1 2476-3128 688 General Adaptation of Western Oak Seedlings to Yasuj Climate and Analysis of their Leaf Morphology Zolfaghari R. b Karimi Haji Pomagh Kh. c Zamani S. M. d Fayyaz P. e b College of Agric., Yasouj Univ., Yasouj, Iran. c College of Agric., Yasouj Univ., Yasouj, Iran. d College of Agric., Yasouj Univ., Yasouj, Iran. e College of Agric., Yasouj Univ., Yasouj, Iran. 1 12 2015 4 13 1 14 22 11 2015 22 11 2015 Analysis of performance and survival rate of different oak species in severe climate of Zagros forests especially under global warming can help with management, conservation and restoration of these species. So, seeds of three oak species of Zagros (Quercus branti, Q. infectoria and Q. libani) were collected from Baneh forests and sown in the common gardens of Yasuj. Then, their growth parameters such as collar diameter, height, trunk volume, height and collar increment, number of leaf and survival rate were measured and recorded during the growing season (June and October) for the first two years. Also, in order to find a relationship between these traits and leaf morphological and qualitative traits of seedlings, some parameters like leaf area, specific leaf area, number of sprout and branch, bending of seedlings were measured and recorded. Results showed that at early growth age, seedlings of Q. branti and Q. infectoria had the largest and smallest size, respectively. Also, Q. libani seedlings showed a lower survival rate in the second year than other studied species due to the larger seeds. Results of correlation showed that seedlings with larger leaf area, higher number of branch and less straightness had higher growth and survival rate. It can be concluded that Q. infectoria is more susceptive to the increasing period and intensity of drought than other oaks of Zagros species.
689 General Comparison of Fuzzy AHP Buckley and ANP Models in Forestry Capability Evaluation (Case Study: Behbahan City Fringe) Rahimi V. f Pourkhabbaz H. R. g Aghdar H. h Mohammadyari F. i f College of Natur. Resour., Behbahan Khatam Alanbia Univ. of Technol., Khozestan, Iran. g College of Natur. Resour., Behbahan Khatam Alanbia Univ. of Technol., Khozestan, Iran. h Shahid Chamran Univ. of Ahvaz, Ahvaz, Iran. i College of Natur. Resour., Behbahan Khatam Alanbia Univ. of Technol., Khozestan, Iran. 1 12 2015 4 13 15 31 22 11 2015 22 11 2015 The area of Zagros forests is continuously in danger of destruction. Therefore, the remaining forests should be carefully managed based on ecological capability evaluation. In fact, land evaluation includes prediction or assessment of land quality for a special land use with regard to production, vulnerability and management requirements. In this research, we studied the ecological capability of Behbahan city fringe for forestry land use. After the basic studies were completed and the thematic maps such as soil criteria, climate, physiography, vegetation and bedrock were prepared, the fuzzy multi-criteria decision-making methods of Fuzzy AHP Buckley and ANP were used to standardize and determine the weights of criteria. Finally, the ecological model of the region’s capability was generated to prioritize forestry land use and prepare the final map of evaluation using WLC model in seven classes. The results showed that in ANP method, 55.58% of the area is suitable for forestry land use which is more consistent with the reality, while in the Fuzzy AHP method, 95.23% of the area was found suitable. Finally, it was concluded that the ANP method shows more flexibility and ability to determine suitable areas for forestry land use in the study area.   690 General Relationships between Vegetation and Ecological variablesin Palangan Habitat, Aghdagh Protected Area of Ardabil Province Naqinezhad A. j Seyed Akhlaghi S. A. k Saeidi Mehrvarz Sh. l j Faculty of Basic Sciences, Univ. of Mazandaran, Babolsar, Iran. k Faculty of Science, Univ. of Guilan, Rasht, Iran. l Faculty of Science, Univ. of Guilan, Rasht, Iran. 1 12 2015 4 13 33 49 22 11 2015 22 11 2015 Knowledge about plant communities and their relationships with ecological factors is one of the most important issues in conservation ecology particularly in the recent decades. The current investigation aimed to study the vegetation ecology of Palangan habitat in Aghdagh Protected area, Ardabil province. In order to collect species and environmental data, a total of 45 plots along a 1500 m elevational gradient and an interval of 100 m were surveyed. Braun-Blanquet scales were used to evaluate vegetion cover of each plot. Floristic and ecological characteristics of the area were studied along elevational gradient using DCA ordination and TWINSPAN classification methods. Four vegetation groups detremined in TWINSPAN were also identified in the DCA diagram and their species and environmnetal characters have been evalyated by one-way ANOVA. Based on these anlayses, altitude and slope were the most important ecological factors affecting the vegetation of the area. Endemicity values are not significatly changed among different altitudinal belts, but in stead, the number of therophytes and plants with wide distributional ranges are significam,ty different along elevation. The relatiohsip between altitude and species richness, like to other mountainus systems, show almost unimodal pattern which peaks at 1800 m. 691 General Predicting the Distribution of Asiatic Cheetah, Persian Leopard and Brown Bear in Response to EnvironmentalFactors in Isfahan Province Hemami M. R. m Esmaeili S. n Soffianian A. R. o m Isfahan Univ. of Technol., Isfahan, Iran. n Isfahan Univ. of Technol., Isfahan, Iran. o Isfahan Univ. of Technol., Isfahan, Iran. 1 12 2015 4 13 51 64 22 11 2015 22 11 2015 Distribution modelling is important for assessing threats and conservation status of species and for planning conservation programs. We studied the