Abstract
A disjunct distribution pattern between the extrazonal formations of the campos rupestres (rocky grasslands) in the Espinhaço mountain range and the restingas (coastal strand vegetation) in Brazil has been proposed repeatedly for several flowering-plant species. In order to validate this distribution pattern, available data from the literature and major herbaria were compiled and evaluated. Some of these species also occur in campos rupestres on mountain ranges in Goiás state, campos de altitude (high altitude grasslands) of the Serra do Mar, and on geologically homologous rocky formations of the Guyana shield. Species that were also recorded for distinct zonal formations like cerrado, caatinga and forests were excluded from the pattern. The campo rupestre-restinga disjunction proved valid for 9 of 56 investigated species (16%). Explanations put forth by different authors for this unusual disjunction pattern are compared in the light of geological and climatological evidence.
Highlights
Campo rupestre is a peculiar vegetation type bound to a mosaic of rocky outcrops and shallow white sands occurring mostly above 1000 masl in southeastern and northeastern Brazil
We have tried to analyze the details of this peculiar campo rupestre - restinga distribution pattern, abbreviated hereafter as CR-R
Several authors have proposed the existence of a disjunct distribution pattern between the campos rupestres of the quartzite mountain ranges in Bahia, Minas Gerais and Goiás and the restingas along the Brazilian Atlantic coast
Summary
Campo rupestre is a peculiar vegetation type bound to a mosaic of rocky outcrops and shallow white sands occurring mostly above 1000 masl in southeastern and northeastern Brazil. Over 4000 of these species occur exclusively in the campos rupestres of the Espinhaço Range. Though these two biomes are separated by 250 km which do not support the survival of campo rupestre species, Harley (1995) considers the existence of “intermediate” environments in which some of these occur.
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