Root biomass in a shifting cultivation system in the eastern periphery of Amazonia, and contribution of the babassu palm

Sousa, João Thiago Rodrigues de; Moraes, Flávio Henrique Reis; Gehring, Christoph

doi:10.1007/s10457-015-9859-x

Cited by 5 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 47 publications

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“…Positive plant-soil feedbacks (sensu van der Putten et al Revillini et al 2016) could enable the babassu palm to create a particularly advantageous environment for itself. Above-average biomass shares of babassu fine and mid-sized (up to 5 mm diameter) roots throughout 1-meter soil profiles were recorded less than 10 km from our study sites (Sousa et al 2016), further supporting the idea that the heavy below-ground investment of babassu is a key element in the outstanding ecological success of this ruderal palm throughout degraded Amazonian lands.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 83%

“…A key adaptive trait of babassu is its excellent adaptation to frequent burns and to shifting cultivation cycles. The dormancy of babassu nuts is interrupted by burning, vegetative resprouting of juvenile palms is vigorous, and the apical meristem is 0.5-1 m belowground (Sousa et al 2016), but to date nothing is known on possible relationships between babassu and soil organisms, notably arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi associated with the babassu palm (Attalea speciosa) in the eastern periphery of Amazonia, Brazil

et al. 2018

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Babassu, Attalea speciosa (Arecaceae) is a ruderal palm native to Amazonia, which turned dominant in frequently burned lands throughout the ‘arc of deforestation’ and other degraded lands, in extreme cases attaining complete dominance. This study investigated arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) as one possible explanation for the outstanding ecological success of this exceptional palm. We explored the relationships between the babassu palm and native arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and babassu effects on the AMF richness and mycorrhizal inoculum potential (MIP) in the eastern periphery of Amazonia. For this purpose, we sampled topsoil (0-20 cm) at the onset of the rainy season from a 5-year-old secondary forest regrowth (SEC) area with three levels of babassu dominance (sites with 10, 50 and 70% babassu biomass shares), and at three distances (0, 2.5 and 4 m) from isolated babassu patches within a degraded pasture (PAS), both with five replications per treatment. Glomerospore density varied from 100 to 302 per gram of soil, 56% higher in SEC than PAS. We identified a total of 16 AMF species, with dominance of Acaulospora (six species) followed by Glomus (three species). AMF richness increased with babassu dominance in SEC sites, and reduced with distance from babassu patches within the PAS. The colonization rate of babassu roots was higher in SEC than in PAS, whereas MIP was similar in both areas and without treatment differences. Our study points to strong mycorrhizal association of the babassu palm as a potential mechanism for its outstanding ecological success in degraded lands.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 83%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi associated with the babassu palm (Attalea speciosa) in the eastern periphery of Amazonia, Brazil

et al. 2018

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“…Furthermore, our data suggest that a HFA likely occurs belowground rather than aboveground, and is stronger in older than in younger regrowth. Sousa et al (2016) report that babassu biomass-shares in fine roots in another 3-yr-old fallow site was almost double (25.2%) of the aboveground biomass shares (14.9%). Root decomposition represents a significant C flux in terrestrial ecosystems (Silver and Miya 2001).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 92%

“…Babassu may also influence its surroundings via its fine root system, as fine-root tissue chemistry is an important driver of ecosystem carbon and nutrient dynamics (Goebel 2011). Babassu impacts may be stronger belowground than aboveground, as indicated by higher babassu biomass shares in fine roots than in aboveground vegetation shares (Sousa et al 2016). Babassu roots could be relevant for carbon stocks in degraded soils subjected to repeated slash-and-burn and short fallows.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Litter decomposition and nutrient release dynamics of leaves and roots of the babassu palm in eastern Amazonia

Luz

Leite

Zelarayán³

et al. 2020

Acta Amaz.

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The ruderal babassu palm (Attalea speciosa) is expanding on large areas of degraded Amazon landscapes. Decomposition of leaves and roots is in the center of plant:soil interactions. We evaluated decomposition and nutrient concentrations of leaves and fine roots of babassu in comparison with two exotic reference species, Acacia mangium (slow degradability) and Leucaena leucocephala (fast degradability), in a 138-day litterbag assay carried out in secondary forest stands of different age and babassu abundance. We chose 4-mm over 2-mm mesh litterbags based on a pilot study. Babassu leaves degraded slower than leaves of A. mangium and L. leucocephala, and also had lower nitrogen, phosphorus and calcium concentrations in all stages of decomposition. By contrast, potassium concentrations in babassu leaves were higher than in both reference species at 0 and 50 days. Roots of all three species decomposed slower than leaves. Compared to the leaves, both biomass loss and nutrient concentrations differed less between babassu and reference-species roots, except for lower nitrogen concentration in babassu roots. Leaf-litter decomposition of all three species was significantly faster in old than in young secondary forest, suggesting an acceleration of decomposition along succession. Babassu leaves decomposed faster in old babassu-dominated than non-dominated secondary forest, pointing to the existence of specialized decomposer communities in babassu-dominated stands.

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“…Previous studies also found that an underground stipe can increase the survival of palm species in habitats with the occurrence of anthropogenic disturbances (Barot et al 2005;Montúfar et al 2011). Indeed, the location of the meristem approximately 0.5-1 m below ground provides the potential for extremely vigorous regrowth of the babassu (Sousa et al 2016). The thick roots of the babassu palm are deeper than other species (natural or cultivated), although a high percentage of its fine roots share the same niche as other species, placing this palm in interspecific competition situations (Sousa et al 2016).…”

Section: Resilience Of a Speciosamentioning

confidence: 92%

What is the influence of anthropogenic impact on the population structure of Attalea speciosa Mart. ex Spreng. in the Brazilian Amazonian region?

et al. 2022

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Attalea speciosa (babassu) is a native palm of the primary forest from Amazonian and Cerrado biomes, and has multiple economic and cultural uses. However, this palm can become dominant in open areas, with a long-term persistence in the community. The objective of this study was to compare the population structure and morphology of babassu in three habitat types characterizing forest succession: primary forest, pasture, and babaçual (babassu-dominated secondary forest). For this purpose, we monitored 6,333 individuals for three years at six life stages in 11 sites with 25 plots located in PA-Benfica, Itupiranga-Pará, Brazil. The morphological parameters showed differences between secondary environments (pasture and babaçual) and primary forests, suggesting that this species has a high capacity for phenotypic plasticity. The inverse J-shaped distribution was observed only in primary forests, with the density of all stages constant along the whole study, unlike pastures and babaçual areas. While the density of seedlings is highest in primary forests, stage 4 and 5 juveniles and adults are most numerous in babaçuals. Our results suggest that the higher dominance of A. speciosa in babaçual areas can be associated with the resilience of this species to anthropogenic disturbances.

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Root biomass in a shifting cultivation system in the eastern periphery of Amazonia, and contribution of the babassu palm

Cited by 5 publications

References 47 publications

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi associated with the babassu palm (Attalea speciosa) in the eastern periphery of Amazonia, Brazil

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi associated with the babassu palm (Attalea speciosa) in the eastern periphery of Amazonia, Brazil

Litter decomposition and nutrient release dynamics of leaves and roots of the babassu palm in eastern Amazonia

What is the influence of anthropogenic impact on the population structure of Attalea speciosa Mart. ex Spreng. in the Brazilian Amazonian region?

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