The most landscapes of the world are represented in Azerbaijan. According to the occupying area there are 5 general landscapes: Semi-deserts, Lowland and riparian forests, Foothill and mountain steppes, Mountain forests, Mountain meadows. About 30% of the mammal fauna inhabit all these ecosystems (Table 1).
The fauna of mountain forests or their replaced orchards is the richest. 75 species were revealed there. 5 of them are numerous (common pipistrelle, serotine, forest mouses, wildcat). 21 are common: lesser, greater, and Mehely's horsechoe bats, whiskered, lesser mouse-eared and Geoffroy's bats, Kuhl's and pigmey pipistrelles, Persian squirrel (except Lenkoran district), house mouse, steppe, Caucasian pine, and common voles, badger, wolf, etc. (Table 1). Rade's shrew, free-tailed bat, Nazarov's vole, Robert's snow vole inhabit only this landscape. About 6 species (Caucasian and Volnuchin's shrews, Caucasian snow vole, alpine chamois, wild goat, east caucasian tur) live on the borders of the forests and mountain meadows. Wide-distributed and mezophilous mammals form the basis of the populations. The most number of endemic species (10 from 16) live in mountain forests.
The foothill and mountain steppes are on the second place according to the variety of mammals. Of 71 species there is the most number of numerous (11) and common (19) animals. Long-tailed hamster and mole vole were found only there. The mezophiles and xerophylous founistic complexes are represented almost equally in these landscapes, bordering with semi-deserts and mountain forests.
62 species have been registered in the semi-deserts. Of them 23 are common and numerous. Besides the every-tope mammals, such dry-liked species, as Kuhl's pipistrelle, steppe vole, jerboas and jirds form the basis of populations. Many inhabitants of the lowland and almost annihilated riparian forests (bats, forest mouse, rats, jackals, white-toothed shrews, fat and forest dormouses) penetrate and live in semi-deserts.
The maximum population density of different mammals is observed on the borders of the natural and anthropogenic biotopes. The tendency to the sinantropization of many animals is mostly expressed there. The findings of Botter's serotine, meridian jird, and manul are connected with semi-deserts.
In the lowland and riparian forests, disposed between arid ecosystems, 63 species were revealed. 24 of them are background. They are formed mainly by wide-distributed species and such inhabitants of the semi-deserts and foothill steppes as Kuhl's pipistrelle, little and small-Asian five-toed jerboas. Only in this landscape Bechstein's bat and striped field mouse were revealed.
In the sub-alpine and alpine meadows 44 species were found. Common and numerous mammals make up the least number (9) among all landscapes. Besides the every-toped species, only European and Caucasian snow voles are common and common vole is numerous. The animals, typical for meadows are absent there. Many mammals are closely connected with the mountain forests too (shrews, voles, alpine chamois, wild goat, tur). Due to severe climate, the mammal population density is least there than in the other landscape types.
The following animals can be pointed out as indicators for certain landscapes. Long-eared hedgehog, Kuhl's pipistrelle, Botta's serotine, steppe vole, libyan jird, small five-toed jerboa, persian gazelle are typical for semi-deserts.The last some time settled the arid Kura Plain and Is preserved now only in the Shirvan Reserve and Korchay Sanctuary.
The same mammals have been met in the foothill and mountain steppes, but their number's are lesser. Lesser, greater and Mehely's horsechoe bats, lesser mouse-eared bat, Schreibers' bat, Tristram's and Persian jirds are abundant and stone marten is common there.
Common pipistrelle, noctule, whiskered bat, forest and fat dormouses, yellow-belly forest mouse, golden jackal are typical for the lowland forests and gardens. Water vole, jungle cat, wild boar live in reed thickets along the Kura, Araz and other rivers, near reservoirs and canals.
Volnuchin's shrew, Geoffroy's bat, Persian squirrel, Caucasian pine vole, brown bear, pine marten, forest cat, alpine chamois, and red deer are specific for mountain forests.
Caucasian and European snow voles, alpine chamois, wild goat, tur, and mouflon are indicators for mountain grasslands.
Mammals distribution and numbers vary under the anthropogenic factors. Due to growth urbanization, agricultural assimilation of vast areas, creation of reservoirs and irrigation systems, catastrophic bringing down of the forests, widening of pastures, over-grazing caused the land aridity, the distribution boundaries of many mammals were changed. Animals appeare in the untypical for them landscapes and, on the contrary, reduced in characteristic area.The graphic example of this is the penetration of steppe vole, Kuhl's pipistrelle, Asian barbastelle, and other xerophilous mammals high to the mountains and many of mezophiles - in the oasis of arid plains (European barbastelle, water vole, forests mouses, forest dormouse, common vole, etc.). Such changes of theriofauna continue under influence of the economical activity of the people till now.
The wormwood ephemeral
semi-desert in Gobustan
Mountain forests
of the Greater Caucasus
Middle-mountainous forests of the Talysh
Foothill steppe
The border of mountain forests and meadows. Lesser Caucasus
Mountain grassland