Composition and Spatial Variation of Germinable Seed Bank in Burned <i>Nothofagus pumilio</i> Forests in Patagonia Argentina
The availability of soil-stored seed determines initial plant functional types in post-fire landscapes. We evaluated the post-fire regeneration of <i>Nothofagus pumilio</i> forests, in Patagonia, Argentina, analyzing the soil seed bank (SSB) and the above-ground vegetation (AV). At three...
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2022-11-01
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author | M. Florencia Urretavizcaya Viviana Albarracín Ivonne Orellana M. Melisa Rago Pablo López Bernal Lucas Monelos Pablo Luis Peri |
author_facet | M. Florencia Urretavizcaya Viviana Albarracín Ivonne Orellana M. Melisa Rago Pablo López Bernal Lucas Monelos Pablo Luis Peri |
author_sort | M. Florencia Urretavizcaya |
collection | DOAJ |
description | The availability of soil-stored seed determines initial plant functional types in post-fire landscapes. We evaluated the post-fire regeneration of <i>Nothofagus pumilio</i> forests, in Patagonia, Argentina, analyzing the soil seed bank (SSB) and the above-ground vegetation (AV). At three sites: La Colisión, Río Turbio and Monte Zeballos, burned in 2008, 1980 and 1941, respectively, we sampled the SSB and AV in two transects from the edge of the remaining forest, up to 90 m within the burned area, and recorded the emergence (198 soil samples) and presence of vascular species. To determine the effect of the distance to the remnant forest on the germinable seed bank, we performed simple linear regression analysis through the use of linear mixed-effect models, and we analyzed the similarity between the composition of SSB and AV with PERMANOVA. The emergence of plant growth forms had different patterns in relation to the distance from the forest in the three sites, which might be associated with the time of fire occurrence, and specific characteristics of each site. The emergence of <i>N. pumilio</i> was registered at more than one distance at the recent burning site. Herbs constituted the main source of cover with 69% of the composition, and native/endemic species represented 71%. This study contributes to the understanding of the relationship between the seed bank and standing vegetation and a better understanding of the resilience of post-fire <i>N. pumilio</i> forests. Our findings suggest that from 15–20 m from the edge, the SSB would be insufficient to ensure the spontaneous recovery of the forest, making active restoration necessary in order to tend to a recovery of the structure and functionality of the original community. |
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spelling | doaj.art-b05199bb8d404af6a4ffb5aa88966e5e2023-11-24T08:23:47ZengMDPI AGForests1999-49072022-11-011311190210.3390/f13111902Composition and Spatial Variation of Germinable Seed Bank in Burned <i>Nothofagus pumilio</i> Forests in Patagonia ArgentinaM. Florencia Urretavizcaya0Viviana Albarracín1Ivonne Orellana2M. Melisa Rago3Pablo López Bernal4Lucas Monelos5Pablo Luis Peri6Centro de Investigación y Extensión Forestal Andino Patagónico (CIEFAP)-Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas de Argentina (CONICET), Esquel 9200, ArgentinaDepartamento de Biología y Ambiente, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia San Juan Bosco (UNPSJB), Esquel 9200, ArgentinaDepartamento de Biología y Ambiente, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia San Juan Bosco (UNPSJB), Esquel 9200, ArgentinaCentro de Investigación y Extensión Forestal Andino Patagónico (CIEFAP)-Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas de Argentina (CONICET), Esquel 9200, ArgentinaDepartamento de Ingeniería Forestal, Facultad de Ingeniería, Departamento de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Unidad Academica Rio Gallegos(UARG) de la Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia Austral (UNPA), UNPSJB, Esquel 9200, ArgentinaDepartamento de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Unidad Académica Rio Gallegos, Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia Austral, Río Gallegos 9400, ArgentinaDepartamento de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Unidad Académica Rio Gallegos, Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia Austral, Río Gallegos 9400, ArgentinaThe availability of soil-stored seed determines initial plant functional types in post-fire landscapes. We evaluated the post-fire regeneration of <i>Nothofagus pumilio</i> forests, in Patagonia, Argentina, analyzing the soil seed bank (SSB) and the above-ground vegetation (AV). At three sites: La Colisión, Río Turbio and Monte Zeballos, burned in 2008, 1980 and 1941, respectively, we sampled the SSB and AV in two transects from the edge of the remaining forest, up to 90 m within the burned area, and recorded the emergence (198 soil samples) and presence of vascular species. To determine the effect of the distance to the remnant forest on the germinable seed bank, we performed simple linear regression analysis through the use of linear mixed-effect models, and we analyzed the similarity between the composition of SSB and AV with PERMANOVA. The emergence of plant growth forms had different patterns in relation to the distance from the forest in the three sites, which might be associated with the time of fire occurrence, and specific characteristics of each site. The emergence of <i>N. pumilio</i> was registered at more than one distance at the recent burning site. Herbs constituted the main source of cover with 69% of the composition, and native/endemic species represented 71%. This study contributes to the understanding of the relationship between the seed bank and standing vegetation and a better understanding of the resilience of post-fire <i>N. pumilio</i> forests. Our findings suggest that from 15–20 m from the edge, the SSB would be insufficient to ensure the spontaneous recovery of the forest, making active restoration necessary in order to tend to a recovery of the structure and functionality of the original community.https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4907/13/11/1902temperate forestsresiliencefirelengadiversityecological restoration |
spellingShingle | M. Florencia Urretavizcaya Viviana Albarracín Ivonne Orellana M. Melisa Rago Pablo López Bernal Lucas Monelos Pablo Luis Peri Composition and Spatial Variation of Germinable Seed Bank in Burned <i>Nothofagus pumilio</i> Forests in Patagonia Argentina Forests temperate forests resilience fire lenga diversity ecological restoration |
title | Composition and Spatial Variation of Germinable Seed Bank in Burned <i>Nothofagus pumilio</i> Forests in Patagonia Argentina |
title_full | Composition and Spatial Variation of Germinable Seed Bank in Burned <i>Nothofagus pumilio</i> Forests in Patagonia Argentina |
title_fullStr | Composition and Spatial Variation of Germinable Seed Bank in Burned <i>Nothofagus pumilio</i> Forests in Patagonia Argentina |
title_full_unstemmed | Composition and Spatial Variation of Germinable Seed Bank in Burned <i>Nothofagus pumilio</i> Forests in Patagonia Argentina |
title_short | Composition and Spatial Variation of Germinable Seed Bank in Burned <i>Nothofagus pumilio</i> Forests in Patagonia Argentina |
title_sort | composition and spatial variation of germinable seed bank in burned i nothofagus pumilio i forests in patagonia argentina |
topic | temperate forests resilience fire lenga diversity ecological restoration |
url | https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4907/13/11/1902 |
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