Unpublished aspects of hygrophilous wood vegetation from Nebrodi mountains (N-E Sicily)

Abstract

In this paper we report the results of a study done on the vegetation of hygrophilous woods and shrubs occurring along the sub montane and montane small rivers of the Alcantara watershed located in the Nebrodi Mountains (N-E Sicily). We have described two new associations: Alno glutinosae-Salicetum rubentis and Euonymo europaei-Salicetum lambertianae, both belonging to the class Salici purpureae-Populetea nigrae. The forest association would belong to the alliance Populion albae of the order Populetalia albae, while the shrubs of pebbly streams would give origin to communities that would belong to the alliance Salicion albae of the order Salicetalia purpureae. The study gave the occasion to produce a new syntaxonomic framework of this vegetation.