Geobotanical studies have been conducted in the Aral Sea region of Turkmenistan to assess the herbaceous vegetation that forms during the spring and fall rainy seasons, according to "Turkmenistan: Golden Age."

The study focused on annual shoots of woody plants—white and black saxaul. The impact of anthropogenic and natural processes, climate change, and the Aral Sea crisis on the ecosystems of the Karakum Desert was assessed.

The research was conducted by specialists from the National Institute of Deserts, Flora and Fauna of the Ministry of Environmental Protection of Turkmenistan.

Guvanch Atahanov, head of the forest and pasture laboratory at the National Research Institute of Forestry and Gastronomy, noted that the surveyed areas included sandy areas that are sensitive to biogenic factors, meaning they degrade more rapidly than other natural environments due to climate change.

In the Dashoguz velayat, the expedition visited the Zaunguz (northern) Karakum, where silt-white saxaul forests with the participation of sazak are widespread, and in depressions on clay takyrs, gravels and kyr soils, black saxaul communities with the participation of ojar are widespread.

In Lebap, pastures in the Deynau district near the Taze Tutly, Tally, Taze Ojarly wells, and the Farhat sardoba, where watering holes are located and where flocks of sheep spend the night, were surveyed. The objective of the study was to assess the condition of autumn pastures in relation to prolonged drought and anthropogenic impacts, and to determine the forage capacity of desert pastures.

The expedition was organized as part of the Ministry of Environmental Protection of Turkmenistan's project "Conservation and Sustainable Management of High-Value Land Resources and Ecosystems in the Aral Sea Basin for Multiple Benefits," with support from UNDP/GEF, as part of promoting a land degradation neutrality approach, the source notes.