Zurab Seperteladze

Abstract

This paper examines riparian forest fragmentation to assess how protection status influences the preservation of critical habitats of the Iori River’s downstream riparian zone in Georgia. It also explores external threats impacting protected forests. Using remote sensing, landscape ecology, and spatial autocorrelation methods,10-meter-resolution Sentinel-2 MSI data were analysed, and landscape- and class-level metrics were computed. The results showed that the fragmentation has decreased, mainly within protected areas, while non-protected zones remained highly fragmented. Besides, parts of the protected areas also showed an increased fragmentation.The research output, on the one hand, highlights the importance of protection but also emphasises the need for broader, integrated forest management and restoration efforts.

Keywords: landscape fragmentation, riparian forest, landscape metrics, landscape ecology, protected area, Iori River, Georgia

Tamar Khardziani [tamar.khardziani@tsu.ge], Department of Geography, Faculty of Exact and Natural Sciences Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University 3 Ilia Tchavtchavadze Avenue, Academic Building II, 0179 Tbilisi: Georgia
Zurab Seperteladze [zurab.seperteladze@tsu.ge], Department of Geography, Faculty of Exact and Natural Sciences Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University 3 Ilia Tchavtchavadze Avenue, Academic Building II, 0179 Tbilisi: Georgia