Ecologia Mediterranea

N. BOUCHENEB, S.S. BENHOUHOU
76
The Tamarix aphylla and Farsetia
ramosissima community
This association corresponds to the floristic
group E4 identified by the correspondence
analysis (Figure 4). It is represented by fifteen
relevés taken from wadi beds and nearby terraces
on sandy soils. Altitude shows a small
range of variation between 960 and 980 m.
The association has been sampled in wadi Tin
Amzi and wadi Tamanrasset (Figure 3).
Our association is physiognomically dominated
by Tamarix aphylla (L.) H. Karst. with
the main companion species being: Calotropis
procera and Leptadenia pyrotechnica
(Table 5). The distinctive characteristic
species of this association are Tamarix
aphylla, Farsetia ramosissima Hochst. and
Launaea mucronata (Forsk.) Muschler. For
the wadis investigated, the second species was
found only once while the third, an annual,
was not encountered.
Table 5 – The Tamarix aphylla and Farsetia ramosissima association.
The study of the floristic content of the
relevés enables us to relate our vegetation unit
to the association of Tamarix aphylla-Farsetia
ramosissima Quézel 1965. A close analysis
of the species list making up the Tamarix
aphylla-Farsetia ramosissima association
shows a complex ecological association.
Psammophilous species such as Tamarix
aphylla, Calotropis procera, Tamarix gallica
L., Leptadenia pyrotechnica and Chrozophora
brocchiana are intermingled with species typical
of the Acacia-Panicum desertic savannah
such as Salvadora persica, Ziziphus lotus (L.)
Desf., Acacia tortilis subsp. raddiana, Acacia
ehrenbergiana and Balanites aegyptiaca.
Such a complex edaphic situation, where
psammophilous and chasmophilous species
occur together, was already reported by
Quézel (1965) for several wadi types in the
Ahaggar. The author did not relate the
Tamarix communities to higher units of the
phytosociological framework because of this
Quadrat number 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
Area (m²) 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200 200
Total cover (%) 30 30 25 40 20 20 20 30 25 25 20 15 45 30 20
Altitude (m) 980 870 870 980 980 980 980 990 960 870 980 1460 930 1250 1070
Number of Taxa 12 9 9 2 5 5 8 6 9 8 7 3 17 7 11
Caracteristics of the association CP
Tamarix aphylla 3 3 3 3 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 + + + + V
Farsetia ramosissima . . . . . . . . . . . . + . . I
Caracteristics of the Pergularieto-Pulicarietea Quézel 1965
Acacia tortilis subsp. raddiana + 2 1 . + 2 + . . 1 + . . 3 . IV
Acacia ehrenbergiana . + + . . . . . . 1 . . . + + III
Panicum turgidum . + + . . . . . . + . . 1 + + III
Pergularia tomentosa + + + . . . . . . . . . . . . II
Ziziphus lotus . 1 . . + . . . . + . . . . . II
Acacia albida . . . . . . . . . 1 . . . . . I
Balanites aegyptiaca + . . . . . . . . . . . . . . I
Senna italica (Cassia aschrek)
Psammophils
+ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . I
Leptadenia pyrotechnica + 2 2 . . . + . . + + . + . + IV
Calotropis procera + . . . 1 1 + + . . + + 4 . 1 IV
Tamarix gallica + . . . . + + . + . . . + . + III
Salsola baryosma . . . . . . . 1 + . . . + 2 + III
Artemisia campestris + . . . . . + . . . 1 . + + . III
Salvadora persica . . . 2 2 + . . . . . . . . . II
Cleome africana . . . . . . . . + . . . + . . II
Colocynthis vulagaris . . . . . . . . . . . . + . + II
Calligonum comosum . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 . . I
Stipagrostis pungens
Chasmophils
. . . . . . . . . . . . + . . I
Zilla spinosa 1 + + . . . 1 + + 1 + + 3 1 + V
Pulicaria crispa + . + . . . . + 1 . + . + . + III
Fagonia bruguieri + . . . . . . + + . . . 1 . 1 III
Aerva javanica . + + . . . . . + . . . + . . III
Pulicaria undulata . . . . . . + . + . . . + . . II
Additional species: Artemisia judaica 1 (7), Stipagrostis obtusa + (13), Atractylis aristata + (1), Chrozophora brocchiana + (13),
Euphorbia granulata + (13), Farsetia hamiltonii + (15), Helianthemum lipii + (13), Morettia canescens + (13), Moricandia arvensis + (13),
Nucularia perrini + (9), Paronychia capitata + (13), Pituranthos scoparius + (14), Reseda villosa + (13), Tribulus terrestris + (4).
ecologia mediterranea – Vol. 38 (2) – 2012