Analytical and Cartographic Models of Functional Stability of Forest Ecosystems

The article presents the ideology and methodology of quantitative assessments of forest ecosystem sustainability. Two levels of sustainability are distinguished: labile phytocoenotic and inertial soil-biotic. For each of them, quantitative methods for calculating and mapping the potential sustainability of forest biogeocoenoses of two main types — elastic-plastic and resistant — have been developed. The Euclidean distance metric has been used to calculate sustainability indices. Statistically significant relationships have been obtained in equations describing the dependence of these indices on the metabolic parameters of forest communities and environmental factors. Based on the measures obtained, matrix maps of sustainability indices of forest biogeocoenoses of individual ecoregions, as well as forest formations of the Oka-Volga River basin, have been calculated using new geomorphometry methods. Large-scale and small-scale matrix maps of forest facies and formations stability are provided, characterizing their sensitivity to climate change and subsequent functional-restorative potential.