Fine root biomass and seed bank in secondary and primary forests in Eastern Amazon

Abstract

Amazon is made up of a mosaic of ecosystems that have important structure, flora, and ecological functions for Brazil and the world. Knowing aspects of this biome related to the production and biomass of fine roots is of major importance given the role that the plant root system plays in nutrient cycling and carbon storage. Therefore, this study aimed to quantify the fine root mass in two regeneration areas and in primary forest, with a forest edge, in order to verify whether in different environments there are significant differences in root mass, as well as to compare the seed bank of the three areas to try to identify similarities among banks. The native forest presented a higher root mass, which differs from the two regeneration areas. The seed bank of succession forests is more similar to each other. The native forest has a greater number of seeds per volume of soil and litter collected. Concerning morphospecies, a higher number was observed in succession forests. The three areas differ in terms of fine root mass; however, regarding the seed banks, a possible edge effect may be affecting the native forest.