LEVANTAMENTO QUANTITATIVO DAS PLANTAS LENHOSAS EM TRECHOS DE VEGETAÇÃO DE CAATINGA EM PERNAMBUCO

Abstract

Physiognomic parameters and floristic composition of woody plants were compared in four areas located in three different physiognomies of caatinga (sensu stricto): two shrub-arboreal caatingas, one in Fasa farm (FA), and the other in Poço do Ferro farm (PF), Floresta municipality, and one arboreal (BE) and one open arboreal (BD) caatinga, both in Boa Vista farm, at Custódia municipality, Pernambuco state. All alive and standing dead plants with total height ¿ 1 m and stem diameter at soil level ¿ 3 cm present in twenty-five 10 x 10 m plots, in each area, were sampled. Lianas and bromeliads were excluded. Sixty one species, belonging to 41 genera and 21 families, were found in the four areas, being 27, 27, 26 and 30 species in FA, PF, BE and BD, respectively. They had densities of 1876, 2172, 1076 and 1872 plant/ ha and basal areas of 16.51, 14.62, 34.29 and 20.28 m2/ ha, respectively. The patterns individualize tree physiognomies: arboreal, open arboreal and shrub-arboreal. Independent of the physiognomy, the woody floras of the four areas were similar to those of other areas of caatinga sensu stricto, located in the large sertaneja depression region, with some particularitities defined for each specific habitat.