Tana Managed Reserve

Tana Managed Reserve is located in Gori Municipality, on the northern slopes of the Trialeti Ridge. Here, the Inner Kartli Plain ends and its upland begins, where cliffs, alpine hills, and knolls alternate. The total area of Tana Managed Reserve is 10,986 hectares.

The valley of the River Tana is divided by various ridges, whose height reaches 2,261 meters above sea level, for example, on the Jamjama Ridge. The lowest point of the valley is located at an altitude of 600 meters above sea level.

Geologically, the Tana Valley represents a young tectonic depression enclosed within the Tertiary basin and is covered with Quaternary sediments — both alluvial, fluvioglacial, and deluvial. Lithologically, they are represented by clays mixed with sand and gravel, clayey sands, and pebbles.

Biodiversity

Flora

Due to its complex relief and significant altitudinal variation, Tana Managed Reserve features diverse landscapes and vegetation. The main landscapes of the region are:

• Dry, sclerophyllous subtropical landscapes with elements of arid forests developed on forest brown soils;
• Low mountains with oak–hazel forests and beech–dark coniferous forests developed on forest brown and brown soils;
• Subalpine vegetation developed on mountain-meadow soils.

According to the geobotanical zoning of Georgia (R. Kvachakidze, 2010), the basin of the River Tana falls within the Central Trialeti geobotanical region, where, as in Western Trialeti, the distribution of vegetation is subject to the general regularities of vertical zonation. However, due to long-term anthropogenic impact, the natural distribution of vegetation is significantly disturbed over large areas, especially on slopes of southern and south-facing exposures.

The main vegetation cover near the village of Zemo Ateni consists of oak–hornbeam forests, while lower down near the village of Ateni, xerophytic rocky groupings and dry-type shrublands dominate. In these areas, the Red List species Tana milkvetch (Astragalus tanae) is found. Two altitudinal vegetation belts are distinguished in the Tana Valley: forest and subalpine belts.

The forest belt is located between 650 and 1,800 meters and includes two sub-belts:

• Oak (Quercus iberica) forests
• Beech (Fagus orientalis) and dark coniferous (Picea orientalis, Abies nordmanniana) forests

Pine (Pinus sosnowskyi) forests occupy significant areas in the basins of the rivers Tana and Vichkha — the left tributary of the River Tedzmi — on slopes of southern exposure.
Floodplain forests are fragmentarily represented in the expanded parts of the first and second terraces of rivers (Tedzmi basin). Their composition includes: black poplar (Populus nigra), gray poplar (Populus canescens), willows (Salix excelsa, S. alba), elm (Ulmus minor), pedunculate oak (Quercus pedunculiflora), oleaster (Elaeagnus angustifolia), barberry (Berberis vulgaris), sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides), tamarisk (Tamarix ramosissima), hawthorn (Crataegus kyrtostyla), dogwood (Svida australis); lianas are also found: clematis (Clematis vitalba), blackberry (Rubus anatolicus), and others.

The subalpine belt (1750–2500 m) combines subalpine forests, shrubs, tall herbaceous vegetation, and subalpine meadows.

Species included in the Red List of Georgia

In the studied area (northern slope of the Trialeti Ridge — right tributaries of the River Mtkvari: Dzama, Tana, and Tedzmi basins), 10 species from the Red List of Georgia are found:

• Walnut (Juglans regia) – VU (B1)
• Highland oak (Quercus macranthera) – VU (A2)
• Pedunculate oak (Quercus pedunculiflora) – VU (B1b – I, II, III)
• Smooth-leaved elm (Ulmus glabra) – VU (A1cde)
• Small-leaved elm (Ulmus minor) – VU (B1)
• Hop-hornbeam (Ostrya carpinifolia) – EN (A1 + 2c)
• Pontic hawthorn (Crataegus pontica) – VU (B1bc)
• Tana milkvetch (Astragalus tanae) – EN (B1a + 2a)
• Yew (Taxus baccata)
• Foetid juniper (Juniperus foetidissima)

In addition to the above species, the following species of high conservation value are present in Tana Managed Reserve — Caucasian peony (Paeonia caucasica) and Atsquri pink (Dianthus azkurensis).

Endemics and relicts

Among the plant species distributed in the Tana basin, 24 are Georgian endemics and 66 are Caucasian endemics.

Fauna

Tana Managed Reserve is characterized by quite high diversity of animal species; however, the area is poorly studied and faunistic research is episodic.
The list of fauna species distributed in Tana Managed Reserve is presented in the annex:
Fish: trout (Salmo fario), spined loach (Cobitis aurata);

Reptiles: Mediterranean tortoise (Testudo graeca);

Birds: long-legged buzzard (Buteo rufinus), golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos), greater spotted eagle (Aquila clanga), Egyptian vulture (Neophron percnopterus), Caucasian black grouse (Tetrao mlokosiewiczi), little owl (Athene noctua);

Mammals: brown bear (Ursus arctos), lynx (Lynx lynx), barbastelle bat (Barbastella barbastellus), otter (Lutra lutra), Caucasian squirrel (Sciurus anomalus), gray hamster (Cricetulus migratorius).

The invertebrate fauna of the valley is insufficiently studied, but it is known that at least 45 species of mollusks and 15 species of butterflies inhabit the area. In addition, numerous species of dragonflies, as well as terrestrial, soil, and aquatic invertebrates, are found in the valley.

Species included in the Red List of Georgia

15 vertebrate species recorded in Tana Managed Reserve are included in the Red List of Georgia.