coast of North America. There are three natural vegetation zones in the Amur Region: coniferous forests (taiga), mixed or coniferous-deciduous forests, and forest-steppe (or East Asian prairies).

On the territory of the region and have a large economic importance. Due to the significant diversity of geographical and climatic zones of the Altai Territory in the region, at a small distance from each other, perfectly combined Various types forest areas: draft taiga, mixed forest and tape forests.

General characteristics of the forests of the Altai Territory

According to the forest management of the Altai Territory forest ecosystems occupy 28% of the area of ​​the region. total area forest fund lands 4429.4 thousand hectares. Forests are located in four climatic zones: steppe, forest-steppe, low-mountain zone of Salair and high-mountain zone of Altai.

The following types of forests are represented in the Altai Territory:

  • ribbon forests along the rivers flowing in the steppe zone of the region;
  • mixed forest on the right bank of the Ob River;
  • low-mountain taiga on the slopes of the Salair Ridge in the northeastern part of the region;
  • birch groves in the left bank of the Ob and Katun, as well as in the zone of the Biysko-Chumysh Upland;
  • artificial protective forest belts and forests in various areas.

Vegetable world

The flora of the forests of the Altai Territory is diverse. Pine dominates in the ribbon forests of the steppe zone. Priobsky forest - mixed with a predominance of pine and birch, with an admixture of aspen, bird cherry and shrubs. Spruce and fir dominate in the Salair taiga. In the high-mountain taiga of the Charyshsky and Soloneshensky regions, there are massifs of cedar and larch. In the pegs of the left bank of the Ob, birch dominates with an admixture of shrubs.

Each type of forest stands has its own type of undergrowth. Tape forests in the south of the region have practically no undergrowth. Priobsky pine forest - on the contrary, has a powerful complex undergrowth, consisting of shrubs, various herbaceous plants, moss, horsetail and fern.

Animal world

The fauna of the forests of the Altai Territory is also diverse. Ungulates (roe deer, elk, goats), hare, as well as predatory animals that eat them: wolf, fox, badger live everywhere in the forests of the region. There is a brown bear in the taiga. The world of rodents is diverse. From insectivorous animals in the Altai Territory live hedgehog ordinary and mole. A wide variety of birds nest in the forests. Reptiles are represented by the common snake and the common viper. Forest ponds are inhabited by frogs. The common toad lives in damp and shady areas of forests. The world of insects is diverse, among which there are both harmful to the forest and useful.

Mushrooms

Although the mushroom world of the forests of the Altai Territory is poorer than in the European part of Russia and the Urals, both in terms of species diversity and quantity, nevertheless, mushrooms play important role in the life of the region's forests. Almost ubiquitous podgruzdok white, podgruzdok black, valuy, russula. in birch and mixed forests common boletus, pink volushka, autumn honey agaric, tinder fungi, fly agaric grow. In the Ob forest, white mushroom, red boletus, and pine camelina are common. In the taiga grow camelina spruce, butterdish. In poplar forest belts, poplar rowing is common. In the Ob floodplain and on the islands in the channel of the Ob and Biya in large quantities aspen grows.

Ecological role

Altai Krai is a region with an arid climate. Therefore, the forests of the Altai Territory primarily play a protective role. Forest plantations retain snow and rain moisture, reduce wind erosion of the soil. Many species of animals find refuge from the scorching summer heat in the forests. In fact, it is thanks to forests, primarily belt forests, that most of the territory of the Altai Territory is saved from desertification. In the east, the edges in the zone of rough terrain, forests protect the soil from water erosion. The Ob forest plays a very important role in stabilizing water regime Ob and its tributaries. Foothill forests are involved in the formation of a favorable microclimate in these areas.

Economic importance

Most of the forests of the Altai Territory are classified as protective. Nevertheless, timber harvesting is carried out in them, but the clear cutting method is used only in low-value forest areas. In the economy of a number of districts: Soloneshensky, Charyshsky, Soltonsky, Troitsky, Zalesovsky, Talmensky, the forest industry takes a leading place.

Forest protection

Due to the weather and climatic features of the region, the forests of the Altai Territory, in particular, ribbon pine forests, are subject to an increased risk of forest fires. For this reason, a developed network of fire and chemical stations operates in the region (as of 2013 - 159 stations). In especially burning areas of the forest (south-west of the region), measures are regularly taken to create fire breaks, barriers and mineralized strips.