Note on the vegetation of the mounts of tlemcen ( Western Algeria ) : Floristic and phytoecological aspects

Of the four national hunting reserves in Algeria, the Mounts of Tlemcen Moutas reserve http://reservebio-tlm.com, characterized by a large area, reliefs and a specific climate, implies significant floristic and faunistic richness. Currently, the coexistence of species, such as Quercus faginea subsp. tlemcenensis (DC.) M., Lonicera implexa L., Ruscus aculeatus L., indicates a forest dominant ecological atmosphere, although the region has experienced repeated fires during the 90’s. In this research, a phytoecologicaland syntaxonomical analysis is obvious. More than 300 species have been inventoried and indexed in more than 70 families and this shows the importance of phyto-diversity of the studiedregion. In the analysis of the phyto-ecological parameters, we could notice a regression of the vegetal cover in its diversity.


INTRODUCTION
The currently developed methods of biodiversity extinction have large uncertainties but all converge on acceleration whatever would be the economic models.To assess the loss of biodiversity, we worked on the disappearance and fragmentation of plant life media (inventtory of natural habitats).
The reserve is particularly sensitive in terms of plant diversity, it underwent in the past human pressures and significant fires.The ecological landscape includes different habitats moving to a scrub, with considerable variations.
The knowledge of this dynamic and this floristic inventory is an important research path for us.Analyses of biodiversity lead in particular to show that the maximum biodiversity is not in the primitive forest sensu stricto, but in the moderately man altered spaces [1].
We will discuss this problem here from floristic inventory formed by tree structures and their stages of degradation as it is at this level that they can be analyzed.

METHODOLOGY
Location and structure of Tlemcen hunting reserve: The study area is located in the western part of Northwest Algeria at about 46 km as the crow flies from the sea and 26 km south-west of the city of Tlemcen.The reserve, part of Hafir forest, occupies the highest and most wooded area of the Mounts of Tlemcen.It is located about 34˚41' to 34˚49' north and 01˚25' to 01˚35' west (Figure 1).
It occupies an area of 2156 hain a 15 km perimeter; it is characterized by typically mountainous reliefs of the Tamaksalet massif with a remarkable difference in altitude.The altitude is between the extreme points from Ras Torriche 1303 m andthe region of Sidi Messaoud at 1017 m.
It is geographically limited: • To the east by the town of Aïn Ghoraba; • In the north-east by the municipality of Sabra; • To the west and northwest by the municipality of Bouhlou; • In the south and southwest by the city of Beni Bahdel.It receives about 500 m mannual rainfall and shows average temperatures between 6.4˚C (January) and 26.4˚C (July and August).It is classified in the cool winter's sub-humid bioclimatic level with a dry season (5 months) which lasts from June to October.
The soils are varied depending on the topography of the region.On the tops, they are not very deep where of-time the bed rock levels.Sometimes deep towards very deep on all along the principal river basins of the hydrographic network.
In the reserve, the main rocks source is sedimentary: calcareous sandstone, sandy limestones, dolomites and marl [11].
The complete list was made from the following works: Moutas Herbarium which is made up to now more than 220 species recorded by researchers from the laboratory of plant/botanical ecology from the University of Tlemcen, Field work during 2010, 2011 and 2012, we have completed 70 surveys using conventional techniques and methods of ecology (inventory, minimum area, transect, flora network...).The method of Braun-Blanquet [12], which is expressed by analytical characteristics: abundance, dominance and sociability on a scale of 1 to 5 to help us to do a thorough analysis of the vegetation.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS
Ecological zoning of the main forest groupings.

Evergreen Oak Forest
Dominates almost all of the reserve and is characterized by the evergreen oak presence (Quercus ilex subsp.ballota (Desf.)Samp) within a 942.4 hectares area.
The major issues, well developed and characterized by a large trunk, are located at the edges of cultivated lands within the reserve where the soil is deep and very rich in organic matter.These characters change as the altitude increases, the soil becomes shallower and bedrock appears at the surface.In addition, North exposures have a significant contribution to water compensation, allowing the taxa development in integrated settlements linked to Quercetea ilicis [6,19].
The distribution of Kermes oak (Quercus coccifera subsp.coccifera L.) is very limited, and in the extreme west and north-west of the reserve close to Tamaksalet (Bouhlou municipamity) and some species are scattered throughout the center of the reserve at Ras Mnakher, Mnakher and Souamaa.These areas are a warmer (xeric).

Zeen Oak Forest
The zeen oak (Quercus faginea Lamk) is a deciduous oak of meso-and supra-Mediterranean types [20][21][22], endemic to the western Mediterranean (Iberian Peninsula, Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia) [23].It would be represented in the Mounts of Tlemcen by a sub-species: Quercus faginea subsp.tlemcenensis (DC.)M. (Figure 2) This oak occupies 1/5 th of the reserve with an area of 428 ha.It is found mainly in the southern and south- western part of the reserve at Torriche, Ras Moutas, Mnakher, Chaâbat La'akhra and Aïn Ben.It is also found in the extreme north at Besghirand Boumedrer.
The Tlemcen zeen oak, ranging in size between 5 and 7 m, prefers deep soils and limestone-rich substratewithfresh degraded materials and rare silica.This species exists and dominates the valleys and hollows of the reserve.We can consider that this species benefits from the water compensation, despite drought and this can be explained by compensation edaphic-climatic phenomena [24].It is practically non-existent or so on the summit where the soil depth is less thick, and even if it does, it is most unusual and with a dwarf size that barely exceeds 2 m.

Cork Oak Forests
Representedby the cork oak relics: Quercus suber L. (Figure 3), in a very limited area, which does not exceed 20 ha, they are frequently found in Saf-el-Ali, Aïn Djedi and other relics in Torriche, Boumedrerand Ras Moutas south side and finally a few stalks at Mnakher.Their growth is generally less strong after fire.These species are typical of low-intensity fire regimes, but common in the study area [25][26][27].

The Juniper: Juniperus oxycedrus Subsp. Oxycedrus
It is widespread in the reserve with scattered blankets.This indicates the presence of degradation oak stands.
• Other conifers are represented in the form of plantations in the rest area Torriche and near the forest house Boumedrer as Aleppo pine Pinus halepensis Miller, stone pine (Pinus pinea L.) cedar (Cedrus atlantica (Endl.)Carrière) and cypress (Cupressus sempervirens L.)

Riverine
The reserve is surrounded by natural sources: Aïn-Boumedrer the largest and most common, AïnE-Djedi, Aïn Moutas and Aïn El-Ben.The vegetation, adjacent to these springs and streams, is riparian representing vegetation structure at least partly azonal [31], or indicators of wetlands such as Rubus ulmifolius Schott, Dittrichia viscosa (L.) Greuter, Typha latifolia L., Carex hispi- Riparian forests are dominant in this area; unfortunately the foresters do not take this fact into account in their statistics.Other taxa grow in an expansionary way after the fire e.g., Cistus ladanifer L., Cistus creticus L. and Cistus salvifolius L. and taxa characterized by their high regeneration such as thujaand evergreen oak that can participate in the formation of scrub landscapes [20].5) "in the short-cycle crops adapted to use a fleeting resource, tolerance and/or need of light (light-demanding species) make them exclusive or preferential plants ofo- ligotrophic dry grasslands or rocks exposed to wind and temperature extremes."[32].

Lawns (Figure
They are spread over about 106 hectares and dominated by annual species (Therophytes) caused by high anthropozoological action and further degradation (fire).

Vulpia ciliate Dumort…
List of vascular taxa listed by family in Tlemcenhunting reserve.