MODERN VEGETATION OF FOREST/STEPPE ECOTONE OF THE RUSSIAN UPLAND, ORYOL REGION AS REFLECTED IN SUBFOSSIL POLLEN SPECTRA
The results of the study for subfossil spore-pollen spectra from forest-steppe ecotone of the Middle-Russian Upland, Orel Region reveal the adequacy between composition of the pollen spectra from different types of plant communities and regional modern vegetation. Pollen spectra from forest and forest-steppe ecosystems feature the exaggerated share of pollen of wind-pollinated plants with high pollen productivity, such as pine and birch. The proportion of birch pollen is particularly signifi cant in the spectra from forested bars. High taxonomic diversity of the group of herbaceous plants is typical for the spectra from forest-steppe zone. They also comprise pollen of cultivated cereals and some other plants, which dominate the steppefi ed communities of abandoned agricultural lands. Pollen of segetal, pascual and ruderal species is considered to be a reliable diagnostic feature of land disturbance the substrate compaction.