Bryophyte communities of restingas in Northeastern Brazil and their similarity to those of other restingas in the country

Abstract

Restingas are a coastal component of the Atlantic Forest. They experience high temperatures and possess soils with a low capacity to retain water, low nutrient content and high salt concentrations. Studies on bryophytes of restingas have been mostly conducted in Southeastern Brazil, and so we aimed to characterize the bryophyte flora of seven areas of restinga in the Northeastern Region and to establish their floristic affinities with other restingas in Brazil. Fifty-five species were found in the studied restingas, the vast majority of which are generalist species with life forms of intermediate tolerance to desiccation and of corticicolous and terrestrial habitat. The number of species per area is low compared to the species richness of other restingas in Brazil. A cluster analysis, although based on low similarity, showed that the bryoflora from the surveyed areas is distinct from those of restingas from Bahia, Espirito Santo and Rio de Janeiro, which all form a group, and those of the coast of Sao Paulo, which also comprised a cluster. The heterogeneous climate, soils and vegetation structure of the studied restingas, in comparison those of the Southeast, act as selective filters for the species, thereby contributing to the distinction observed in those communities.