Abstract
ABSTRACT Forest management can lead to numerous changes of different magnitudes in the composition and diversity of soil organisms, according to the level of interference with the habitat. Within this context, this study aimed to test the influence of different types of forest management on the edaphic macrofauna community in a region of arboreal Caatinga. The study was carried out in Contendas do Sincorá National Forest, Contendas do Sincorá - Bahia. The experimental area consisted of three types of management (clear cutting, selective cutting by diameter at breast height and selective cutting by species), and a condition of unmanaged Caatinga, which was used as control. The macrofauna was sampled twice a year (March and November) using the soil monolith method. Densities, total number of individuals, total richness, average richness, and Shannon and Pielou rates were estimated. The soil macrofauna was shown to be sensitive to different forest management practices, which indicates that selective cutting is a more conservative system to manage the Caatinga. Among these, selective cutting by species proved to be less impacting on the soil macrofauna, providing more expressive diversity and abundance indexes, and the occurrence of more demanding organisms in microclimate conditions, characteristic of preserved areas. The predominant groups of edaphic fauna, both in the unmanaged as in managed Caatinga, were Isoptera, Formicidae, Chilopoda, and Coleoptera Larvae.
Highlights
The caatinga biome is considered exclusively Brazilian, in view of the set of biological resources and conditions found there (DRUMOND; SCHEISTEK; SEIFFARTH, 2012)
Considering the set of treatments studied, we found 378 individuals during the 1st period and 632 during the 2nd period, distributed in 18 and 20 taxonomic levels, respectively (Table 2)
In the control area we identified 16 taxonomic groups during the 1st period and 18 during the 2nd period
Summary
The caatinga biome is considered exclusively Brazilian, in view of the set of biological resources and conditions found there (DRUMOND; SCHEISTEK; SEIFFARTH, 2012). Among the main causes for this devastation is the illegal wood extraction to produce firewood and coal, which represents 80% of the demand for timber resources in the Northeastern region (MMA, 2018) Within this context, sustainable forest management (SFM), provided for in the legislation in force in Brazil 12.651, of May 25, 2012), presents itself as an important solution to explore resources in a sustainable way, for it consists of the rational management in forest use, aiming to reach economic, social, and environmental benefits, respecting the ecosystem sustaining mechanisms, and considering the use of multiple species (timber or not) (BRASIL, 2012) This practice is based on the resistance and resilience properties when facing a disturbance; meaning, in the ability the ecosystem has to avoid changes, and in the time it takes to return to its original state (SMITH; SMITH, 2001). The description of ecological indicators, such as the community of soil invertebrates, will allow us to understand the level of disturbance caused by the type of management adopted (MOÇO et al, 2005), and to provide subsidies to select more appropriate managements
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