Description:
Abstract. — Do gradual limits or breaks exist between the altitudinal ecosystems in the great high-mountains ? Are all the limitary ecological factors and the temporal variations of the altitudinal stages included within an integrated analysis ? Firstly, the biogeographical stages, ruled by the decreasing of the temperature with the altitude and corrected by some geographical factors, are based upon ecological correlations wich still are physiognomic, rather static and not clear, when they are not based upon ecophysiological or bioquimical measurements. Secondly, the altitudinal zonation is made more geographical by means of the integrated analysis, which is looking for two aims. The first is an acknowledgment of the main breaks and of their seasonal and annual variations. The second is the study of the structures and the work of the altitudinal ecosystems, based upon stational and systematized measurements of the main abiotic parameters. Finally, the temporal variations of the altitudinal zonation is presented by the study of the fluctuations of the phenological states of the staged geosystems and by the historical and holocene environments of the geographical stages.