Atributos ecológicos relacionados ao fogo de espécies lenhosas do cerrado sentido restrito

Abstract

Fire is often a characteristic of the brazilian cerrado and the survival of species to fire is determined by its anatomy, physiology and behavioral, further by post-fire environmental characteristics. Few attributes are related to cerrado species survival to fire, such as, specific leaf area and suber density and thickness. Comparative studies involving species identification and floristic classification between areas under different burning frequencies are important due their capacity to identify the potential of species to have phenotypic plasticity in response to fire. The study aimed to compare the structure of two areas of cerrado sensu stricto under different degrees of disturbance by fire, using ecological parameters that respond to this disturbance such as specific leaf area and suber density and thickness. The study was based on surveys conducted by Faleiro in 2007. Species analyzed in the study were selected by IVC, totaling 22 species in the area without fire and 18 in the area with fire occurrence, with 13 co-occurring species between the two areas. Means of ecological attributes between co-occurring species in areas were compared (T test). A functional approach was done through graphical analysis of species distribution for each ecological attribute and functional groups were formed by UPGMA (Jaccard). Among the 13 species common in the two areas, five of them differ in specific leaf area between areas with and without fire. For suber density, S. ferrugineus showed differences between the two areas. For suber thickness, Qualea multiflora and Styrax ferrugineus showed different between the two areas. About functional grouping, no groups were formed by the frequency of fire. The fire acted as a modeler agent in some species of this community, however no pattern of responses was found for this community.