Native Forest Fragments Research Articles

Phytosociological survey of environmental park in Antonio Danubio municipality of Ananindeua, Para, Brazil

This article reports the floristic and phytosociology of a solid ground forest, located in the Environmental Park Antonio Danubio Lourenco da Silva, municipality of Ananindeua, Para, Brazil. The inventory of 1 ha considered individuals with diameter at breast height (DBH) ≥ 10 cm, allocated twenty plots in each field, all of size 20 m x 25 m (500 m2) arranged randomly. A total of 239 plants was registered, distributed in 61 species, 51 genera and 27 families, referring to biocenose area. The families with most species, in a decreasing order, were: Leguminosae, Lecythidaceae, Sapotaceae, Urticaceae, Anacardiaceae, Annonaceae, Caryocaraceae, Vochysiaceae, Lauraceae, Arecaceae and Malvaceae. In relation to the importance value index (IVIi), the highest values ​​were presented by the species: Oenocarpus bacaba, Nectandra cuspidata, Theobroma grandiflorum, Diplotropis purpurea, Piptadenia suavelons, Inga lauriana, Cecropia obtusifolia, Cecropia sciadophylla, Tapirira guianensis and Jacaranda copaia. These species represent 56.06% of the individuals sampled per hectare and 58.63% of the IVIi. The diversity index of Shannon-Weaver (H '= 3.53) indicates that the park has a floristic diversity less than other native forest fragments in State of Para, Brazil. This is probably due to the park being part of an anthropic area near the federal highway BR-316, where a large number of vehicles circulate daily. Key words: Phytosociology, biodiversity, conservation, identificacion.

Shelter, ecophysiology and conservation status of Plectostylus araucanus (Pulmonata: Bothriembryontidae) in the fragmented Maulino Forest, central Chile

Terrestrial mollusks are one of the least studied groups of terrestrial invertebrates, especially in the Neotropics. In Chile, there is scarce biological and ecological information about many genera, even though the group is quite diverse and occupies different habitats along the country. Plectostylus araucanus is the most recently described species and one of the few arboreal species found only in the coastal native forest of central-south of Chile. In this study, we recorded a new locality for P. araucanus in the Maule region and described ecological and physiological characteristics. The new locality is placed 204 km northwards of the type locality. Based on different records, Plectostylus araucanus is proposed as an endangered (EN) species under the distribution criterion of IUCN. Most of the specimens of P. araucanus were found living in tree cavities and away from the edge of native forest fragments. Physiological measures showed monthly differences, especially between some months of summer and fall and between months of the same season (i.e., summer). We discuss the implications of our results in the microhabitat selection, thermoregulation and habitat use by this tree snail, and the importance of this data in management and conservation for other native malacofauna.

The movement ecology of the Mauritian flying fox (Pteropus niger): a long-term study using solar-powered GSM/GPS tags

BackgroundFlying foxes (Chiroptera: Pteropodidae) are large bats that often roost in the sun, hence solar-powered GPS/GSM devices can track their movements over extended periods. The endemic Mauritian flying fox (Pteropus niger) has recently been subjected to large-scale culling because of perceived damage to commercial fruit, and a consequent reduction in numbers of > 50% since 2015 resulted in its IUCN Red List Status being up-listed to Endangered. Determining its movements will be important for management and conservation, for understanding potential responses to environmental change, and for understanding population admixture.MethodsTwelve bats were tagged with solar-powered GPS/GSM devices in 2014–2016. Tags remained active for up to almost a year (maximum 359 days: average 139 days (males) and 93 days (females)), providing some of the longest-term data on the movement ecology of bats yet obtained. Eight bats were probably hunted illegally, highlighting the scale of unauthorised persecution.ResultsMales travelled on average 9 km each night, females 6 km. The nightly distance covered by adults of both sexes was higher in winter than in summer, though the opposite pattern occurred for immature males. These differences are probably related to seasonal changes in fruit availability (adults) and to dispersal by immature males. The maximum distance covered during one night was > 92 km. Home ranges of males averaged 74,633 ha, females 31,072 ha. Core foraging areas averaged 2222 ha for males, 1364 ha for females. Fifty roosts were identified, mainly in forest fragments. As the bats disperse seeds of native plants that form forest canopies, conservation of the bats will potentially maintain and enhance native forest cover, in turn providing roosting sites for the bats.ConclusionsSolar-powered GSM tagging provides unprecedented potential for understanding the movement ecology of flying foxes. Mauritian flying foxes often move between the few remnant native forest fragments, which remain important for their conservation, and have potentially important roles in seed dispersal. Their nomadic movement fits with their panmictic genetic structure. Although their ability for long distance movements, sometimes over short timescales, permits rapid responses to local threats and environmental change, being restricted to Mauritius renders the bats extremely vulnerable to intense culling.

