Entendendo os processos naturais no meio ambiente: análise dos efeitos das perturbações naturais em fragmentos de Floresta Atlântica no Nordeste brasileiro

Abstract

The effect of natural disorders on local biodiversity in three fragments of the Atlantic Rainforest in Bahia, Brazil, is analyzed. The study was carried out in the Michelin Ecological Reserve – (REM) in Igrapiuna BA, Brazil, with a 180 ha-remnant forest; Reserva Ecologia de Dois Irmaos (REDI) (Recife PE Brazil) with 382 ha and Parque Metropolitano de Pituacu (PMP) with 325 ha. They were analyzed by five sampling methods, 21 natural clearings and 21 stretches of adjacent forest. Microclimate and microhabitat variables differed significantly in natural clearing (NC) and adjacent forest (AF). A greater number of exclusive species was reported in adjacent forest areas and compositional differences between NC and AF were observed in one of the fragments. Results reveal that natural clearings play a relevant role in biodiversity´s spatial dynamics. In fact, they contribute towards the prevention of competitive exclusion, enhancing the maintenance of local biodiversity, including forest fragments inserted within agricultural landscapes.