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Marshland vegetation of Plitvice Lakes National Park (Croatia)

The Plitvice Lakes National Park is located in a mountainous region of Croatia, and is of world renown for its karstic lakes separated by tufa barriers, and its waterfalls. In many places around the lakes, and along the streams, marshland vegetation of the class Phragmito-Magnocaricetea Klika 1941 has developed. This vegetation has been studied in accordance with the Braun-Blanquet methodology. As a result, 13 communities were distinguished, three being found for the first time in Croatia: Caricetum rostratae Rübel 1912, Eleocharitetum uniglumis E. G. Almq. 1929 and Equisetetum fluviatilis Steffen 1931. Through numerical classification it was found that traditionally accepted communitiesmatch very well with the clusters obtained. Some ecological characteristics of the communities were estimated by calculating Ellenberg indicator values. Through analysis of plant life forms, specific features of marshland communities were also derived, especially at the level of vegetation alliances. The most common association of the study area is Phragmitetum australis Schmale 1939, which spreads in habitats of Ligularia sibirica (L.) Cass., a rare and threatened species throughout Europe. From the aspect of nature conservation, marshland vegetation in the Plitvice Lakes shows both positive and negative features. There is a positive effect in the enrichment of biodiversity, while most communities have developed as a consequence of the eutrophication of oligotrophic karstic lakes, which must be considered negative.

Phragmito-Magnocaricetea; Plitvice Lakes National Park; Croatia; Vegetation; Phytosociology

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