Banco de semillas de relaves mineros como indicador de recuperación de vegetación en Mariana, Brasil / Seed bank of mining tailings as indicator of vegetation regeneration in Mariana, Brazil

Resumen Introducción: El banco de semillas en el suelo es uno de los indicadores ecológicos más importantes para la evaluación y monitoreo de recuperación de ecosistemas degradados. Así mismo, actualmente indicadores ecológicos de restauración son usados en áreas afectadas por la ruptura de la represa de relaves de Fundão en Mariana, Minas Gerais, Brasil. Objetivo: En este estudio se evaluó la variación de la riqueza, composición de especies, densidad y parámetros fitosociológicos del banco de semillas en dos profundidades de relaves mineros en Mariana, municipio de Mariana, Minas Gerais, Brasil. Métodos: Se recolectaron 15 muestras por nivel de profundidad, en la capa superior (Profundidad1, P1 = 0-2.5 cm) y capa inferior (Profundidad2, P2 = 2.5-5.0 cm) del relave de minería para examinar el banco de semillas viable, que luego se colocó en un invernadero para la germinación. Posteriormente se contaron e identificaron semanalmente todos los individuos de cada especie durante un período de seis meses. Resultados: Se demostró que existe un banco de semillas en las capas superficiales de relaves mineros acumulados en las áreas afectadas de Mariana, con una marcada diferencia entre profundidades en términos de riqueza de especies y densidad de individuos. Se observó una mayor riqueza y número de individuos en P1, (1 165 semillas germinadas), pertenecientes a 18 familias y 47 especies, en comparación a P2 (197 individuos), pertenecientes a 12 familias y 23 especies. El banco de semillas de la capa P1 está influenciado por la lluvia de semillas del bosque cercano. Por otro lado, el banco de semillas de P2, puede ser característico de los relaves mineros. Conclusiones: El banco de semillas estudiado puede tener efectos positivos sobre la recuperación en el área de estudio, debido a la alta proporción de especies nativas, pioneras y anemocóricas típicas de etapas iniciales de sucesión secundaria.

Abstract Introduction: The soil seed bank is one of the most important ecological indicators for evaluating and monitoring the resilience of degraded ecosystems. Likewise, ecological restoration indicators are currently used in areas affected by the rupture of the Fundão tailings dam in Mariana, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Objective: To evaluate the seed bank at two depths of areas affected by mining tailings, Mariana municipality, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Methods: 15 samples (40 × 40 cm) were collected per level of depth, in the upper layer (Depth1, P1 = 0-2.5 cm), and lower layer (Depth2, P2 = 2.5-5.0 cm) of the mining tailings to survey the viable seed bank, which was later placed in a greenhouse for germination and seedling identification. The samples were placed in plastic trays to germinate in the nursery, then counted and identified weekly for six months. Results: The results showed that there is a seed bank in the surface layers of accumulated mining tailings in the affected areas of Mariana, with a marked difference between depths in terms of species richness and density of individuals. Higher species richness and number of individuals were observed in P1, (1 165 germinated seeds), belonging to 18 families and 47 species, in comparison to P2 (197 individuals), belonging to 12 families and 23 species. Probably the seed bank of layer P1 is influenced by the rain of seeds from the nearby forest. On the other hand, the P2 seed bank can be characteristic of mining tailings. Conclusions: Seed bank patterns can have positive effects on forest resilience at the local-scale, due to the high proportion of native, pioneer and anemochorical species of early successional stages.

Comparação florística, estrutural e ecológica da vegetação arbórea das fitofisionomias de um remanescente urbano de cerrado / Floristic, structural and ecological comparison of the arboreal vegetation of physiognomies in an urban remnant

O presente trabalho objetivou determinar a similaridade florística, estrutural e ecológica entre as fitofisionomias de um remanescente de Cerrado, no município de Monte Carmelo, MG. A partir do levantamento fitossociológico avaliou-se os padrões ecológicos relacionados às espécies quanto às guildas de dispersão. A similaridade florística entre as fitofisionomias foi analizada utilizando dados quantitativos e qualitativos (presença/ausência) através do coeficiente de similaridade de Jaccard e o índice de Morisita-Horn. O remanescente urbano abrange quatro fisionomias vegetais, classificadas em floresta estacional semidecidual, cerradão, cerrado sentido restrito e floresta de galeria. Foram amostradas 153 espécies, distribuídas em 49 famílias. A floresta semidecidual abrange a maior porção do parque e apresentou a maior diversidade de espécies. A floresta de galeria apresentou a menor diversidade, tendo como principais representantes espécies adaptadas a condições de solo hidromórficas. O predomínio de espécies zoocóricas nas quatro fisionomias confirma a importância dos agentes biológicos no fluxo gênico destas formações. A maior porcentagem de espécies anemocóricas foi encontrada no cerrado sentido restrito e cerradão. A similaridade florística entre as fisionomias presentes no remanescente urbano é baixa, demonstrando que pequenas variações ambientais refletem grandes variações florísticas. Cada fisionomia apresenta suas peculiaridades, não apenas em relação às condições físicas, mas também em relação aos processos ecológicos fundamentais, como diversidade biológica e interação com a fauna dispersora, o que pode explicar a grande diversidade beta encontrada no bioma Cerrado.

