Phanerogamic flora of the Catimbau National Park, Pernambuco, Brazil

Athiê‐Souza, Sarah Maria; Melo, José Iranildo Miranda de; Silva, Luan Pedro da; Santos, Leidiana Lima dos; Santos, Juliana Silva dos; Oliveira, Luciana dos Santos Dias de; Sales, Margareth Ferreira de

doi:10.1590/1676-0611-bn-2018-0622

Cited by 12 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…Fabaceae and Euphorbiaceae are the most common botanical families in the woody strata (Rito et al, 2017). The herbaceous stratum is mainly composed of Poaceae, Asteraceae, Cyperaceae, Bromeliaceae, and Fabaceae (Athiê‐Souza et al, 2019) and the most common species are Commelina erecta (Commelinaceae), Mollugo verticillata (Molluginaceae) and Urochloa mollis (Poaceae) (Vieira, 2017). Most of them have very short life spans (<2 months), germinating, growing and reproducing within the short rainy season (Vieira, 2017).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rainfall reduction increases insect herbivory in tropical herb communities

Andrade

Alvarado

Santos

2020

J Vegetation Science

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Questions Climate change is dramatically altering rainfall patterns and species distribution around the world. However, little is known about how rainfall reduction may affect plant–herbivore interactions that are crucial to the of input energy and nutrients into terrestrial ecosystems. Following Coley’s growth rate hypothesis, we assessed whether rainfall reduction in a seasonally dry tropical forest decreases community‐level herbivory owing to water shortage in drier areas. Location Catimbau National Park, Northeast Brazil. Methods We sampled 16 herb communities along a rainfall gradient (564–917 mm). Using digital photographs, we monitored for 3 weeks the frequency, magnitude and type (feeding guild) of insect damage on young, fully expanded, short‐lived leaves (lifespan <1 month). We related herbivory levels to local rainfall and examined potential confounding effects of herb abundance, richness and floristic composition on such relationships. Results We monitored 290 leaves from 202 plants belonging to 28 species. About one‐third of the leaves and six species escaped from herbivory. Leaf‐chewing insects were the most frequent herbivores, attacking 17 species, 44% ± 15% of the leaves and removing the same amount of foliar tissue as all the other insects combined removed (sap‐sucking, rasping, leaf‐mining and ‘unknown’). Contrary to expectations, foliar damage accumulated more in drier areas following the increase in the frequency of leaf‐chewing damage. In addition, frequency and magnitude of herbivory did not vary with herb abundance and richness and were weakly influenced by floristic composition. Conclusions Our findings suggest that rainfall underlies community‐level herbivory by mechanisms not related to plant availability, identity and diversity. Based on recent evidence that aridity favours leaf‐chewing proliferation in the study region, we hypothesize that rainfall reduction may weaken the top‐down control of herbivores, increasing folivory pressure on herbs. If prolonged droughts become more frequent in the coming decades, plant–herbivore interactions may be altered permanently.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rainfall reduction increases insect herbivory in tropical herb communities

Andrade

Alvarado

Santos

2020

J Vegetation Science

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“…), Myrtaceae (21) and Rubiaceae (20). Fabaceae is often the richest plant family in terms of species numbers even in the semiarid regions of Pernambuco with predominantly Caatinga vegetation and areas influenced by the Atlantic Forest and Cerrado (neotropical savanna), as was observed by Gomes et al (2006) and Athiê-Souza et al (2019).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 96%

“…Regarding the herbaceous strata, Poaceae has also been highlighted in terms of richness in lowland regions of the Atlantic Forest in the states of Sergipe and Rio Grande do Sul (Maraschin-Silva et al 2009;Landim et al 2015), as well as in areas of Semideciduous Seasonal Forest in the Atlantic Forest of Bahia State, and in Caatinga vegetation in Pernambuco (Costa-Júnior et al 2007;Alves et al 2015;Athiê-Souza et al 2019).…”

Section: Author Contributionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Angiosperm diversity in a Lowland Semideciduous Seasonal Forest in Pernambuco State, Brazil

et al. 2022

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Angiosperm species growing in a fragment of Lowland Semideciduous Seasonal Forest in the Tapacurá Ecological Station (TES) in Pernambuco State (Brazil) were surveyed. Botanical collections to compose a species list were undertaken and these species identified by comparisons with specimens deposited in the HST, PEUFR and IPA herbaria, in addition to online database queries. A total of 479 species were identified, belonging to 81 families and 285 genera. The families with the largest numbers of species were Fabaceae (68), Rubiaceae (25), Malvaceae (20), Myrtaceae (20), Cyperaceae (19), Poaceae (19), Bromeliaceae (18), Euphorbiaceae (17), Asteraceae (16), and Sapindaceae (14), which together accounted for 49.27% of the total number of species. Great similarity was observed between our results and surveys of other lowland forests in northeastern Brazil, with the families Fabaceae, Rubiaceae, and Myrtaceae having the greatest species richness. This study added 44 new occurrences for Pernambuco State, demonstrating the richness and abundance of TES taxa and the importance of their conservation to the regional flora.

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“…6 m tall) vegetation, in which Fabaceae, Euphorbiaceae, and Myrtaceeae are the dominant families in the woody stratum (Rito et al, 2017). Herbs are the most representative plant life form, mainly composed of Poaceae, Asteraceae, and Cyperaceae (Athiê‐Souza et al, 2018). Our focal landscape is a human‐modified Caatinga dry forest, dominated by abandoned pastures (15–20 years of abandonment) and the regeneration of these areas takes place naturally following abandonment without any restoration efforts (Figure 1b).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Leaf‐cutting ant nests support less dense and impoverished seed assemblages in a human‐modified Caatinga dry forest

et al. 2023

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Regenerating forests make up an increasingly large portion of tropical landscapes worldwide and regeneration dynamics may be influenced by leaf-cutting ants (LCA), which proliferate in disturbed areas and collect seeds for fungus culturing. Here, we investigate how LCA influences seed fate in human-modified areas of Caatinga dry forest. We evaluate the seed deposition and predation on Atta opaciceps nests, foraging habitat surrounding nest and control habitat away of nest influence of 15 colonies located along a forest cover gradient during the rainy and dry seasons. For each habitat, four 50-cm 2 plots were established and all seeds on the soil surface were collected along 1 year. We recorded 13,628 seeds distributed among 47 species and 36.57% of the total seeds did not show any sign of predation. Nest mound habitats supported low-density and species-poor seed assemblages, which were taxonomically distinct from the control habitats. These effects only occurred in the rainy season. The proportion of undamaged seeds were similar across the habitats. While forest cover did not influence seed assemblage in terms of species richness or seed predation, it did interact with habitat type via increments in seed abundance as forest cover increased across the nests. Forest cover also affected seed composition, but only in the rainy season. These results indicate that LCA decrease seed deposition in areas under their influence, particularly on the nest mounds. As LCA profit from human disturbance in the Caatinga, their role as seed 'sinks' should be enhanced in disturbed Caatinga patches, particularly during the rainy season, when most of the plant recruitment occurs. Our findings reinforce the importance of LCA as drivers of forest dynamics and resilience in human-modified landscapes.

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Phanerogamic flora of the Catimbau National Park, Pernambuco, Brazil

Cited by 12 publications

References 26 publications

Rainfall reduction increases insect herbivory in tropical herb communities

Rainfall reduction increases insect herbivory in tropical herb communities

Angiosperm diversity in a Lowland Semideciduous Seasonal Forest in Pernambuco State, Brazil

Leaf‐cutting ant nests support less dense and impoverished seed assemblages in a human‐modified Caatinga dry forest

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