07B2
Vegetation on the Black Sea gravel beaches
Relationships with habitat classifications. EUNIS: B2.13 Gravel beach communities of the Mediterranean region; PAL. CLASS.: 17.23 Tethyan gravel beach communities; HD 92/43: 1210 Annual vegetation of drift lines.
Conservation status. BDA, HD.
Category. Endangered [EN – A1, 2 C3 D3 E2 F1 G2 H2 J].
General characteristics. Habitats existing on abrasive beaches, where the sea (mainly in winter) destroys the rocks and loess walls and where there are earth slides. Thus, drift accumulates – gravel with different size of the particles, shells, algae. These deposits are rich in nitrogen due to the high quantity of decaying plant and animal remains. Most often there is no vegetation in this habitat, but in some places phytocoenoses of annual and perennial plants can occur such as Cakiletea maritimae.Sometimes semi-ruderal and nitrophilic coenoses can develop as well. They are open and usually with very low projective cover. Most often Argusia sibirica, Crambe maritima, Euphorbia peplis, Salsola ruthenica occur.In the area of Durankulak village, Shabla town and Krapets village, the abrasive loess beach (up to 10 m high) forms a 5–6 m wide contact zone of very fine structure rich in shells and algae in some places. This substrate is suitable for nitrophilic vegetation because it is rich in nutrients. Southwards, in the cliffs between Shabla Cape and Kavarna town the beach is 60 m high and is built of more solid Neogene limestone. The beach there is narrower, and consists of more rough gravel almost without vegetation. In the area of Balchik town, Kranevo village, Varna town and Galata Cape southwards to the estuary of Kamchia River, the slides are smaller as a result of the soft Sarmatian mergels and limestone. A narrower stripe of finer gravel can be observed in the abrasive zone. Such is the beach in the area where the Balkan Range reaches the sea (Shkorpilovtsi village at Emine Cape), but in some places large pieces of the harder Paleogene and Cretaceous sediments can be broken. The beach southward from Burgas, including the area of Strandzha Mts is strongly segmented. The rocks are sediment-volcanic and effusive. There are many small bays with gravel beach with middle-sized gravel where almost no vegetation can be found.
Characteristic taxa.
- Vascular plants: Argusia sibirica, Cakile maritima subsp. euxina, Crambe maritima, Eryngium maritimum, Glaucium flavum, Lactuca tatarica, Salsola ruthenica.
- Animals: Invertebrates – Orchestia gammarela, Fucelia maritima, Thoracochaeta brachistoma, Aleochara algarum, Labidura riparia;Vertebrates – Arenaria interspres, Calidiris alba.
Distribution in Bulgaria. The whole Black Sea coast but mainly in the areas Durankulak village (Shabla town, Kaliakra cape, Balchik town; Kranevo village – Varna town; southwards from Galata Cape; Shkorpilovtsi village, Byala town, Obzor town, Emine cape; Burgas, Sozopol, Primorsko and Tzarevo towns, Rezovo village).
Conservation importance. Some rare and protected plant species occur on the pontic gravel beaches such as Argusia sibirica and Eryngium maritimum.
Threats. Intensive seaside tourism, construction activities, degradation and pollution of the beaches and coastal rocks; illegal restitution of the coastal rock strip, abrasive effect of the sea, active earth and stone slides.
Conservation measures taken. The habitat is included in Annex №1 of the national Biodiversity Act. Some localities are within protected areas: Durankulashko Ezero and Shablensko Ezero Protected Sites, Ropotamo Strict Nature Reserve, Strandzha Nature Park. Some localities are in sites of the European Ecological Network NATURA 2000.
Conservation measures needed. Termination of the construction activities along the seaside and decrease of the tourist impact.
References. Tzonev 2005b.
Authors: Rossen Tzonev, Chavdar Gussev
