Comparação do crescimento vegetativo e da fenologia reprodutiva de espécies de árvores pioneiras e clímax de uma floresta tropical.

Abstract

The richness of plant species in tropical forests makes it difficult to analyze their ecological processes such as succession and climax. The project aims to detect patterns of energy spent on growth and reproduction that correlate with other characteristics of climax and pioneer trees. Within the r-K evolutionary gradient of living things, pioneer species follow the 'r' strategy, characterized by rapid development, small size and high progeny, while climax species follow the 'K' strategy, characterized by slow development, larger size and small progeny. Eight pioneer and eight climax species that commonly occur in the Lower Amazon region were selected, for which the following parameters are being evaluated: dispersal type, diaspore (seed) size, number of diaspores, annual increment in diameter and height. This study is important for the selection of conservation areas because it facilitates diagnosing as pioneer or climax many tree species that present an intermediate strategy between 'r' and 'K'. Although primary forests have a certain proportion of pioneer species, a high proportion of these is a clear indication of past disturbance.