Abstract
Abstract In the state of Ceará, bryophytes have been mainly sampled in humid and sub-humid enclaves, remnants of Atlantic rain forest, while studies in the Caatinga Domain are practically non-existent. The present work aimed to survey the floristic composition of bryophytes of the Apodi Plateau, a region predominantly covered by Caatinga. Collections were conducted as part of the field activities of the Program for Research in the Biodiversity of the Semiarid region of Brazil (PPBio). The briological material was collected in 2014, in the Apodi Plateau located within the territory of Ceará state. Fifty-nine bryophyte species were found: 27 liverworts - Marchantiophyta - distributed in seven families and 11 genera, and 32 mosses - Bryophyta - distributed in 14 families and 26 genera. Among the species found, 25 were new records for the state of Ceará and Riccia subplana is reported for the first time for the Northeast region of Brazil. Twenty-three are new records for the Caatinga Domain. Taxonomic comments are provided for the new records for the state of Ceará and for Caatinga, as well as an illustration of the species Weisiopsis bahiensis.
Highlights
The northeastern region of Brazil occupies an area of 1,540,827 km2 (Nimer 1989), and has a semiarid climate in approximately 800,000 km2, corresponding to 10% of the Brazilian territory (Ab’Sáber 1974)
Fifty-nine bryophyte species were recorded, consisting of 27 liverworts - Marchantiophyta distributed in seven families and 11 genera, and 32 mosses - Bryophyta - distributed in 14 families and 26 genera (Tab. 1)
The 59 bryophyte species found in the Apodi Plateau correspond to 30% of the total number species registered in the state of Ceará
Summary
The northeastern region of Brazil occupies an area of 1 ,540,827 km (Nimer 1989), and has a semiarid climate in approximately 800,000 km, corresponding to 10% of the Brazilian territory (Ab’Sáber 1974). The relief has altitudes mostly below 500 m, among surfaces that reach 1,000 m in the Borborema, Araripe and Ibiapaba plateaus, up to 1,200 m in the Diamantina plateau This altitudinal variation associated with the position in the relief, where the increasing altitude causes forced convective rains and lower temperatures, leads to the occurrence of different types of vegetation. In contrast to other semiarid regions of the world, the biological diversity of the Caatinga is extremely significant (Luetzelburg 1974; Andrade-Lima 1981; Araújo Filho & Carvalho 1997) and adds biological and economic value to Brazil. Despite such remarkable characteristics, the Caatinga is one of the least known domains in the country. According to Castelletti et al (2004), the last intact native vegetation remnants are extremely fragmented
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