Anthropogenic thermal gradient in managed landscapes determines physiological performance and explains the edge-biased distribution of ectothermic arthropods

The intensive management of tree plantations has replaced and fragmented native forests worldwide. A direct consequence of this activity is the creation of new edges, which generate changes in microclimatic conditions in the adjacent forest as well as in the neighboring clearcut stands left over after harvesting by clearcut logging. Thus, newly created anthropogenic thermal gradients could influence ectothermic responses regarding abundance and physiology of native species in fragmented landscapes. Interestingly, the consequences of these changes have not been studied in insects. To test the effects of the anthropogenic thermal gradient on the abundance and physiology of ectothermic species, we chose the fragmented Maulino forest and the ground-dwelling beetle Ceroglossus chilensis (Coleoptera: Carabidae) as our biological model, working with seven fragments of native forest surrounded by active and clearcut pine plantation stands. We measured temperature variables and beetle abundance in different months using transects perpendicular to the edge and used general linear modelling to explain abundance with temperature. In addition, we assessed the preferential body temperatures (Tb) and Rollover Speed (RoS) of C. chilensis at five different temperatures in controlled conditions to explain field abundance. We found that mean ambient temperatures were up to 42% higher in clearcut stands than in native forest fragments during summer. However, ambient temperatures in autumn were similar between native forest fragments and clearcut stands. The abundance of C. chilensis, is concentrated near the edge in the native forest (between 2 and 10 m to interior of native forest), regardless of month sampled. The abundance of C. chilensis was higher at the edge than inside native forest interiors or clearcut stands, regardless of the month. Ambient temperature surpasses preferential body temperature (14–15.99 °C) and physiological performance of C. chilensis (15 °C), particularly during summer. Ceroglossus chilensis abundance at the edge of clearcut stands could be favored by understory structural complexity in understory vegetation, creating suitable microclimatic conditions and increasing abundance of prey resource. In essence, we found that the higher temperatures found near the edge inside forest interiors might enable individuals of C. chilensis to display thermoregulatory behavior by concentrating activity at these particular regions, resulting in increased abundances and more concentrated occurrences, helping to explain the edge-biased distribution. Thus, we offer evidence that physiological performance might be a key functional trait to explain abundance of ectothermic species in fragmented forest landscapes. We submit to decision makers linked to the forestry industry, that managing the understory of young tree plantations and increasing the structural complexity at remnant forest edges to cushion high temperatures in clearcut stands would enable more effective conservation planning of thermosensitive ectotherms in disturbed forest landscapes.

Using the U‐net convolutional network to map forest types and disturbance in the Atlantic rainforest with very high resolution images

AbstractMapping forest types and tree species at regional scales to provide information for ecologists and forest managers is a new challenge for the remote sensing community. Here, we assess the potential of a U‐net convolutional network, a recent deep learning algorithm, to identify and segment (1) natural forests and eucalyptus plantations, and (2) an indicator of forest disturbance, the tree species Cecropia hololeuca, in very high resolution images (0.3 m) from the WorldView‐3 satellite in the Brazilian Atlantic rainforest region. The networks for forest types and Cecropia trees were trained with 7611 and 1568 red‐green‐blue (RGB) images, respectively, and their dense labeled masks. Eighty per cent of the images were used for training and 20% for validation. The U‐net network segmented forest types with an overall accuracy >95% and an intersection over union (IoU) of 0.96. For C. hololeuca, the overall accuracy was 97% and the IoU was 0.86. The predictions were produced over a 1600 km2 region using WorldView‐3 RGB bands pan‐sharpened at 0.3 m. Natural and eucalyptus forests compose 79 and 21% of the region's total forest cover (82 250 ha). Cecropia crowns covered 1% of the natural forest canopy. An index to describe the level of disturbance of the natural forest fragments based on the spatial distribution of Cecropia trees was developed. Our work demonstrates how a deep learning algorithm can support applications such as vegetation, tree species distributions and disturbance mapping on a regional scale.

