Alpine and subalpine calcareous grasslands

Description (English)

Alpine and subalpine grasslands of base-rich soils, with Dryas octopetala, Gentiana nivalis, Gentiana campestris, Alchemilla hoppeana, Alchemilla conjuncta, Alchemilla flabellata, Anthyllis vulneraria, Astragalus alpinus, Aster alpinus, Draba aizoides, Globularia nudicaulis, Helianthemum nummularium ssp. grandiflorum, Helianthemum oelandicum ssp. alpestre, Pulsatilla alpina ssp. alpina, Phyteuma orbiculare, Astrantia major, Polygala alpestris (Pal. 36.41 to 36.43) of mountain ranges such as the Alps, Pyrenees, Carpathians and Scandinavia. Also included are the grasslands of the subalpine (oro-Mediterranean) and alpine levels of the highest mountains of Corsica (Pal. 36.37), and the Mesophile, closed, short turfs of the subalpine and alpine levels of the southern and central Apennines, developed locally above treeline, on calcareous substrates (Pal. 36.38). Can also include associated snow-patch communities (e.g. Arabidion coeruleae).
Subtypes:
Pal. 36.41 Closed calciphile alpine grasslands: Mesophile, mostly closed, vigorous, often grazed or mowed, grasslands on deep soils of the subalpine and lower alpine levels of the Alps, the Pyrenees, the mountains of the Balkan peninsula, and, locally, of the Apennines and the Jura.
Pal. 36.42 Wind edge naked-rush swards: Meso-xerophile, relatively closed and unsculptured swards of Kobresia myosuroides (Elyna myosuroides) forming on deep, fine soils of protruding ridges and edges exposed to strong winds in the alpine and nival levels of the Alps, the Carpathians, the Pyrenees, the Cantabrian Mountains, Scandinavian mountains and, very locally, the Abruzzi and the mountains of the Balkan peninsula, with Oxytropis jacquinii (Oxytropis montana), Oxytropis pyrenaica, Oxytropis carinthiaca, Oxytropis foucaudii, Oxytropis halleri, Antennaria carpatica, Dryas octopetala, Draba carinthiaca, Draba siliquosa, Draba fladnizensis, Draba aizoides, Gentiana tenella, Erigeron uniflorus, Dianthus glacialis, Dianthus monspessulanus ssp. sternbergii, Potentilla nivea, Saussurea alpina, Geranium argenteum, Sesleria sphaerocephala, Carex atrata, Carex brevicollis, Carex foetida, Carex capillaris, Carex nigra, Carex curvula ssp. rosae and Carex rupestris. Scandinavian Kobresia grasslands with Carex rupestris are included.
Pal. 36.43 Calciphilous stepped and garland grasslands: Xero-thermophile, open, sculptured, stepped or garland grasslands of the Alps, the Carpathians, the Pyrenees, the mountains of the Balkan peninsula and the Mediterranean mountains, with very local outposts in the Jura.
Pal. 36.37 Oro-Corsican grasslands: Grasslands of the subalpine (oro-Mediterranean) and alpine levels of the highest mountains of Corsica.
Pal. 36.38 Oro-Apennine closed grasslands: Mesophile, closed, short turfs of the subalpine and alpine levels of the southern and central Apennines, developed locally above treeline, on calcareous substrates.