Structure and phytogeographic relationships of swamp forests of Southeast Brazil

Abstract

Swamp forests are associated with soils that are saturated or inundated because of a high water table. In Brazil, little is known about the plant ecology of such forests. In this paper, we aimed to describe the phytosociological structure of the tree layer of swamp forests in Restinga de Jurubatiba National Park, in the northern part of the state of Rio de Janeiro, and to evaluate the floristic similarities between these forests and some other possibly related types of vegetation formations in Brazil. The sampling included 84 species, within 62 genera and 34 families. The Shannon diversity index was 3.42, and the Shannon evenness index was 0.77. The forests studied showed an oligarchic structure; Tapirira guianensis, Calophyllum brasiliense and Protium icicariba were the most important species. Oligarchy, or monodominance, and relatively low species richness are the norm in the swamp forests of southeastern Brazil and result from the strong selective character of the saturated/inundated soils. In comparison with local areas of restinga (coastal woodland), Atlantic Forest sensu stricto, other swamp forests and flooded riparian forests, the similarity was low (Jaccard similarity coefficient < 0.25). In addition to the similar ecological conditions, geographic proximity was a key factor determining the patterns of similarity found. Our results indicate that the swamp forests of southeastern Brazil do not represent a distinguishable floristic unit, due to sources of local variation, notably migration and the establishment of adaptive species from neighboring vegetation formations (some 70% of the species surveyed).