THE ROLE OF PROTECTED AREAS IN THE PRESERVATION OF RARE AND ENDANGERED SPECIES OF THE FLORA OF DAGESTAN AND PROSPECTS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF A NETWORK OF PROTECTED AREAS

Murtazaliev Ramazan Alibegovich  -  Ph.D., associate professor, head of laboratory, Caspian Institute of Biological Resources DFRC RAS; State Natural Reserve "Dagestanskyi", Russia, 367000, Makhachkala, st. M. Gadzhieva, 45; Russia, 367000, Makhachkala, Gagarina str., 120, murtazaliev.ra@yandex.ru

The paper provides a brief summary of the development of a network of protected areas in the Republic of Dagestan with an assessment of representativeness from a landscape-biotopic point of view. It is shown that about 58% of the Red Book plant species are recorded in the region’s protected areas. The largest number of protected species was identified in the territory of the Samur National Park - 58 species, of which 31 are species from the Red Book of Russia. An important role in the conservation of rare species is played by the Dzhalgan natural park (26 species) and reserves located in the high mountain zone (Tlyaratinsky, Kosobsko-Kelebsky, Bezhtinsky), where 16–19 protected species are noted. To increase the biotopic and biotic representativeness of the network, the following 5 areas have been proposed for the creation of new protected areas: the Salatau ridge, the Talgi gorge, the slopes of the Chankotau ridge, the Bogos mountain range and the gorge of the Simbiriskhevi river.

Key words: protected areas, Dagestan, Red Book, Samur National Park, reserve, rare plant species