Mountain biodiversity in Brazil

Abstract

-(Mountain biodiversity in Brazil). The high species richness and diversity found in tropical montane habitats are often related to: 1) an effect of climatic and geological history on biotic evolution; 2) the various environmental impacts on species adaptation mechanisms; and 3) the continuous dispersal of fauna and flora in time. However, little is known about how these factors shaped species richness in Brazilian mountains. Official documents on biodiversity in Brazil make no explicit reference to mountains, even though there is a mountain work programme of the Convention on Biological Diversity, which Brazil is a signatory of. This paper discusses the importance of mountain ecosystems in Brazil to show the urgent need to include mountain biodiversity in the national agenda of biodiversity research and conservation.

Myrtaceae throughout the Espinhaço Mountain Range of centraleastern Brazil: floristic relationships and geoclimatic controls

“…The distribution patterns of birds in the Espinhaço Mountain Range often resembles that of plants, and also show narrow distribution for various taxa (Vasconcelos 2009), with geographic distance and patchy habitats playing important roles in the isolation of species. The geographic isolation of the highest peaks, surrounded by a contrasting matrix of soils and climate probably gives rise to island-like environments, which explains much of the high richness of endemic species in such areas (Giulietti et al 1997;Martinelli 2007). Geographic isolation is therefore identified as the main reason for the emergence of restricted species, acting as a barrier to dispersal and a restriction to gene flow between populations, which, over evolutionary time, can lead to greater differentiation among genotypes and phenotypes (Lomolino et al 2010).…”

“…Geographic isolation is therefore identified as the main reason for the emergence of restricted species, acting as a barrier to dispersal and a restriction to gene flow between populations, which, over evolutionary time, can lead to greater differentiation among genotypes and phenotypes (Lomolino et al 2010). Martinelli (2007) argued that the high level of species richness and diversity found in tropical highlands is often attributable to the effects of climatic and geological history on biotic evolution, to the various environmental impacts on adaptive mechanisms and to the continuous dispersion of fauna and flora in time. However, little is known about how these factors affect species richness in the highlands of Brazil.…”

“…There is a clear lack of floristic and phytogeographic studies of the mountain ranges of Brazil, which harbor plant ecosystems that are some of the most threatened on the planet (Webster 1995;Martinelli 2007), even more so than are those of the Andes (Safford 1999). The Espinhaço Mountain Range, in central-eastern Brazil, is the second largest mountain range in the country, in terms of its length (ca.…”

Composição florística da vegetação altimontana do distrito de Monte Verde (Camanducaia, MG), Serra da Mantiqueira Meridional, Sudeste do Brasil

“…Enquanto a riqueza específica nos maciços de altitude litorâneos com levantamentos florísticos disponíveis na região Sudeste variou de 347 a 531 espécies, na região Sul variou entre 236 e 354 espécies (Brade 1951;Rambo 1956;Falkenberg 2003;Mocochinski & Scheer 2008). Entretanto, o escasso número de levantamentos florísticos ainda não permite comparações mais precisas para confirmarmos se há diferenças significativas na riqueza de espécies entre as áreas de altitude atlânticas ao longo do gradiente latitudinal da porção sul da Floresta Atlântica (Martinelli 2007).…”

“…A região Sudeste brasileira representa um dos centros de diversidade da Floresta Atlântica e várias das suas áreas de altitude ainda não possuem levantamentos florísticos publicados ou foram pouco inventariadas (Shepherd 1995, Martinelli 2007. Este levantamento florístico tem como objetivo verificar quais espécies de espermatófitas compõem a vegetação altimontana do distrito de Monte Verde e quantificar a riqueza específica e a composição florística de suas fitofisionomias.…”