The present study aimed to determine the floristic, structural and ecological between physiognomies in a Cerrado remnant, Monte Carmelo, MG. From the phytossociological survey, we assessed the ecological patterns related to the species dispersion guilds and deciduousness. The floristic similarity between the physiognomies was parsed using quantitative and qualitative data (presence/absence) through the Jaccard similarity coefficient and Morisita-Horn indice. The urban remnant presented four vegetable physiognomies, classified in semideciduous seasonal forest, stricto sense cerrado, cerradão and gallery forest. We sampled 153 species, distributed in 49 families. The semideciduous forest covers the largest portion of the Park and has the greatest diversity of species. The gallery forest presented the less diversity, having as main representatives species adapted to conditions of hydromorphic soil. The predominance of zoochoric species in four physiognomies confirms the importance of biological agents on gene flow of these formations. The highest percentage of species anemochoric was found in the stricto sense cerrado and cerradão. The floristic similarity between the physiognomies present in urban remnant is low, demonstrating that small environmental variations reflect major floristic changes. Each physiognomies has its peculiarities, not only in relation to physical conditions, but also in relation to fundamental ecological processes, such as biological diversity and interaction with the fauna disperser, which may explain the great beta diversity found in the Cerrado biome.

Pollination and dispersal systems in a Cerrado remnant (Brazilian Savanna) in Southeastern Brazil

The aim of this work was to identify the pollination and dispersal systems among the species in a disjunct marginal cerrado area and to compare the frequency of these systems to those found in other Neotropical vegetation. The floral and diaspore traits and the pollination and dispersal systems of 176 species were analysed in a cerrado remnant in Southeastern Brazil. The most frequent pollination system was melittophily (63 percent of the studied species) with the remaining 37 percent distributed among diverse pollination systems. Zoochory was the predominant system of dispersal (44.9 percent). The frequencies of melittophily and zoochory observed in diverse tropical areas were the main feature that allowed the formation of distinct groups in the dendrograms generated by cluster analysis.

Caracterização ecológica e distribuição diamétrica da vegetação arbórea em um remanescente de floresta estacional semidecidual na fazenda experimental do Glória, Uberlândia, MG / Ecological characterization and diametric distribution of arboreal vegetation in remanescent of seasonal semideciduous forest Glória's experimental farm, Uberlândia, MG

A combinação de algumas características ecológicas das espécies para a formação dos chamados grupos ecológicos tem ajudado a identificar alguns padrões para as diferentes formações vegetais. A partir da análise fitossociológica e da estrutura diamétrica das espécies arbóreas de um fragmento de floresta estacional semidecidual, este estudo pretendeu classificar as espécies em grupos ecológicos e aferir o estado de conservação deste remanescente. Foram amostrados todos os indivíduos arbóreos com CAP > 15 cm, presentes em 25 parcelas (20x20 m) e as espécies foram classificadas por grupos sucessionais e síndrome de dispersão. Foram registrados 976 indivíduos distribuídos em 86 espécies, pertencentes a 38 famílias. As espécies secundárias iniciais apresentaram maiores valores na riqueza de espécies, densidade de indivíduos e valor de importância, seguido das espécies secundárias tardias e das pioneiras que tiveram pouca representatividade. Em relação à síndrome de dispersão pôde-se observar composição de 60 espécies zoocóricas, 21 anemocóricas e cinco autocóricas. A análise da distribuição de diâmetros para os grupos sucessionais sugeriu bom recrutamento para as secundárias iniciais e tardias e problemas na regeneração para o grupo das pioneiras. Estes resultados quando comprados com outros estudos similares realizados nas FES da região permitiram inferir que a floresta estudada se encontrou num estádio intermediário de desenvolvimento sucessional.