distribution of suitable habitats of Asiatic cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus venaticus), Persian leopard (Panthera pardus saxicolor) and brown bear (Ursus arctos) in Isfahan province within and outside the protected areas. Suitable habitats of the three studied carnivores in Isfahan province were mapped in relation to climatic, topographic and anthropogenic variables using MAXENT. Assessing the developed model using the area under the ROC function showed that predictions for the three carnivore species were significantly better than random. Potential suitable habitats of Asiatic cheetah, Persian leopard and brown bear constituted 5.2%, 12% and 3.4% of the Isfahan province area, respectively. Slope was the most important factor determining Persian leopard habitat suitability, while climatic factors (mainly mean autumn and mean annual precipitation) were the most important determinants of Asiatic cheetah and brown bear distribution. The protected area network within the province covers 55.7%, 23.7%, and 11.6% of the suitable habitats for Asiatic cheetah, Persian leopard and brown bear, respectively. Parts of suitable habitats of the three species are located outside the protected areas, which could be considered in planning conservation programs as potential movement corridors. 692 General Modeling Annual Carbon Uptake by Saplings of Hybrid Poplar Clone (Populus euramericana 488) Through Allometric Equations Vahedi A. A. p Mataji A. Akhavan R. p Research Institute of Forests and Rangelands, Agricultural Research Education and Extension College Of Natur. Resour. and Agric., Science and Research Branch, Islamic Research Institute of Forests and Rangelands, Agricultural Research Education and Extension 1 12 2015 4 13 65 77 22 11 2015 22 11 2015 Modelling allometric equations for saplings of hybrid poplar clone produce a highly accurate estimate of pure productivity and C sequestration, leading to better sales and determination of the capacity of cellulose resources and bio-energy pools. Twenty five cuttings with 25 cm length were planted within a 1×1 m2 area in the Talookola nursery, Sari, in 2011. Ten saplings were selected from the two diameter classes (0-1, 1.1-2 cm). After separating the roots and stems, they were oven-dried at 85ºC for 48 hours. According to the diameter distribution, 24 and 6 saplings, respectively, from each diameter class were uprooted. Collar diameter and height were the twe variables used to model allometric equations. Carbon factor was obtained directly by exposing the wood samples in the oven and was estimated based on organic carbon to organic material ratio. Collar diameter and height were the variables to model allometric equations. The results of allometric modelling showed that multivariate linear model including natural logarithm of diameter, logarithm of height and diameter logarithm square with mean C factor of [C] = 0.44 is the optimal equation (R2adj = 0.732 CF = 1.056) for C sequestration of superior saplings. 693 General Comparison of Logistic Regression and Discriminate Analysis in Recognition of the Factors Affecting on the Distribution of Quercus Libanii of Armardeh Forests at Baneh, Kurdistan Province Modares Gorji H. Pir Bavaghar M. Ghahramani L. CZagros, Univ. of CZagros, Univ. of CZagros, Univ. of 1 12 2015 4 13 79 88 22 11 2015 22 11 2015 The study site, Armardeh forest, is located in Baneh, Kurdistan Province. The study area covers approximately 17000 ha. In this study, logistic regression and discriminant analysis methods were used and their performances were compared. Two random sampling grids were overlaid on the presence and absence area of Quercus libani type as dependent variables. Physiographic factors including slope, aspect, elevation and distance from drains were extracted for each sampling site and considered as independent variables. The results showed that the area under the ROC curve (0.746) for logistic regression method is higher than the discriminant analysis with 0.502. Furthermore, the overall accuracy of the classification of the logistic regression was higher than discriminate analysis. The results of this study can be used in management and restoration of these forests. 694 General Species Diversity of Laelapid Soil Mites (Acari: Laelapidae) Under Different Land Use Types in Saman and Shahrekord Amani M. Khajehali J. Noorbakhsh F. Joharch O. Sabzalian M. R. College of Agric, Isfahan Univ. of Technol., Isfahan, Iran. College of Agric, Isfahan Univ. of Technol., Isfahan, Iran. Yazd Branch, Islamic Azad Univ., Yazd, Iran. College of Agric, Isfahan Univ. of Technol., Isfahan, Iran. College of Agric, Isfahan Univ. of Technol., Isfahan, Iran. 1 12 2015 4 13 89 99 22 11 2015 22 11 2015 Mites are the best representative of soil arthropods because they are the most diverse in terms of ecological niche and behavior. In this study, abundance and biodiversity of laelapid soil mites were evaluated in eight sites in Saman and Shahrekord, with each site including an orchard and a farmland. There was a significant difference in the Shannon-Wiener diversity index of laelapid mites among different land uses. The maximum value of this index was (0.44) in soil of elm trees in Shahrekord. The Margalef species richness index was highest (0.64) in an almond orchard in Saman. The maximum amount of the Simpson index was (0.39) in the almond orchard of Saman. The regression line equations and coefficient of determination between the soil organic matter and biodiversity indices were calculated. The results showed that the coefficient of determination (r2= 0.73) for soil organic matter and the Simpson index was higher than that of other indices. Therefore, it could be concluded that the response of laelapid soil mites conforms to the management practices of farmlands, changes in abundance of species, and biodiversity indices.