Intermediary disturbance increases tree diversity in riverine forest of southern Brazil |
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Authors: | Jean Carlos Budke João André Jarenkow Ary Teixeira de Oliveira-Filho |
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Institution: | 1.Departamento de Ciências Biológicas,Universidade Regional Integrada do Alto Uruguai e das Miss?es—URI,Erechim,Brazil;2.Departamento de Botanica,Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul,Porto Alegre,Brazil;3.Departamento de Botanica,Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais,Belo Horizonte,Brazil |
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Abstract: | Floods are frequently associated with disturbance in structuring riverine forests and they lead to environmental heterogeneity
over space and time. We evaluated the distribution of tree species, ecological groups, species richness and diversity from
the point bar to the slope of a riverside forest in southern Brazil (Lat. 30°01′S, Long. 52°47′W) to analyze the effects of
flooding on soil properties and forest structure. A plot of 50 × 200 m divided in five contiguous transects of 10 × 200 m
parallel to the river was installed, where we measured all the individual trees with pbh ≥ 15 cm. A detailed topographical
and soil survey was carried out across the plot and indicated significant differences in organic matter and most mineral nutrients
through the topographical gradient. The 1,229 surveyed individuals belonged to 72 species and 35 families. We used Partial
CCA and Species Indicator Analysis to observe the spatial distribution of species. Both analyses showed that species distribution
was strongly related to the flooding gradient, soil properties and also by space and pure spatial structuring of species and
environmental variables (spatial autocorrelation), although a large part of variation remains unexplained. The ecological
groups of forest stratification, plant dispersal and requirements for germination indicated slight differences among frequently,
occasional and non-flooded transects. Species richness and diversity were higher at intermediate elevations and were associated
to the increased spatial–temporal environmental heterogeneity. Across the plot, the direct influence of flooding on tree species
distribution created a vegetation zonation that is determined by predicted ecological traits. |
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