Abstract
ABSTRACT The magnitude of changes in soil attributes can be used to identify the effects of natural or anthropogenic interference on forest fragments. The objective of this work was to evaluate the chemical attributes of the soil as indicators of the edge effect at a Seasonal Semi-deciduous Forest fragment in the Southwest of Bahia, Brazil. Four sampling ranges were defined in the forest fragment (Range 1: 0-10m; Range 2: 40-50 m; Range 3: 80-90 m; and Range 4: 400-410 m from the edge). A degraded native pasture area was used as the reference. Soil samples were collected at depths of 0-5, 5-10 and 10-20 cm. The samples were analyzed for pH and organic matter, P, K, Ca, Mg and Al. The superficial layer of the soil was sensitive to the changes imposed by the fragmentation, reflecting modifications in some of its chemical attributes up to a distance of 90 m from the edge towards the interior of the fragment, with more severe effects in the first 10 meters. Soil organic matter, potential acidity, CEC and pH were the most affected attributes, evidencing a gradient of variation in the edge-interior direction.
Highlights
RESUMO – A magnitude das alterações em atributos do solo pode ser utilizada para identificar efeitos de interferências naturais ou antrópicas em fragmentos florestais
The objective of this work was to evaluate the chemical attributes of the soil as indicators of the edge effect at a Seasonal Semi-deciduous Forest fragment in the Southwest of Bahia, Brazil
The edge effect on the forest fragment was verified by some soil chemical attributes such as pH, potential acidity (H+Al), cation exchange capacity (CEC) and Soil organic matter (SOM)
Summary
RESUMO – A magnitude das alterações em atributos do solo pode ser utilizada para identificar efeitos de interferências naturais ou antrópicas em fragmentos florestais. As amostras foram submetidas a análises para determinação do pH e dos teores de matéria orgânica, P, K, Ca, Mg e Al. A camada superficial do solo mostrou-se sensível às variações impostas pela fragmentação, refletindo modificações em alguns dos seus atributos químicos até uma distância de 90 m da borda em direção ao interior do fragmento, com efeitos mais severos nos primeiros 10 metros. The area located at the fragment edges between the natural and the anthropic habitats is more exposed to the influence of the external environment, which alters the flow of energy, matter and organisms in the ecosystem This set of ecological changes which occur between the edge and the interior is called the edge effect (Harper et al, 2005). Any alteration that may interfere in the vegetation cover composition can promote changes in the decomposition, and in the organic matter and other soil attributes
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