Non-structural carbohydrates (NSC) are crucial for forest resilience, but little is known regarding the role of bark in NSC storage. However, bark's abundance in woody stems and its large living fraction make it potentially key for NSC storage. We quantified total NSC, soluble sugar (SS) and starch concentrations in the most living region of bark (inner bark, IB), and sapwood of twigs, trunks and roots of 45 woody species from three contrasting tropical climates spanning global extremes of bark diversity and wide phylogenetic diversity. NSC concentrations were similar (total NSC, starch) or higher (SS) in IB than wood, with concentrations co-varying strongly. NSC concentrations varied widely across organs and species within communities and were not significantly affected by climate, leaf habit or the presence of photosynthetic bark. Starch concentration tended to increase with density, but only in wood. IB contributed substantially to NSC storage, accounting for 17-36% of total NSC, 23-47% of SS and 15-33% of starch pools. Further examination of the drivers of variation in IB NSC concentration, and taking into account the substantial contribution of IB to NSC pools, will be crucial to understand the role of storage in plant environmental adaptation.

SUMMARYThe results of ecological restoration techniques can be monitored through biological indicators of soil quality such as the leaf litter arthropod fauna. This study aimed to determine the immediate effect of brushwood transposition transferred from an area of native vegetation to a disturbed area, on the leaf litter arthropod fauna in a degraded cerrado area. The arthropod fauna of four areas was compared: a degraded area with signal grass, two experimental brushwood transposition areas, with and without castor oil plants, and an area of native cerrado. In total, 7,660 individuals belonging to 23 taxa were sampled. Acari and Collembola were the most abundant taxa in all studied areas, followed by Coleoptera, Diptera, Hemiptera, Hymenoptera, and Symphyla. The brushwood transposition area without castor oil plants had the lowest abundance and dominance and the highest diversity of all areas, providing evidence of changes in the soil community. Conversely, the results showed that the presence of castor oil plants hampered early succession, negatively affecting ecological restoration in this area.Index terms: ecological restoration, signal grass, mesofauna, Acari, Collembola.(1) Extracted from the first author's Scientific Initiation submitted to the Department of Biological Sciences, UNESP -Univ Estadual Paulista, Campus

Bark comprises structurally and functionally complex plant tissues, providing a rich source of traits for taxonomic, phylogenetic, evolutionary and ecological studies. We compared bark traits of Stryphnodendron polyphyllum Mart. (Leguminosae) specimens growing in two Cerrado habitats (cerrado sensu stricto and gallery forest, being fire-prone and non-fire-prone habitats respectively), to determine which bark traits could be considered diagnostic and adaptively informative. We analysed the anatomy and thickness of the periderm, cortex, primary and secondary phloem, and also the bark histochemistry. Stryphnodendron polyphyllum is distinctive from other Stryphnodendron species reported in the literature, by the presence of a rhytidome, stratified lenticels and the non-collapsed parenchyma cells in the non-conducting phloem, which are, therefore, diagnostic traits for this species. Bark of S. polyphyllum showed a trade-off in resource allocation between the periderm and secondary phloem, whereas the thicker rhytidome seemed to be associated with fire protection in specimens from the fire-prone habitat, the wider sieve tubes in the thicker conducting secondary phloem indicated efficiency of photosynthate transport in the specimens from non-fire-prone habitat.

Structural differences in the secondary phloem suggest higher support and storage potential in stems than roots of Cytharexylum myrianthum Cham. (Verbenaceae)