On the Biogeographical Significance of Protected Forest Areas in Southern Romania

The current study is seeking to highlight the biogeographical significance of the protected areas located in southern Romania, a territory continuously exposed to strong human pressure since early times (e.g., extensive/intensive agricultural use, industrialization, urbanization/suburbanization processes). As a result, the primeval vegetation has been massively transformed and forests have been significantly fragmented and reduced to even smaller surfaces (e.g., Călăraşi County has the smallest forest-covered area in Romania). Under these conditions, the current forest patches have suffered important floristic and faunistic structural changes. Some forest remnants have been assigned protected areas status of biogeographical significance, as they host and preserve valuable southern arboreta species and xerothermal associations, secular and multi-secular arboreta (even some virgin arboreta), relict, endemic or unique species, or having their world biological limit. To stress the biogeographical significance of the forest protected areas, the authors carried out in-depth investigations of the ecosystem structure focusing on the spatial and statistical changes occurring over recent centuries and the key phyto- and zoological elements relied on the cross-referencing the biological, biogeographical, and geographical scientific literature and on the reviewing of the historical data sources. The study provides a comprehensive analysis of the biogeographical elements based on selected indicative taxa ( Quercus species) and witness species considered important for southern Romania, which were able to reconstruct the original ecosystems to explain and understand their significance for the preservation of the current ecosystems.