Bryophyte flora in upland forests at different successional stages and in the various strata of host trees in northeastern Pará, Brazil

Abstract

In the northeastern region of the Brazilian state of Pará, approximately 90% of the forested areas are secondary forests. Secondary forests are interesting areas for floristic studies aimed at determining the effects that clear-cutting has on bryophyte communities. The aim of this study was to compare upland forests at different successional stages and the various strata of host trees, in terms of the bryophyte species composition. Bryophyte specimens were collected between August 2005 and September 2006 from host trees in primary and secondary forests of different ages and of different heights, within the municipality of Capitão Poço, in the state of Pará. The vertical distribution of bryophytes was evaluated in 15 host trees within the primary forest. We identified a total of 99 bryophyte species: 33 mosses and 66 liverworts. The dominant family was Lejeuneaceae, with 56 species. Most of the species (n = 60) had a neotropical distribution, and 3 species were endemic to Brazil. Cololejeunea minutissima var. myriocarpa (Nees & Mont.) R.M.Schust., Pycnolejeunea papillosa X.-L. He, Radula mammosa Spruce and Verdoornianthus marsupiifolius (Spruce) Gradst. represent new records for the state of Pará. In the successional forests evaluated, we identified 78 species, most of which (n = 38) occurred in primary forest. On the host tree trunks evaluated in the primary forest, we observed 31 species occurring at heights ranging from 2 m to 20 m. Despite the fact that secondary forests account for such a large proportion of the forested areas in Capitão Poço, we found that the bryoflora was relatively rich, comprising 31% of the species recorded for the state. The fact that 40% of the species recorded occurred exclusively in the secondary forests and the fact that 45.5% of the species recorded in primary forest occurred within the 2-20 m height range show the importance of studies focusing on bryophytes in secondary forests and in the upper strata of host trees in primary forests.

Bryophytes in fragments of Terra Firme forest on the great curve of the Xingu River, Pará state, Brazil 1 Part of Master's Dissertation of the first author.

“…Lejeuneaceae was the most representative family in this study and this is in agreement with other surveys carried out in the Amazon (Gradstein and Costa, 2003;Ilkiu-Borges et al, 2004Lisboa and Tavares, 2008;Alvarenga and Lisboa, 2009;Moura et al, 2013;Brito and Ilkiu-Borges, 2013;Tavares-Martins et al, 2014). The results confirmed it as one of the richest families in…”

“…Leucobryum martianum was also considered abundant in the Amazon, forming large mats on the floor of terra firme forest (Yano, 1992), Cheilolejeunea aneogyna, Harpalejeunea oxyphylla and Radula javanica are common species in lowland tropical forest, and the two former species can also be found in submontane forest (Gradstein and Costa, 2003). In Pará, Cheilolejeunea aneogyna was registered in both primary and secondary forests (Garcia et al, 2014;Moura et al, 2013;Tavares-Martins et al, 2014). Tavares-Martins et al (2014) registered H. oxyphylla and R. javanica exclusively in canopy of terra firme forest and emphasized that these species are typical of open environments.…”

“…In Pará, Cheilolejeunea aneogyna was registered in both primary and secondary forests (Garcia et al, 2014;Moura et al, 2013;Tavares-Martins et al, 2014). Tavares-Martins et al (2014) registered H. oxyphylla and R. javanica exclusively in canopy of terra firme forest and emphasized that these species are typical of open environments.…”

“…Studies on bryophytes in the state of Pará were performed in different forest formations and various parts of the state as in the surroundings of the Lake Tucuruí (Ilkiu-Borges et al, 2004;Garcia et al, 2014), Serra dos Carajás (Moraes and Lisboa, 2006), Caxiuanã (Alvarenga and Lisboa, 2009;, metropolitan region of Belém (Lisboa and Ilkiu-Borges, 1995;Moura et al, 2013), Marajó Island (Lisboa et al, 1999;Brito and Ilkiu-Borges, 2013) and northeastern Pará (Santos and Lisboa, 2008;Lisboa and Tavares, 2008;Tavares-Martins et al, 2014). In the southwestern state, it is recorded only the inventory held by Lisboa and Ilkiu-Borges (2001) in São Luiz do Tapajós, in the municipality of Itaituba.…”

New national and regional bryophyte records, 58

“…Nevertheless, it has occurred in the Záhorská nížina lowland close to the south-western margin of the Western Carpathains (the Malé Karpaty Mts), the last collection being from 1997 (Janovicová & Kubinská, 2002). In the Puścizna Rękowiań ska fens the species grows semi-aquatically along with P. trifarium Radula mammosa was described from Bolivia and has subsequently been recorded from Colombia, Brazil and Chile (Castle, 1939;Yamada, 1993); more recent records are from southern Ecuador, in the provinces of Zamora-Chinchipe and Loja (Nöske et al, 2003;Schäfer-Verwimp et al, 2013); from Brazil (Yamada, 2003, state of Amazonas;Valente & Pôrto, 2006;Berger & Ribas, 2007;Tavares-Martins et al, 2014, states of Pará, Bahia, Rio de Janeiro and Santa Catarina) and from Venezuela (Morales & Moreno, 2010). The collections from Costa Rica and Guadeloupe constitute a considerable extension of range to Central America and the West Indies.…”