Scientific journal
European Journal of Natural History
ISSN 2073-4972
ИФ РИНЦ = 0,301

MORPHOMETRIC SIGNS OF THE LEAF PLATE OF POPLAR (POPULUS NIGRA L.), MARPLE (ACER PSEUDOPLATANUS L.), LIME-TREE (TILIA PLATYPHYLLOS SCOP.) IN THE CITY OF ROME (ITALY)

Kulagin A.Yu. 1 Tagirova O.V. 2 Rashitova R.S. 2
1 Ufa Biology Institute of Russian Academy of Sciences
2 Bashkir State Pedagogical University named after M. Akmulla
1813 KB

Italy is a typical Mediterranean country located in the central part of Southern Europe. It spreads from a forest temperate zone (in the north) to a subtorrid zone (in the south). It is located on the Apennine Peninsula which is surrounded with water on three sides. The great influence on formation of natural phenomena of Italy, especially its climate, exerts the sea [2].

A variety of climate is determined by longitudinal extent. In the north of Italy, on the Padansky plain, climate is transitional from subtorrid to temperate. There is hot summer and cold foggy winter. Climate of an island part of Italy is mediterranean, 2/3 of a years there is hot and dry summer, and winter is warm and soft [1, 2].

The capital, and also the biggest city of Italy is Rome. Its population exceeds two and a half million people [2]. Lazio is an administrative area in Italy. The capital is the city of Rome. 54 % of the territory is hilly area, 26,1 % (Apennines) are mountains, 19,9 % are plains. The climate is soft, the average temperature of January is + 9–10 °C, July of 24–25 °C. The largest river is Tiber. It has an exit to the Tyrrhenian Sea. Cultural landscapes prevail there. Woods occupy only 20 % of the territory, mainly in mountains and on hills, plains are almost treeless. Along roads and coasts of the rivers plantings of poplars, willows, white acacias prevail [3].

Populus nigra L. is a plant of Willow family, type of the sort Poplar. It is a melliferous, tannic, efiromaslichny, dyeing, officinal, woody, ornamental plant, which is cultivated in gardening. It grows in flood plains of the rivers on the wet alluvial sandy, sand-pebble, sandy salty soils. As a part of inundated woods it carries out important role in water preserving, water regulating, bank protection, kolmatiruyushchy and sanitary and hygienic functions. The poplar black is treated as mikrotermofita that is a cold-resistant plant adapted to existence in the conditions of long severe winter which it endures at rest, showing high winter resistance. It is a hygrophilous inundated plant. It is considered as the most widespread species of the wood plants applied in gardening of settlements and recultivation. It is due to the fact that it is very winter resistant, grows quickly, is ecologically ductile, shows in the conditions of a city high heat – smoke-and gas resistance [7].

Acer pseudoplatanus L. is a tree, a type of the sort Maple. It is remarkable for resistance to wind, city pollution and salt. This is the reason to be cultivated in cities, on the sea coast and along the roads strewed with salt in winter. This plant prefers to grow in warm places, it is shade-requiring and melliferous.

Tilia platyphyllos SCOP. is a deciduous tree of the sort Malvaceae, Linden Family. The large-leaved linden is remarkable for longevity and high adaptation to city conditions. It practically does not suffer from diseases and pests, is not damaged by frosts, is drought-resistant and is very simple in looking after. It is widely applied in landscape architecture and gardening. It is a melliferous herb. The plant is soil nutritious because its leaves contain a large amount of calcium and after defoliation they enrich the soil with nutrients.

In July 2015 selection of leaves was made. For definition of morphological features, used for assessment of stability of development of plantings, samples of leaves (by 20–30 pieces) from one tree were selected. Methods of treatment and collecting materials by V.M. Zakharov and coauthors were used [4].

According to the accepted methods measurements of right and left halves of leaves of a birch by 5 signs were taken: the first sign is width of the left and right halves of a leaf (while measuring the leaf plate is folded up, we combine the top with the bottom of a leaf and unbend a leaf. On the formed fold the distance from the border of the central vein to the leaf edge is measured); the 2nd sign is length of a vein of the second order from the leaf bottom; the 3rd sign is distance between the bottoms of the first and second veins of the second order; the 4th sign is distance between the ends of these veins; the 5th sign is a corner between the main vein and the second from the leaf bottom vein of the second order.

The integral index of stability of development of a poplar black on the territory of Rome makes 0,093. The least index of size of asymmetry 0,052 is revealed by the 5th sign (a corner between the main vein and the second from the leaf bottom vein of the second order). The greatest index of size of asymmetry 0,157 is revealed on the 4th sign (distance between the ends of the first and second veins of the second order) (table 1).

The integral index of stability of development of a maple white on the territory of Rome makes 0,065. The least index of size of asymmetry 0,043 is revealed on 1 and on 3 signs (width of the left and right halves of a leaf and distance between the bottom of the first and second veins of the second order). The greatest index of size of asymmetry 0,090 is revealed on the 5th sign (a corner between the main vein and the second from the leaf bottom vein of the second order) (table 2).

Table 1

Morphometric signs of a leaf plate of Populus nigra L. on the territory area of Pyramida

Number of a sign

Asymmetry size

1

2

3

4

5

0,064

0,056

0,137

0,157

0,052

0,093

Table 2

Morphometric signs of a leaf plate of Acer pseudoplatanus L. on the territory of Via Galvani

Number of a sign

Asymmetry size

1

2

3

4

5

0,043

0,088

0,043

0,061

0,090

0,065

Table 3

Morphometric signs of a leaf plate of Acer pseudoplatanus L. on the territory of Via Marmorata

Number of a sign

Asymmetry size

1

2

3

4

5

0,074

0,041

0,056

0,168

0,035

0,075

Table 4

Morphometric signs of a leaf plate Tilia platyphyllos SCOP. on the territory of Via Marmorata

Number of a sign

Asymmetry size

1

2

3

4

5

0,032

0,029

0,262

0,107

0,139

0,114

The integral index of stability of development of a maple white on the territory of Rome makes 0,075. The least index of size of asymmetry 0,035 is revealed on the 5th sign (a corner between the main vein and the second from the leaf bottom vein of the second order). The greatest index of size of asymmetry 0,168 is revealed on the 4th sign (distance between the ends of the first and second veins of the second order) (table 3).

The integral index of stability of development of a large-leaved linden on the territory of Rome makes 0,114. The least index of size of asymmetry 0,029 is revealed on the 2nd sign (length of a vein of the second order from the leaf bottom). The greatest index of size of asymmetry 0,262 is revealed on the 3rd sign (distance between the bottom of the first and second veins of the second order) (table 4).

To sum up, the assessment of stability of development of wood plants on the basis of definition of morphological features of leaves the adaptive reactions bound to change the size of asymmetry of leaf plates of different types of wood plants were revealed [5, 6, 8].


The work is submitted to the International Scientific Conference “Problems of ecological monitoring”, Italy (Rome-Venice), December 18–25, 2016, came to the editorial office оn 09.12.2016.