Komposisi Jenis dan Dominansi Vegetasi Herba di Pantai Air Karang, Taman Nasional Baluran

Abstract

Coastal forests represent unique yet vulnerable ecosystems characterized by high solar radiation strong winds, sandy nutrient-poorsoils, and salinity conditions. These environmental constraints create selective pressure that shapes the structure and composition of coastal vegetation communities. Coastal forests an play important role in shoreline stabilization, erosion control, and habitats provision for diverse organisms. This study aimed to analyze the composition and dominance species of herbaceous in the Air Karang Coastal Forest area, Baluran National Park, East Java. Herbaceous species were sampled using systematically arranged using 100 1 × 1 m quadrat plots along the coastal area. A total of 23 herbaceous species belonging to18 families were recorded. Sida rhombifolia (Malvaceae) exhibited the highest Important Value Indeks (IVI), indicating strong dominance within the plant community, followed by Barleria prionitis (Acanthaceae) as a codominant species. Meanwhile Volkameria inermis (Lamiaceae) and Capparis sepiaria (Capparaceae) had the lowest IVI values, indicating restricted occurrence and lower ecological importance in the study area. This study provides baseline ecological information on herbaceous vegetation structure in coastal forest ecosystems and highlights the importance of monitoring understory plant communities as indicators of coastal ecosystem dynamics and resilience.