THE COPĂCEL HILL FOREST, BETWEEN BĂLA AND ERCEA, A FUTURE RESERVE OF MUREŞ COUNTY

The forest lies in the region known as the “Transylvanian Plain”, on the Copăcel hill, between Băla and Ercea. The specific landscape of this region is characterized by medium altitude hills, with wide and soft slopes. In this forest, the presence of the Delphinium simonkaianum Pawł. var. psilocarpum (Simk.) Pawł species, a threatened endemic taxon, was reported in 1953. In 2011, this globally threatened taxon was identified, after 58 years, on the upper side of the Copăcel slope, in a mixed oak and hornbeam forest. These oak and hornbeam mixtures are the result of impacts exerted on oak forests. The identified association, Melampyro bihariensis-Carpinetum (Borza 1941) Soó 1964 em. Coldea 1975, has three distinct layers: the arborescent layer dominated by Carpinus betulus and Quercus petraea, along with Quercus robur, Prunus avium, Acer campestre, Ulmus glabra, etc., with good canopy cover (0.8-0.9); the shrub layer, represented by species such as: Crataegus monogyna, Corylus avellana, Cornus mas, Ligustrum vulgare, Rosa canina, Sambucus nigra, Staphylea pinnata, etc., is relatively poor in individuals, which are present particularly in forest clearings or at the edge of the forest. Grass synusia is well developed, sometimes forming an almost continuous cover (Asarum europaeum, Convallaria majalis, Dactylis glomerata ssp. aschersoniana, Galium odoratum, Melampyrum bihariense, Stellaria holostea, Aconitum anthora, Aconitum moldavicum, Lilium martagon, Arum orientale)