Comparative Assessment of Geomorphological and Landscape Features Around the Small Aral Sea

The ecological state of the Aral Sea remains an important issue affecting the overall state of the ecosystem in the region. Despite the fact that the state of the northern part of the sea or the Small Aral Sea can be described as stable, the southern part of the former sea continues to degrade. The area of degraded ecosystems around the Small Aral Sea is significant, and huge salt reserves remain the cause of further degradation of terrestrial ecosystems in the Aral Sea region. This study includes the results of geobotanical investigations researches of the dried bottom around the Small Aral Sea area. Five types of landscape-geomorphological formations of the dried-up sea were identified during the research. The creation of the formations took place during different periods of drying and depended on the element’s of sea relief. The vegetation of these landscapes is represented exclusively by salt-tolerant species of xerophytic flora. In this case, the number of plant species in the plant communities of these landscapes is directly proportional to the concentration of salt in the soil.