Spatial Statistics and Age Structure of Leaf Cutting Ant Nests

In this study, we investigated the spatial aggregation of old and incipient nests of Atta sexdens rubropilosa by fitting Poisson and Negative binomial models to nest abundance data. Our aim is to analyse the distribution of ant nests in eucalypt regrowth, Cerrado and native forest fragment. We also investigated the correlation between nest abundance and climatic factors, as well as different nest ages. When comparing nests of different ages we observed an aggregated pattern for both old and incipient nests. On the other hand, analysing the distribution of nests separately, only taking into account the different areas and respective borders, old nests exhibited an aggregated pattern and incipient nests showed a random pattern, except for native forest with ants exhibiting only an aggregated pattern. The levels of aggregation changed in response to different areas and border gradients, with more external borders showing higher aggregation than more internal borders. Temperature was the variable showing the highest correlation with nest abundance and the correlation between nests of different ages was totally depending on the different areas.

Estimating Above-Ground Biomass of Araucaria angustifolia (Bertol.) Kuntze Using LiDAR Data

The objective of this study was to test the performance of canopy data obtained from Airborne Laser Scanner (ALS) in generating estimates of above-ground biomass (AGB) of Araucaria angustifolia (Bertol.) Kuntze individuals. A cloud of ALS points located in a fragment of native urban forest in Curitiba, Paraná was used. The procedures consisted of: classifying points; obtaining and smoothing the Canopy Height Model (CHM); detecting peaks and segmenting canopy using eCognition software. Mathematical models were adjusted to estimate the AGB from the crown areas. Two equations were required to estimate the individual AGB, while R2 (%) values of 96.19 and 98.89 were found. The total AGB stock found was 264.333 kg. The LiDAR technology and the methods for obtaining the information used in this work constitute non-destructive and precise tools for quantifying biomass in native forests.

Earthworm populations in forestry plantations (Araucaria angustifolia, Pinus elliottii) and Native Atlantic forest in Southern Brazil compared using two sampling methods

Earthworm populations have been little studied in forest systems in South America, and the choice of appropriate sampling methods is an important factor to consider. Hence, the present study evaluated earthworm populations using two methods: handsorting of large soil monoliths (40 × 40 cm × 20 cm depth), and application of formalin (0.5%) to the soil surface. Worms were sampled in fifteen areas at the Embrapa Forestry Research Station, including native Atlantic forest fragments, and native (Araucaria angustifolia) or exotic (Pinus elliottii) tree species plantations. Eight species of earthworms were collected overall, including four native species (Urobenus brasiliensis, Andiorrhinus duseni, Fimoscolex nivae and Glossoscolex embrapaensis) and one exotic (M. schmardae) in low abundance, and three other exotics in higher abundance (Pontoscolex corethrurus, Amynthas gracilis and Amynthas corticis). Total earthworm density ranged from 11.5 to 102 individuals m−2 and biomass from 5.6 to 31.6 g m−2, with higher values being found in P. elliottii plantations. Handsorting was more effective than formalin for sampling earthworms, resulting in higher species richness, overall abundance and biomass (particularly of the endogeic P. corethrurus) in both Pine and Araucaria plantations. Formalin extraction was better for extracting epi-endogeic species (particularly M. schmardae). Eveness and A. corticis densities were higher in native forests, while A. gracilis abundance was higher in Araucaria plantations and P. corethrurus predominated in both plantations, likely due to soil-related differences between the vegetation types. Earthworm population assessments in Brazilian forest systems should prioritize handsorting, while biodiversity inventories may benefit from combining handsorting with formalin extraction.

Earthworm species in no-tillage agroecosystems and native Atlantic forests in Western Paraná, Brazil.

Earthworm populations often increase with the adoption of no-tillage (NT) practices, but few studies have evaluated earthworm diversity in these agroecosystems. In the present study we assessed earthworm species richness in 40 sites under NT and six native Atlantic forest fragments in Western Paraná, Southern Brazil. At each site earthworms were sampled quantitatively (n=5) and qualitatively (n=5), by handsorting soil monoliths (20 x 20 cm width x 20 cm depth), totaling 460 samples overall. Earthworms were killed and fixed in 96% ethanol, counted and identified. Overall, 18 species were found, in the families Acanthodrilidae, Glossoscolecidae, Megascolecidae, Rhinodrilidae and Ocnerodrilidae, of which 10 were native and eight exotic. No-tillage agroecosystems had larger earthworm populations and higher species richness overall than native forests, although this was mainly due to colonization of these agricultural fields by exotic species. Mostly native species were found in the Atlantic forests, highlighting the importance of these habitats as refugia for native earthworm species conservation.

