Abstract
Environmental conditions such as temperature, soil, photoperiodic factors and precipitation can determine the physical environment favoring the occurrence of given species and interfere with the reproductive period of plants. This work involved monthly excursions to a slope in the Serra de Maracaju between December 2009 and November 2010. Samples were collected in eight 25 x 50 m plots, transverse to the slope, totaling 1 ha sampled. Floristic richness included 79 species distributed into 58 genera and 31 families. Floristic Similarity Analysis and Principal Component Analysis showed the occurrence of two plant formations on the slope: seasonal deciduous forest and cerradão on the eutrophic soil of the slope. Flowering and fruiting occured in the rainy season; correlation with rainfall, mean temperature and photoperiod were negative for flowering and positive for fructification. Trees and bushes presented uniform flowering and a moderately seasonal fructification, which is unexpected in seasonal environments. We discuss the implications of the patterns found and make comparisons with others studies.
Highlights
Environmental conditions such as temperature, soil, photoperiodic factors and precipitation can determine the physical environment favoring the occurrence of given species and interfere with the reproductive period of plants (Towsend et al 2006)
The purpose of this study was to discover 1) if the floristic composition corroborates the fact that different phytophysiognomies grow on the slope, 2) whether there is a relation between soil fertility and floristics, 3) if flowering, fructification and dispersal syndromes are uniform throughout the year, and 4) whether flowering and fructification periods relate to abiotic factors
Floristic richness included 75 species distributed into 58 genera and 31 families
Summary
Environmental conditions such as temperature, soil, photoperiodic factors and precipitation can determine the physical environment favoring the occurrence of given species and interfere with the reproductive period of plants (Towsend et al 2006). In tropical and subtropical regions, phenological events are mainly associated with rain (Frankie et al 1974) and soil moisture conditions (Morellato et al 2000). The Cerrado, a Savanna-like formation, is the second most important Brazilian morphoclimatic zone (Rodrigues 2005), gathering different natural phytophysiognomies (Eiten 1982), according to local edaphic, topographic and climatic factors (Oliveira and Marquis 2002). Its significant species richness may be surrounded by different vegetation types such as Amazonian and Atlantic forests, thorn forest (Chaco) and caatinga, subtropical fields, and wet and dry areas (Simon et al 2009).
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