T21x Northwestern Iberian holm-oak forests

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Description

Broadleaved evergreen mostly sclerophyllous forests in karstified, percolating limestone outcrops in the lowlands, east from central Asturias.

Protection

Protected under the code 9340 ("Quercus ilex and Quercus rotundifolia forests") by the EU Habitat Directive.

Floristic Composition

Frequent species

Quercus ilex 100%, Smilax aspera 83%, Rubia peregrina 83%, Hedera helix aggr. 68%, Ruscus aculeatus 62%, Crataegus monogyna 59%, Phillyrea latifolia 52%, Dioscorea communis 49%, Rhamnus alaternus 48%, Brachypodium pinnatum 42%, Arbutus unedo 41%, Rosa sempervirens 41%, Cornus sanguinea 39%, Erica vagans 31%, Prunus spinosa 28%, Asplenium adiantum-nigrum aggr. 28%, Rubus ulmifolius 28%, Genista hispanica 27%, Ligustrum vulgare 27%, Laurus nobilis 26%, Lonicera periclymenum 23%, Quercus robur 23%, Clematis vitalba 22%, Pteridium aquilinum 19%, Osyris alba 18%, Corylus avellana 18%, Arum italicum 18%, Ilex aquifolium 17%, Stachys officinalis 17%, Euphorbia amygdaloides 17%, Polystichum setiferum 15%, Geranium robertianum 14%, Viola riviniana aggr. 13%, Helianthemum nummularium 13%, Glandora diffusa 12%, Cistus salviifolius 12%, Acer campestre 12%, Brachypodium sylvaticum 11%, Origanum vulgare 11%, Teucrium scorodonia 10%, Festuca rubra 10%, Anthyllis vulneraria 10%, Hypericum androsaemum 10%, Asplenium trichomanes 9%, Pistacia terebinthus 9%, Teucrium pyrenaicum 8%, Fragaria vesca 8%, Galium mollugo aggr. 8%, Ulex europaeus aggr. 8%, Ulex minor aggr. 7%, Vincetoxicum hirundinaria 7%, Crithmum maritimum 7%, Pistacia lentiscus 7%, Hepatica nobilis 6%, Polypodium cambricum 6%, Daboecia cantabrica 6%, Hypericum pulchrum 6%, Asparagus prostratus 6%, Rosa canina aggr. 6%, Fraxinus excelsior 6%, Melica uniflora 6%, Daphne laureola 5%, Viburnum lantana 5%, Pallenis spinosa 5%, Juniperus communis 5%, Daucus carota 5%

Phytosociology

  • Lauro nobilis-Quercetum ilicis

Relations with other habitat types

In the very analytical treatment of EUNIS, this unit (a xerophilous substitute for the more drought-sensitive deciduous T1E1) is recognised only at level VI as T21211, its upgrading to level IV being therefore necessary, for otherwise all the highly diverse Ibero-Atlantic holm-oak forests would be unsatisfactorily united under a single unit at that level.

Regional distribution

The karstified, abrupt calcareous slopes where these forests are competitive could not be massively transformed by agriculture but merely exploited as a source of firewood and pasture for free-ranging goats, leading to shrubland dominated by S73x. In the last decades, as a consequence of the adoption of new sources of imported energy in households and the full establishment of market-oriented, cattle-specialised rural economies, these forests have expanded significantly and gained prominence in the landscape, though generally as still immature stands.

Known occurrences and potential area of occupancy of the habitat type in the study region.

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Citation: IBEROATLANTICA – Flora and Habitats of the Cantabrian Mixed Forests ecoregion.
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