Litterfall, litter stock and water holding capacity in post-mining forest restoration ecosystems, Eastern Amazon

The objective of this study was to evaluate the litterfall deposition, the decomposition rate (KL) and the water holding capacity (WHC) of litter stored in the soil in two areas degraded by mining submitted to different methods of forest restoration: induction of natural regeneration (NR) and planting seedlings of native forest species (PS) with a forest fragment (FF) used as reference. The litterfall deposition was collected monthly over 12 months in collectors of 0.25 m2. The KL was estimated by the relation between annual litter production and litter stock in the soil surface. WHC was determined in the rainy and dry period. The litterfall deposition was lower in PS with values of 6.61 ± 0.20, 10.75 ± 0.52 and 11.83 ± 0.72 Mg ha-1 yr-1 for PS, NR and FF respectively. The KL and WHC were significantly lower in PS when compared to NR and FF, and WHC decreased significantly from the rainy season to the dry season. The induction of natural regeneration was the more effective restoration method for degraded areas regarding litterfall deposition, decomposition and water retention capacity, surpassing planting native tree species and approaching a native forest fragment.

Metabolomic profiling reveals that natural biodiversity surrounding a banana crop may positively influence the nutritional/sensorial profile of ripe fruits.

This study is part of an extensive project that evaluated the effects of a natural ecosystem on a healthy banana crop and the quality of its fruit. In particular, the study examined the influence of the maintenance of natural biodiversity (Atlantic forest) near a conventional banana crop on the metabolic profiling of ripe banana fruits. Results revealed differences between ripe fruits harvested from plants near the natural forest (Near-NF) and fruits harvested in areas distant from the natural forest (Distant-NF). A total of 76 metabolites were identified in ripe banana fruits. Bananas harvested from Near-NF plot showed increased levels of γ-aminobutyric acid and reduced levels of putrescine compared with fruits from Distant-NF plot. Furthermore, fatty acids profile suggests that ripe fruits harvested from Near-NF plot had increased nutritional quality compared with fruits from Distant-NF plot. Multivariate statistical analysis revealed that these metabolites, which potentially influence the nutritional/sensorial quality of ripe fruits, also contributed to distinguishing fruits harvested from Near-NF and Distant-NF plots. Collectively, the results suggest that the natural biodiversity surrounding a crop area could benefit ripe banana nutritional/sensorial quality. The maintenance of natural forest fragments thus appears to be a promising tool for increasing the quality of fruit crops.

Differential temporal beta‐diversity patterns of native and non‐native arthropod species in a fragmented native forest landscape

An important factor that hinders the management of non‐native species is a general lack of information regarding the biogeography of non‐natives, and, in particular, their rates of turnover. Here, we address this research gap by analysing differences in temporal beta‐diversity (using both pairwise and multiple‐time dissimilarity metrics) between native and non‐native species, using a novel time‐series dataset of arthropods sampled in native forest fragments in the Azores. We use a null model approach to determine whether temporal beta‐diversity was due to deterministic processes or stochastic colonisation and extinction events, and linear modelling selection to assess the factors driving variation in temporal beta‐diversity between plots. In accordance with our predictions, we found that the temporal beta‐diversity was much greater for non‐native species than for native species, and the null model analyses indicated that the turnover of non‐native species was due to stochastic events. No predictor variables were found to explain the turnover of native or non‐native species. We attribute the greater turnover of non‐native species to source‐sink processes and the close proximity of anthropogenic habitats to the fragmented native forest plots sampled in our study. Thus, our findings point to ways in which the study of turnover can be adapted for future applications in habitat island systems. The implications of this for biodiversity conservation and management are significant. The high rate of stochastic turnover of non‐native species indicates that attempts to simply reduce the populations of non‐native species in situ within native habitats may not be successful. A more efficient management strategy would be to interrupt source‐sink dynamics by improving the harsh boundaries between native and adjacent anthropogenic habitats.

Bird community structure in native forest fragments and Acacia mangium plantations in Borneo

ABSTRACT In Southeast Asia, some plantation developers have retained patches of native forest within plantations to promote wildlife diversity, but relatively few studies have examined the effectiveness of such efforts. To provide more information on the interaction between native forest and plantation, we conducted surveys of birds in patches of logged native forest and surrounding groves of exotic plantations in Borneo. We asked the following questions: Does plantation age influence the bird community in adjacent native forest fragments? Are bird communities in the plantations influenced by the presence of small fragments of native forest? Are bird communities in more intensively managed plantations different compared to less intensively managed plantation? Do bird distributions across habitat types vary by functional trait? Our study was conducted in a 500,000 ha multi-use landscape in Sarawak, Malaysia. We identified 15 native forest fragments within exotic plantation, and these were partitioned into ...

