New ALPA report:

Our Bioregion, a Biodiversity Hotspot

January, 2025

Our bioregion is a biodiversity hotspot, with high importance also on European and global levels.

Bori Lang, ecologist and ALPA’s new team member, by reading articles from scientific literature researched the status of the biodiversity in our bioregion and wrote an interesting, revealing and informative report about it. We find it extremely important that we are as aware as possible of the species with whom we share the land, water and air and that as many people as possible share this awareness as well. Only then can and will we collectively take care of all forms of life. In this study it becomes clear that yes, indeed, our bioregion and Transylvania as a whole is a crucial biodiversity hotspot, also on the European and global level.

The Phase I. Biodiversity Report will help ALPA to set up nature conservation strategies, biodiversity enhancement programs and agroecological assessment tools. We are planning to continue and deepen this research as a Phase II. by collecting data directly from the field and to keep feeding it into our work.

The main vegetation types in the region are the following according to a research from 1985: Forests, Shrubs – margin associations, Grasslands, Vegetation of aquatic areas, Anthropogenic vegetation, Ruderal (roadside) weed vegetation and Vegetation of agro-terraces.

Compared to other world records, the Carpathian region is among the first 20 highest vascular plant species rich places globally. The semi-dry basiphilous (thriving in alkalic soil that contains the eg. gypsum, clay, lime) grassland near Cluj-Napoca/Kolozsvár holds the global richness record at the 10 cm2 (with 43 species) and 10 m2 (with 98 species). Studies show that around two villages (Jebucu/Zsobok and Stana/Sztána) from the bioregion 750 vascular plant species can be found.

Endemic and sub-endemic species occur in the semi-arid and dry grasslands of the hilly region, where Transylvanian violet (Viola joói), Thalpi kovátsi, Transylvanian jurinea (Jurinea transsilvanica Spreng. Simonk), Hoary rockrose (Helianthemum canum), Seseli gracile, and Cephalaria radiata can be found.

Two insect genuses are linked to the grasslands – Myrmica ant genus and Maculinea butterfly genus, which live in symbiosis close to parasitism. Near Cluj-Napoca all the 5 species of the butterfly genus that can be found in Europe are present: Maculinea arion, M. teleius, M. nausithous, M. alcon and M. rebeli.

Studies show that the peatlands around Călățele/Kiskalota and Dealul Negru/Bánffytelep are 27 000 years old. Wetlands and peatlands especially are important for carbon sequestration, water reserves, protection of relict species and the determination of past plant communities.

Participatory citizen science initiatives and academia are helping to contribute to the surveys. The data extracted from iNaturalist website shows 1316 observations, from which 94 are fungi, 462 plant, 647 invertebrate and 113 vertebrate species – we list below some of species that are near threatened or vulnerable according to the IUCN Red list: Green-winged Orchid (Anacamptis morio), Common Snowdrop (Galanthus nivalis), European Stag Beetle (Lucanus cervus), European crayfish (Astacus astacus), Fire Salamander (Salamandra salamandra), Meadow Viper (Vipera ursinii), Common Pochard (Aythya ferina), Redwing (Turdus iliacus) Western Barbastelle (Barbastella barbastellus). 

Yet alternative habitat types exist in the area that have been created with human influence – hedges and the agro-terraces can function as seed banks and ethnographic data banks, maintaining and working the agro-terraces help in prevention of landslides.

The diverse use of small-scale farm plots and grazing – without excess exploitation, simply sufficient for the survival of the community – contributes to the development of the mosaic landscape structure and biodiversity protection.

2025-01-29T21:24:33+00:00By |BIODOVERSITY, NEWS|

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