Journal of Rangeland

Identification of rangeland species is an essential step in range management. This study aimed to study the flora, and investigate on the relationships of species distribution with climatic factors in Iranshahr region rangelands. Taxonomic studies were conducted to provide the plant floristic list. Plants life forms were determined using Raunkiaer categories. Twenty seven climate variables were collected from 12 synoptic stations close to the study area. Principal component analysis was used to identify the most effective climatic variables on the plant species distribution. According to the results, 175 plant species from 136 genera and 44 families were identified in the study area. Gramineae, Compositae, Papilionaceae and Chenopodiaceae contained the most plant species in the flora respectively. Results indicated that 25.72% of the plant species were Therophytes, 25.14% Hemicryptophytes, 24.57% Phanerophytes, 20.57% Chamaephytes and 4% Geophytes. According to the chrological analysis, 28.57% of the studied plant species belonged to Sahara-Sindian region, 24% Irano-Turanian /Sahara-Sindian, 20% Irano-Turanian, and 4% cosmopolitan elements. Results showed that the study area is located in Sahara-Sindian region. PCA results also indicated that the average of maximum relative humidity, number of days with thunderstorm, number of days with precipitation and maximum daily precipitation had significant effects on the plant species distribution.