THE DYNAMICS OF THE SUBSTRATE RECOVERY OF WASTE DUMPS IN CALCARY MINING UNDER NATURAL REGENERATION

ABSTRACT This study aimed to evaluate the dynamics of the physical and chemical recovery of the substrates of waste dumps of different ages undergoing natural regeneration, in a calcary mining in Salto de Pirapora - SP, Brazil. Characterization of the vegetation, vegetation and physical and chemical cover of the substrates of the abandoned waste dumps since 1994 and 2013 and the soil of a native forest fragment adjacent to the mining was carried out. Twelve plots of 10x10m were allocated in each environment. It was verified that the soil cover rate with herbaceous, grassy, regenerating and litter of the sterile stacks are similar to the native forest fragment. The same was observed for the physical characterization of soil resistance to penetration, soil moisture content and relative light index. For the chemical characteristics, in all areas sampled there is aluminum deficiency which, consequently, presented low potential acidity and alkaline pH. The CEC of the substrates of the waste dumps presented values similar to the CEC of the native forest fragment, with abundance in some essential nutrients, indicating the possibility of vegetation development in the sterile stacks and the contribution of the natural regeneration to the substrates. Thus, the plant-soil relationship via natural regeneration in the sterile piles contributed to the improvement of the edaphic quality of the substrates over time, being a potential form of recovery in calcary mining. Thereby, the Fabaceae predominated on the waste dumps, especially Leucaena leucocephala, which, despite being an exotic species, is relevant for the current recovery stage of the substrates.

The Use of Vanilla Plantations by Lemurs: Encouraging Findings for both Lemur Conservation and Sustainable Agroforestry in the Sava Region, Northeast Madagascar

Extensive areas of forest are cleared every year to establish new agricultural land in the tropics, resulting in a catastrophic loss in habitat for the world’s primates. A prominent example of this process is Madagascar, where an increasing demand for arable land has led to the once-forested landscape to be now dominated by agricultural areas used for the cultivation of food and cash crops. Despite the prominence of these plantations throughout Madagascar, their suitability as a habitat to support endemic lemur populations remains unclear. Here, we assessed lemur presence in vanilla plantations, Madagascar’s principal export crop, within the northeastern Sava region with the use of line transects. We confirmed the presence of five lemur species, four of which were nocturnal cheirogaleids, in these vanilla plantations. Intensively farmed vanilla plantations and those in existing stands of vegetation supported at least one species of lemur. Furthermore, lemurs were significantly more likely to be present in plantations grown close or adjacent to natural forest fragments, compared to more intensively farmed, anthropogenic sites. In comparison, we observed eight lemur species in natural forest fragment sites in close proximity to the vanilla plantation sites, four of which we did not observe in any of the plantation sites. Our results provide evidence of lemurs using vanilla plantations and show that vanilla plantations may act as extensions of suitable habitat for lemurs, suggesting that they may also function as matrices between isolated forest fragments through which gene flow can occur. These are important and encouraging findings for both lemur conservation and for sustainable agroforestry undertaken by local farming communities.

Edaphic arthropods in different successional stages of Atlantic forest and abandoned pasture areas

The vegetation may modifies the structure and composition of the community of edaphic arthropods. This study aimed to compare the community of edaphic arthropods in four areas of abandoned pasture (AP1, AP2, AP3, AP4) and four secondary native forest fragments in a successional gradient (FF1, FF2, FF3, FF4), in Itaboraí, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The areas are positioned on the hillside and the sampling was conducted in transects outlined in a toposequence (upper, middle and lower sections), where pitfall traps were installed in the dry season. The organisms were identified in taxonomic groups (class, order and family). Comparing the averages for AP and FF, there was no defined pattern in terms of the response of structural attributes (total abundance, richness, uniformity and diversity). Among the areas of FF, higher values of all of the structural attributes occurred in the intermediate stages of forest succession (FF2, FF3), compared to the initial (FF1) and advanced stages (FF4). On average for the FF, the most favored groups were Archaeognatha, Coleoptera, Entomobryomorpha, Pseudoscorpionida, Psocoptera and Symphypleona. On average for the areas of AP, the most favored groups were Acari, Araneae, Formicidae, Diplopoda and Auchenorrhyncha. Among the areas of FF, Sternorryncha, Symphyla and Thysanura were favored in FF1, while Coleoptera, Psocoptera, Pseudoscorpionida, Entomobryomorpha and Archaeognatha were favored in the other successional stages (FF2, FF3, FF4

