Ecological and cultural importance of juniper ecosystem in the area of Zeravshan valley (Tajikistan) on the background of environmental condition and anthropogenic hazards

Abstract

The study analyses physiogeographical factors of the Zeravshan Range as a basis for environmental and habitat diversity. They provided the background for considering conditions for the functioning of juniper forest ecosystems. The uniqueness of these ecosystems also relies on the longevity of Juniperus seravschanica Kom., J. semiglobosa Regel and J. turkestanica Kom. Physiognomic features of the landscape are conditioned by the habitat, climate, landforms, and recently also by anthropopressure. The ecological, environmental and the cultural importance of juniper trees makes them a distinctive and determinant feature of the landscape. Currently juniper forests across Tajikistan, including those in the Zeravshan Mts., have been significantly disrupted as a result of chaotic, uncontrolled and excessive felling. The purpose of this article is to present natural conditions of juniper forest ecosystems, the impact of anthropogenic changes on their functioning as well as the occurrence of endemic species within them. The cultural importance of juniper in the protection of the surrounding landscape was also analysed.