LITTERFALL PRODUCTION IN GALLERYAND MESOPHYTIC FOREST, IN GARAPA DOLINE, FEDERAL DISTRICT, BRAZIL

Abstract

The accumulated litterfall on the soil of forests has an important role in the dynamics of these ecosystems, because the high portion of energy flowing in the system is concentrated in this compartment. The objective this work was to quantify and analyze the litterfall got understory of the Gallery and Mesophytic Forests present in the Dolina da Garapa, and to relate this data with meteorological and ecophysiological data, with aim to check different significance between these two forest environments and between the months of study. From January 2006 to December 2007 were established 50 litterfall trap in each forest environment, where was collected, weighted and classified the litterfall in leaves, stem and trunk, flowers and fruits and seed. The mean values sampled of litterfall production in total mass, leaf, flowers, stem and trunk, fruit and seeds were significatively different in two studied environments. In the correlation carried out between the meteorological and ecophysiological variables and the registered value of litterfall was observed that just the temperature variable had not significance in the coefficient of correlation ( < 0.5) to litterfall yield. The total production of litterfall during the studied period showed that the Mesophytic Forest is most vulnerable to external meteorological factors and ecophysiological factors of their species, than Gallery Forest. First because the spatial factor, the Forest Gallery location are in low altitude, not being exposed to meteorological factors (e.g., solar radiation) as the Mesophytic,Forest, and second by proximity to the watercourse. This spatial factor and the low influence of meteorological factors kept the total litterfall production with a lower average deviation in the Gallery Forest at a temporal scale, and the Mesophytic Forest was susceptible to seasonal weather, thus having a largest average deviation of the litterfall production a long studied period.