Floristics, phytosociology and biogeography of capitinga vegetation in a white sand habitat in the Chapada Diamantina Mountains, Brazil

Capitinga is poorly studied vegetation growing on small, scattered islands of fine, white sand surrounded by the latosol forests on the eastern flank of the Chapada Diamantina Mountains in northeastern Brazil. Our study characterized capitinga vegetation, its environmental features, and compared its flora with the vegetation mosaic within the Espinhaço and Chapada Diamantina ranges. Floristic data was collected from 1999-2006, and phytosociological surveys were undertaken in 2004-2005 and 2016-2017 within fifteen 50 x 2 m plots (100 m2 each, 1500 m2 in total). Multivariate grouping and ordination analysis were used to examine the floristic affinities of capitinga vegetation. Sixty different species from 36 families were recorded overall, while a total of 4945 individuals distributed among 25 families and 33 species were recorded in the plots. The richest families were Fabaceae (7) and Apocynaceae (5), while the most abundant families were Arecaceae (61.5% of all individuals) and Velloziaceae (18.4%), represented by Syagrus harleyi and Vellozia dasypus respectively. Capitinga represents a distinct habitat conditioned by edaphic features, and its flora is unlike other vegetations in the Espinhaço or Chapada Diamantina ranges, with several locally endemic species.

Studying the Influence of Nitrogen Deposition, Precipitation, Temperature, and Sunshine in Remotely Sensed Gross Primary Production Response in Switzerland

Climate, soil type, and management practices have been reported as primary limiting factors of gross primary production (GPP). However, the extent to which these factors predict GPP response varies according to scales and land cover classes. Nitrogen (N) deposition has been highlighted as an important driver of primary production in N-limited ecosystems that also have an impact on biodiversity in alpine grasslands. However, the effect of N deposition on GPP response in alpine grasslands hasn’t been studied much at a large scale. These remote areas are characterized by complex topography and extensive management practices with high species richness. Remotely sensed GPP products, weather datasets, and available N deposition maps bring along the opportunity of analyzing how those factors predict GPP in alpine grasslands and compare these results with those obtained in other land cover classes with intensive and mixed management practices. This study aims at (i) analyzing the impact of N deposition and climatic variables (precipitation, sunshine, and temperature) on carbon (C) fixation response in alpine grasslands and (ii) comparing the results obtained in alpine grasslands with those from other land cover classes with different management practices. We stratified the analysis using three land cover classes: Grasslands, croplands, and croplands/natural vegetation mosaic and built multiple linear regression models. In addition, we analyzed the soil characteristics, such as aptitude for croplands, stone content, and water and nutrient storage capacity for each class to interpret the results. In alpine grasslands, explanatory variables explained up to 80% of the GPP response. However, the explanatory performance of the covariates decreased to maximums of 47% in croplands and 19% in croplands/natural vegetation mosaic. Further information will improve our understanding of how N deposition affects GPP response in ecosystems with high and mixed intensity of use management practices, and high species richness. Nevertheless, this study helps to characterize large patterns of GPP response in regions affected by local climatic conditions and different land management patterns. Finally, we highlight the importance of including N deposition in C budget models, while accounting for N dynamics.