Riparian vegetation structure and soil variables in Pandeiros river, Brazil

Abstract

This study analyzed the floristic, structural variations and their relationships with soil variables in two stretches of riparian vegetation in an ecotonal region between savanna and semiarid zones. We following the hypothesis of despite the proximity between the sampled areas, soil conditions are distinct and lead to changes in structure and composition of the vegetation. This study was development at EPA of Pandeiros River, Minas Gerais, where we allocated 140 plots of 10 × 10 m (100 m2), with 10 m distance between plots, in two areas of riparian vegetation, named Larga and São Domingos (70 plots in each area), where we conducted the phytosociological survey and collected soil samples. In total, 751 arboreal individuals were sampled, distributed in 89 species and 35 botanical families. The areas differed strongly in structure and species composition, and showed floristic peculiarities and influence of surrounding vegetation. Despite of low distance between the sampled areas, these are singular environments influenced by different soils, by the mixed composition of the ecotonal area and the anthropogenic impacts to which they are exposed.

Effects of environmental heterogeneity and temporal variation on ecological relationships of vegetation in a seasonally dry tropical forest in Brazil

“…The restrictiveness imposed by the Cambisol may exceed the physiological tolerance threshold of many species (Reich et al, 2003), reducing the number of species that are able to colonize this area, as we show with our results. The higher dominance found in the Cambisol community is a typical pattern on forest formations under unfavorable environmental conditions (Souza et al, 2007;Fagundes et al, 2019).…”

“…The strong influence of soils on the floristic composition of tropical forests has been discussed before (Espirito-Santo et al, 2002;Figueiredo et al, 2018;Medvigy et al, 2019). Texture and fertility variations can be limiting factors (environmental filters) for the establishment of species, thus reflected directly on their abundance and distribution (Botrel et al, 2002;Rodrigues et al, 2007;Fagundes et al, 2019) and, consequently, on the species richness of a site (Lemos et al, 2013). Species distributions are typically associated with habitat conditions, which act as environmental filters for plant colonization, survival, and growth (Cadotte and Tucker, 2017;Maia et al, 2020).…”

“…On small scales, soil is the main driver of vegetation patterns in space (Arruda et al, 2013;Chase 2014;Fagundes et al, 2019). Pedogenesis is a slow process, and because the fragment has not undergone any disturbance capable of altering soil properties (e.g., the occurrence of fire) (Rheinheimer et al, 2003;Lorenzon et al, 2014), the communities are structured according to the attributes of each soil type.…”

“…Consequently, only species that are functionally adapted to survive and grow under the specific conditions of that environment are able to establish themselves in the community (Lohbeck et al, 2013). This selectivity of the environmental conditions leads to a lower species richness and greater dominance (Keddy, 1992;Botrel et al, 2002;Fagundes et al, 2019). In the Cambisol, the structural pattern of the tree community was characterized by the dominance of the species Galipea jasminiflora, which did not change over time.…”

Gall-inducing arthropods in a Neotropical savanna area in the EPA of Rio Pandeiros (Bonito de Minas, MG, Brazil): effects of plant species richness and super-host abundance

“…This area has been classified as of extreme biological importance, priority for scientific research and biodiversity conservation (Drummond et al, 2005). The EPA of Pandeiros river is located in an ecotone zone between the domains of Caatinga and Cerrado and has a remarkable floristic diversity, characteristic of this transitional effect (Bahia et al, 2009;Fagundes et al, 2019a). The cerrado sensu stricto is the predominant physiognomy of the EPA, but seasonally dry tropical forest and palm swamps are very common in the area (Bahia et al, 2009).…”