Environmental Science/Climate Change & Mitigation

Biodiversity Hotspots of the World

Biodiversity Hotspot of the Caucasus
Editors: T. Pullaiah, PhD
Levan Mumladze, PhD

Biodiversity Hotspot of the Caucasus

In Production
Pub Date: Forthcoming October 2026
Hardback Price: $220 USD | £170 UK
Hard ISBN: 9781779645395
E-Book ISBN: 9781779645401
Pages: Est. 355 pp w index
Binding Type: Hardback / ebook
Series: Biodiversity Hotspots of the World
Notes: 89 color and 10 b/w illustrations

Addressing the alarming rate at which biodiversity around the world is declining due to anthropogenic activities, the book series Biodiversity Hotspots of the World highlights the 36 hotspot regions of the world, focusing on the most interesting and important properties of these hotspots, covering physiography and climatology; vegetation and forest types; amphibian and reptile biodiversity; genetic diversity of crops, plants, fishes, butterflies, insects, birds, mammals; angiosperms, and gymnosperms; and much more. And of course, the unique threats and conservation efforts for the areas are addressed as well.

This new volume focuses on the Caucasus, a global biodiversity hotspot that lies between the Black and Caspian Seas, including parts of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Russia, Iran, and Turkey. It is characterized by its exceptional richness of endemic species, multiple climate zones, and unique landscapes from deserts to high-altitude tundra. It supports over 6,500 vascular plant species and many threatened animals, such as the Caucasian tur. Despite its rich biodiversity, the region faces threats from pollution, habitat loss, illegal logging and overgrazing, particularly in the lower-lying plains, and climate change.

Chapters in this volume discuss a range of topics that includes the general characteristics and political and physical geographical division of the region, with an overview of the climate, geology, and fresh water resources of the Caucasus. The volume discusses the diversity and ecology of vegetation and forests, microalgae and cyanobacteria, angiosperms and gymnosperms, fishes, amphibians and reptiles, birds and mammals, and more. Chapters also
consider the trends and gaps in biodiversity inventory, monitoring, and conservation of the region along with the threats to the biodiversity of the region and conservation efforts.

This volume, Biodiversity Hotspot of the Caucasus, as well as the other volumes in this series, will be essential resources for researchers and practitioners in the fields of conservation biology, ecology, and evolution as the series concisely records the existing biodiversity of these hotspots of the world.

CONTENTS:
Preface

1. General Characteristic and Political and Physical Geographical Division: Climate, Geology, and Fresh Water Resources of the Caucasus
L. Tielidze

2. Vegetation and Forest Biodiversity and Types of the Republic of Armenia
Zhirayr Hmayak Vardanyan and Hovik Yakshibek Sayadyan

3. Diversity and Ecology of Microalgae and Cyanobacteria in the Continental Waterbodies of the Caucasus
S. Barinova

4. Diversity of Angiosperms and Gymnosperms in the Caucasus Hotspot
G. Fayvush, L. Khachatryan, and A. Aleksanyan

5. Diplopoda, Symphyla, and Pauropoda Diversity in the Caucasus Biodiversity Hotspot
Dragan Antic

6. Entomopathogenic and Malacopathogenic Nematodes of the Caucasus Region: A Review
E. Ivanova, O. Gorgadze, and S. Spiridonov

7. Soil Mite (Oribatida, Mesostigmata) Diversity in the Caucasus Biodiversity Hotspot
Maka Murvanidze

8. Fishes of the Caucasus Ecoregion
Levan Mumladze, Giorgi Epitashvili, and Bella Japoshvili

9. Amphibians and Reptiles of Caucasian Hotspot
B. S. Tuniyev and N. B. Ananjeva

10. The Birds of the Caucasus Biodiversity Hotspot
Nika Budagashvili and Zurab Javakhishvili

11. Mammals’ Diversity of Caucasus Ecoregion
Bukhnikashvili Alexander

12. Trends and Gaps in Biodiversity Inventory, Monitoring, and Conservation
Levan Mumladze

13. Threats and Conservation of Biodiversity
Karen Aghababyan, Mark Kalashyan, George Fayvush, Zulfu Farajli, David Tarkhnishvili, Kyle Kittelberger, Cagan H. Sekercioglu, and Morteza Naderi

14. Climate Change and Biodiversity of the Caucasus Hotspot
Karen Aghababyan, Mark Kalashyan, and George Fayvush

Index


About the Authors / Editors:
Editors: T. Pullaiah, PhD
Former Professor, Department of Botany at Sri Krishnadevaraya University in Andhra Pradesh, India

T. Pullaiah, PhD, is a former Professor at the Department of Botany at Sri Krishnadevaraya University in Andhra Pradesh, India, where he has taught for more than 35 years. He has held several positions at the university, including Dean, Faculty of Biosciences, Head of the Department of Botany, Head of the Department of Biotechnology, and Member of Academic Senate. He was President of Indian Botanical Society (2014), President of the Indian Association for Angiosperm Taxonomy (2013), and Fellow of Andhra Pradesh Akademi of Sciences. He has been awarded with various prestigious awards for his work. Under his guidance 54 students obtained their doctoral degrees. He has authored 65 books, edited 45 books, and published over 340 research papers. His books include Mangroves: Biodiversity, Livelihoods and Conservation (Springer), Ethnobotany of India (5 volumes, Apple Academic Press), Global Biodiversity (4 volumes, Apple Academic Press), Monograph on Brachystelma and Ceropegia in India (CRC Press), Apomixis in Angiosperms (CRC Press), Invasive Alien Species ( 4 volume, Wiley International), Advances in Cell and Molecular Diagnostics (published by Elsevier), Camptothecin and Camptothecin producing Plants (Elsevier), Paclitaxel (Elsevier), Red Sanders: Silviculture and Conservation (Springer), and more. Dr. Pullaiah was also a member of the Species Survival Commission of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Professor Pullaiah received his PhD from Andhra University, India, attended Moscow State University, Russia, and worked as Postdoctoral Fellow during 1976–1978.

Levan Mumladze, PhD
Professor, Ilia State University, Tbilisi, Georgia; Director, Institute of Zoology, Tbilisi, Georgia

Levan Mumladze, PhD, is a Professor at Ilia State University and serves as the Director of the Institute of Zoology, both in Tbilisi, Georgia. He earned his PhD in Ecology from Ilia State University in 2013, and his research is centered on the rich biodiversity of the Caucasus region. His work encompasses biodiversity inventories, including the use of DNA barcoding technology, and the study of invasive species, systematics, community ecology, phylogeography, and biogeography. He has a particular focus on various model organisms, such as molluscs, mites, several arthropod taxa, and fishes. He is also involved in conservation biology studies. Throughout his career at Ilia State University, Dr. Mumladze has held several positions, including Assistant Dean of the Faculty of Life Sciences, Research Associate, and Assistant Professor. He has been associated with the Institute of Zoology in various capacities since 2003. An active contributor to the scientific community, Dr. Mumladze has an extensive list of publications and serves as the Editor-in-Chief of the biodiversity research journal Caucasiana. His work is widely recognized, and he is affiliated with numerous research networks and projects focused on Caucasian biodiversity.




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