Article
| Article name | THE DYNAMICS OF ORCHIDACEAE FINDINGS IN THE YEKATERINBURG CITY AND ITS VICINITY (SVERDLOVSK REGION, RUSSIA) OVER THE RECENT 150 YEARS OF STUDIES |
| Authors | Elena N. Podgaevskaya, PhD, Senior Researcher of the Institute of Plant and Animal Ecology, Ural Branch of RAS (620144, Russia, Yekaterinburg, 8 March Street, 202); iD ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2355-5781; e-mail: enp@ipae.uran.ru |
| Reference to article | Podgaevskaya E.N., Zolotareva N.V., Veselkin D.V. 2026. The dynamics of Orchidaceae findings in the Yekaterinburg city and its vicinity (Sverdlovsk Region, Russia) over the recent 150 years of studies. Nature Conservation Research 11(3): 38–56. https://dx.doi.org/10.24189/ncr.2026.018 |
| Section | Research articles |
| DOI | https://dx.doi.org/10.24189/ncr.2026.018 |
| Abstract | Plants of the family Orchidaceae are a good model object for studying long period dynamics of the number of occurrences, since most representatives of the family Orchidaceae are rare, aesthetically attractive species with a declining population and, sensitive to increasing anthropogenic impact. The study was aimed to analyse changes in the number of findings of Orchidaceae taxa in the city of Yekaterinburg and its vicinity (Russia) for the entire period of botanical studies, lasting from 1868 to 2024, i.e. more than 150 years. For this purpose, a data set of 1786 records of orchid finds in the Beloyarsky botanic-geographical district of the Sverdlovsk Region, including 779 records of finds in the city of Yekaterinburg, was compiled and analysed. The dynamics of the number of finds was analysed for three periods, namely period I (1868–1909), period II (1910–1989), and period III (1990–2024). Over 150 years of observations, 30 Orchidaceae taxa were recorded in Yekaterinburg and the surrounding area. The assignment of the rarity status to a species was justified, since the correspondence between the status in the Red Data Book of the Sverdlovsk Region and the number or relative abundance of the species' findings in a set of species groups with different statuses was confirmed. The number of finds over the entire observation period ranged from 58 to 274 for the least rare species, and from 1 to 16 for the rarest species. Our findings on the dynamics of various Orchidaceae species in the Sverdlovsk Region coincide with trends in their distribution over a wide range identified by other researchers. In the vicinity of Yekaterinburg, the relative abundance of Cypripedium macranthos, Gymnadenia conopsea, Herminium monorchis, and Neotinea ustulata has decreased over the past 150 years, while the relative abundance of Epipactis helleborine, Goodyera repens, Neottia nidus-avis, and Ponerorchis cucullata has increased. For the remaining 22 species, no reliable conclusions regarding the temporal dynamics of relative abundance could be drawn. Although three of the four species we identified with decreasing abundance were tuberoid orchids, and three of the four species with increasing abundance were rhizomatous plants, there is no basis for asserting a consistent relationship between life form and population dynamics. Based on their cenotic association, all four species with increased number of locations are forest species, while three of the four species with decreased number of locations are typical for open habitats. Our results confirm that the frequency of occurrence (population size) of Orchidaceae taxa is not stable over time and this must be taken into account when planning conservation measures. |
| Keywords | chronological variability, flora dynamics, Middle Urals, protected species, rare species |
| Artice information | Received: 26.11.2025. Revised: 03.03.2026. Accepted: 01.04.2026. |
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