Survival and development of reintroduced Cattleya intermedia plants related to abiotic factors and herbivory at the edge and in the interior of a forest fragment in South Brazil

Abstract

Biotic and abiotic factors, such as luminosity, temperature, air humidity, and herbivory, can affect the establishment of reintroduced plants in natural habitats. This study evaluated the effects of these factors on the survival and growth of Cattleya intermedia plants reintroduced into a forest fragment in South Brazil. Plants of C. intermedia were obtained from in vitro seed germination in asymbiotic culture. Eighty-eight plants were reintroduced at both the forest edge and forest interior. Plants with greater shoot heights and number of leaves and pseudobulbs suffered more damage from herbivores at the edge. There were no significant differences in morphometric parameters between damaged and non-damaged plants in the interior. Tenthecoris bicolor, Helionothrips errans, Ithomiola nepos, Molomea magna and Coleoptera larvae damaged C. intermedia. Luminosity was higher at the edge, while air humidity and temperature were the same in both environments. Herbivory associated with abiotic factors increased plant mortality in the interior, while abiotic factors were determinative of plant survival at the edge. Luminosity is important to the survival of reintroduced epiphytic orchids, and herbivory affects the success of reintroduction.

Edge effect on vascular epiphytes in a subtropical Atlantic Forest fragment

“…Even if some microenvironmental variables differ punctually between the edge and interior of the same fragment, as occurred with relative humidity in the present study, temperature and photosynthetically active radiation seem to play a less determining role in distinguishing the conformation of epiphytic communities between microenvironments, as already suggested by Endres Júnior et al (2015Júnior et al ( , 2018 for the same forest fragment. The temperature did not present significant differences between interior and edge in the present study, corroborating Nervo (2012) andEndres Júnior et al (2018) for the same forest fragment, and Silva et al (2017) for a fragment of mixed ombrophilous forest in the state of Rio Grande do Sul (Brazil). The equivalence of photosynthetically active radiation between the two environments may be associated with several natural trees falling in the forest interior, which opened clearings, and the intrinsic characteristic of seasonal semideciduous forest with a portion of tree species losing their leaves, thus increasing the incidence of sunlight.…”

“…Fragmentation and the invasion of forests by matrices of different characteristics and qualities are among the main factors responsible for biodiversity reduction, which has particular effects on epiphytes because of their exclusive dependence on trees (Ceballos, 2020). The loss of diversity of vascular epiphytes, which largely have important ecological roles, such as Orchidaceae and Bromeliaceae, the richest families in the studied fragment, consequently also threatens species that interact directly with these plants (Endres Júnior et al, 2018).…”

“…Despite the importance of vascular epiphytes for biodiversity, ecological studies about the group are scarce compared with other vegetal life forms. Studies involving orchid reintroduction and herbivory (Endres Júnior et al, 2018), and bromeliad dispersal limitation (Cascante-Marín et al, 2009), have shown that the analysis of biotic and abiotic variables is fundamental to understanding the edge effect and knowing how species respond to habitat fragmentation (Ries et al, 2017).…”

Long‐term community dynamics in vascular epiphytes on Annona glabra along the shoreline of Barro Colorado Island, Panama

“…The following years saw a steady increase in the number of individuals and hosts with more than two times the number of individuals and three times the number of hosts in 2015. The observed speed of range extension may also be important information in the context of restoration efforts (Endres Júnior et al, 2018;Fernandez Barrancos et al, 2017), and shows that the epiphyte species pool growing on studied Annona trees is still increasing.…”

Saving threatened plant species: Reintroduction of Hill’s thistle (Cirsium hillii. (Canby) Fernald) to its natural habitat

“…Herbivory was also a limiting factor in reintroduction studies with micropropagated plants of Cattleya intermedia and Mammillaria mathildae Kraehenbuehl & Krainz [42]. However, herbivory was found to have a positive effect on survival of C. intermedia [43]. Plants that were grazed on by herbivores generated new roots, shoots and leaves changing the susceptibility to herbivory.…”