The Conservation Status of Grassland Habitats Belonging to Protected Areas from Oltenia ‘Natura 2000’ Site, Romania

In the present paper, are rendered the results of the research referring to the conservation status of the grasslands from two sites ‘Natura 2000’ located in Oltenia region, in South-Western part of Romania: ROSCI0202 Oltenia Forest Steppe and ROSCI0039 Ciuperceni - Desa. Within these sites, there are five habitats: 62C0* Ponto-Sarmatic steppes, 6260* Pannonic sand steppes, 6440 Alluvial meadows of river valleys of the Cnidion dubii , 6510 Lowland hay meadows ( Alopecurus pratensis, Sanguisorba officinalis ) and 1530* Pannonic salt steppes and salt marshes. The investigation of the conservation status of these habitats was carried out by assessing their conservation status at EU level, namely by assigning them to one of the four categories – “favourable”, “unfavourable-inadequate”, “unfavourable-bad”, and “unknown” – according to the stated attributes for each habitat, to the threats of destruction and to the dangers that may lead to their destruction or disappearance. By applying the evaluation matrix of the conservation state of the five habitats from the two sites Natura 2000, only three of the five studied habitats have a good conservation status: 62C0* Ponto-Sarmatic steppes, 6260* Pannonic sand steppes, 6440 alluvial meadows of river valleys of the Cnidion dubii . The habitat 1530* Pannonic salt steppes and salt marshes have a good-moderate status while 6510 Lowland hay meadows ( Alopecurus pratensis, Sanguisorba officinalis ) has amoderate-poor status. Referring to the characteristic structure and functions to the type of habitat, the research revealed that in numerous areas occupied by the five habitats good conservation conditions are not good.