Composición florística y distribución de los bosques ribereños subtropicales andinos del Río Lules, Tucumán, Argentina

Abstract

Floristic composition and distribution of the Andean subtropical riparian forests of Lules River, Tucuman, Argentina. We studied the floristic composition and distribution of the riparian forest of two hydrographical systems in a subtropical Andean region. Using uni and multivariate techniques, we tested the hypotheses that a differentiable riparian forest exists, composed by native vegetation typical of the Yungas phytogeographical province, and that the distribution of vegetation varied significantly with geomorphologic characteristics. Parallel transects along the water courses were used to collect presence-absence data of vegetation in eleven sites. Detrended Correspondence Analysis defined a group of common riparian species for the studied area (Solanum riparium, Phenax laevigatus, Tipuana tipu, Cestrum parqui, Carica quercifolia, Acacia macracantha, Celtis iguanaea, Juglans australis, Pisoniella arborescens, Baccharis salicifolia, Cinnamomum porphyrium and Eugenia uniflora) and identified two reference sites. The distribution of the riparian vegetation varied significantly with the geomorphic characteristics along the studied sites. Riparian habitats were composed by native and exotic species. A distinct riparian flora, different in structure and function from adjacent terrestrial vegetation, could not be identified. Riparian species were similar to the adjacent terrestrial strata. These species would not be limited by the proximity to the river. Anthropogenic impacts were important factors regulating the introduction and increase of exotic vegetation. The lack of regulation of some activities in the zone could cause serious problems in the integrity of this ecosystem. Rev. Biol. Trop. 58 (1): 499-510. Epub 2010 March 01.

Quality and Conservation of Riparian Forest in a Mountain Subtropical Basin of Argentina

“…In order to achieve a more complete assessment of their conservation status, we strongly believe that a quality analysis of riparian forests should include all the varieties of life forms. The number of species presented here is greater than that observed in other studies in the same province [16,17,26], probably International Journal of Ecology 7 because our study area was wider (i.e., species-area effect [46,47]), comprising both Yungas and Chaco forests, with different species composition. Similarly to most riparian forests in the world, the structure was dominated by woody plants, such as trees and bushes [19].…”

“…In Argentina, changes in the use of land surrounding water bodies and pollution have had a deep impact on the functionality of riparian ecosystems [11][12][13][14][15][16][17]. These changes have led to the introduction of exotic plant species [18,19] that may cause the extinction of local plant species [20].…”

Caracterización De La Cobertura Vegetal Dentro De La Franja De Protección Del Río Copey, Jacó, Puntarenas, Costa Rica

“…Lo anterior hace que cumplan un papel importante como proveedores de alimento, corredores biológicos, reguladores de temperatura, evitan la erosión y como filtro de nutrientes y materiales contaminantes (Sirombra y Mesa, 2010). La vegetación presente en una zona tan frágil y variable como la ribera, proporciona por medio de su sistema radical un ambiente acuático menos eutrofizado y una carga de sedimentos disminuida (Peraza, 2009).…”

Effects of anthropogenic impacts on benthic macroinvertebrates assemblages in subtropical mountain streams

“…Kosterm, Eugenia uniflora L., Zanthoxilum fagara (L.) Sarg. native trees were common in these sites (Sirombra & Mesa, 2010). In sites of the second group, cover quality and structure of the riparian zone had been degraded by anthropogenic impacts.…”

“…C.K. Schneid and Ricinus communis L. were introduced as a result of cattle impact, agriculture expansion, urbanization and recreation (Sirombra & Mesa, 2010;Sirombra & Mesa, 2012).…”