Bitsevsky forest natural and historical park of Moscow: Rare and protected plant species population structure under recreational load

The paper presents research findings on the populations structure of rare and protected species included in the Red Data Book of Moscow and the Moscow region due to the increased recreational load in the forest belt of Moscow city. For the first time, the ontogenic structure of coenopopulations has been described and analyzed on the basis of the characteristics of ontomorphogenesis in the Bitsevsky Forest Park for such species as May lily (Convallaria majalis L.), Eurasian Solomon’s seal (Polygonatum multiflorum L., All.), European sanicle (Sanicula europaea L.). These results provide some evidence that the spectrum of coenopopulations for listed species has been modified; the systematic organization of coenopopulations has been broken under the influence of recreational load. Comparing the protected species coenopopulations structure, the authors showed its different types depending on the recreational load. © Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature 2019.