The combination of some species ecological characteristics for the creation of ecological groups has helped to identify the broader significance and validity of the patterns currently known for different vegetation types. From the analysis of phytosociological and diameter structure of tree species in a semideciduous forest fragment, this study aimed to classify the species in ecological groups and assess the conservation status of this remnant and possible disruptions in the structure of some populations. We sampled all trees with CBH > 15 cm, present in 25 plots (20x20 m). Species were classified by successional groups and dispersal syndrome. We recorded 976 individuals in 86 species belonging to 38 families. The sample had a composition of 42 early secondary species (48.8%), 27 late secondary (31.4%), 16 pioneer (18.6%) and one unclassified (1.2%). The group formed by early secondary showed higher density and relative frequency, while the group formed by the late secondary species stands out with higher values of relative dominance. Regarding the dispersal syndrome, 60 species presented zoochoric dispersal, 21 anemochoric and five autochorich. Diametric distribution analysis for the successional groups suggested problems in regeneration for the pioneer group. These results suggest that the studied forest is in an intermediate stage of successional development, moving toward a late stage, mainly due to the presence and dominance of some late successional species as to the low density of pioneer species

Seed rain dynamics following disturbance exclusion in a secondary tropical dry forest in Morelos, Mexico

In most of the legally protected areas in Mexico local inhabitants use natural resources, such as fire wood or cattle grazing. These frequent but low-intensity disturbances have consequences at various levels of the tropical ecosystems and strongly impact forest structure and its regeneration capacity. Despite their importance, the effects of these perturbations in many aspects of tropical forest ecology and in the forest’s capacity to recover after disturbance exclusion remain poorly understood. Understanding the impact of these processes on tropical forests is necessary for rehabilitating these forests and enhancing their productivity. In this study, we evaluate the impact of twelve years of exclusion (E) of cattle grazing and fire wood extraction in the composition and dynamics of seed rain, and compare this assessment to a similar analysis in an area where these perturbations continued (without exclusion, WE). We found a strong seasonality in seed rain (96% of seeds fell in the dry season) in both areas. There were no significant differences between E and WE sites in relation to overall seed density, species richness and diversity. However, the distribution along the year of seed species density was significantly different among the E and WE sites. The Jaccard’s similarity index between E and WE sites was relatively low (0.57). Barochory was the most common dispersal mode observed among the 23 species in terms of seed species density (48%), followed by anemochory (39%) and zoochory (13%). In relation to seed density, anemochory was the most frequent dispersal mode (88%). Most species in the zone were categorized as small seeds (92%), and there were no significant differences in the distribution of seed size between E and WE. The spatial pattern of dispersal of the four species with the highest relative importance value index, in both areas, was aggregated. Twelve years of disturbance exclusion were not enough to fully restore the seed rain of the area; some differences were already perceptible after this lapse. On the other hand, zoochorous species were almost absent from both sites. The re-introduction of climax and animal-dispersed species may be, in addition to perturbation exclusion, a viable strategy to accelerate ecological restoration in this area. Rev. Biol. Trop. 57 (1-2): 257-269. Epub 2009 June 30.

En la gran mayoría de las áreas legalmente protegidas en México, los habitantes locales utilizan los recursos naturales para leña o para la alimentación de animales. Estas perturbaciones frecuentes y de baja intensidad, impactan fuertemente la estructura y la capacidad de regeneración de los ecosistemas tropicales. A pesar de su importancia, la dinámica de la regeneración después de la exclusión de la perturbación, todavía es poco conocida. Evaluamos el impacto de doce años de exclusión (E) de la entrada del ganado y extracción de leña en la composición y dinámica de la lluvia de semillas al comparar con un área sin la exclusión de estas perturbaciones (SE). Se encontró una fuerte estacionalidad en la lluvia de semillas (96% de las semillas cayeron en la estación seca). No se encontraron diferencias significativas entre los sitios excluidos y no excluidos en relación a la densidad, riqueza de especies y diversidad de las semillas. Sin embargo, la distribución de estas semillas al largo del año, fue significativamente distinta entre los dos sitios. El índice de similitud entre los sitios (E y SE) fue relativamente bajo (0.57). La barocoria fue el modo de dispersión más común entre las 23 especies (48%), seguida por la anemocoria (39%) y la zoocoria (13%). En lo que se refiere a la densidad de semillas, la anemocoria fue el modo de dispersión más observado (88%). La mayoría de las especies tienen semillas pequeñas (92%) y no se encontraron diferencias en la distribución de semillas por clases de tamaño entre los sitios E y SE. La distribución espacial de las cuatro especies más importantes fue agregada. Aunque los 12 años de exclusión no fueron suficientes para restaurar completamente el potencial regenerativo de la zona, algunas diferencias ya empezaron a ser perceptibles. Casi no hay especies zoocoras en ambos sitios y la reintroducción de especies clímax y atractoras de animales podría ser un estrategia interesante, además de la exclusión de la perturbación, para acelerar la restauración ecológica.