Bat assemblage in agricultural landscapes: comparison between native forest fragment and alley cropping system

Agroforestry systems are known to reduce impacts of traditional agriculture due to their capacity of decreasing deforestation and maintain biological diversity. This study investigated bat abundance, richness and diversity in an alley cropping system in Sao Paulo state, comparing bat assemblage to an adjacent forest fragment. Captures occurred in two distinct periods and the sampling effort of 1,296m 2 /h was applied for each site. From thirteen species captured in the fragment (n=109), in which C. perspicillata , A. lituratus and S. lilium were the most abundant, only two ( A. lituratus and S. lilium ) were recorded at the alley cropping (n=7). Shannon diversity was also significantly lower for the alley cropping (H’= 0.60), when compared to the forest fragment (H’= 2.02). Contrary to our expectations, the alley cropping system studied here does not support bat richness and diversity, as accomplished by other agroforestry complexes. The results also reinforce the importance of considering wildlife while managing agricultural landscapes and establishing agroforestry systems.

A long‐term habitat fragmentation experiment leads to morphological change in a species of carabid beetle

1. Habitat fragmentation and transformation are key drivers of species declines in landscapes. Most of the current understanding of species' responses to environmental change originates from studies of populations and communities. However, phenotypic variation offers another key aspect of species responses and could provide additional insights into the functional drivers of population change.2. The goal of this study was to address this gap by exploring the morphological changes of a species of carabid beetle (Notonomus resplendens) with a known population response to the Wog Wog Habitat Fragmentation Experiment in Australia. We measured morphological traits associated with body size, head width, and dispersal ability. We quantified patterns of morphological variation over time and between native Eucalyptus forest fragments and the surrounding pine plantation matrix and the continuous intact native Eucalyptus forest controls.3. We found sexually dimorphic morphological changes in response to the experimental treatments. Males increased in size, had larger legs and had smaller interocular widths in the matrix in both the short and long terms. Conversely, females became comparatively smaller and had increased interocular widths in the same treatments. Effects in the fragments were similar to those in the matrix, but exhibited more uncertainty.4. Our results demonstrate that species can show morphological change in response to environmental change over very short time periods. We demonstrate that using both population and morphological data allows stronger inferences about the mechanisms behind species responses to environmental change.

Fragmentación progresiva y pérdida de hábitat de bosques naturales en uno de los hotspot mundiales de biodiversidad

The understanding of the degree of forest fragmentation and landscape transformation is crucial for landscape sustainability and biodiversity conservation. Within the Chilean hotspot the Nahuelbuta Mountain can be found, which is considered as a high biodiversity value area under an intense human pressure. However, there is no information on the degree of transformation of the landscape and the conservation status of its natural forest ecosystems. The aim of this study was to evaluate the state of the landscape and the spatiotemporal changes in native forests in Nahuelbuta. Through the use of Landsat imagery acquired for 1986 and 2011, land-cover and use maps were generated. Results revealed a loss of 33% of native forest in 25 years, mainly associated with the conversion to forest plantations. Changes in spatial patterns of land-cover and uses revealed a profound transformation of the study landscape and an advanced fragmentation of native forests. We discuss how these changes threaten the persistence of different endemic species at high risk of extinction. If the current trend of spatial pattern changes continues, it is probable that these species might face an increase in their extinction risk.

Tree and shrub flora in the surroundings of the Parque Nacional do Iguaçu, Paraná State, Brazil: contribution to ecological restoration

ABSTRACT Aiming to expand the regional floristic knowledge and compile species information to subsidize restoration projects, we conducted a floristic survey in native forest fragments of an area located between the Parque Nacionaldo Iguaçu and the Área de Preservação Permanente do Lago de Itaipu, in western Paraná State. We found 204 species and 51 families, being the richest Fabaceae (29 spp.), Myrtaceae (18 spp.), Solanaceae (10 spp.), Euphorbiaceae, Meliaceae and Rutaceae (nine spp. each). The zoochoric syndrome was the most common (69% of the species), followed by anemochoric (17%) and autochoric (14%). The non-pioneer species were the most frequent (64%). In general terms, these results agree qualitatively with those observed in seasonal semideciduous forests. Based on phytosociological data from other studies, we indicated 34 locally abundant species that can be used in greater proportions in restoration projects. We recorded seven species threatened and 15 exotic, of which 12 have invasive potential and require actions for controlling.