Diversity and Composition of a Seed Bank in the Subtropical Atlintic Forest, Southern Brazil

The current study aimed to evaluate the seed bank diversity and composition found in the Municipal Natural Park Sao Francisco de Assis (PSFA), Santa Catarina, Brazil, located within the subtropical Atlantic Forest. Samplings were carried out within four different locations (n = 20 sample plots per location). All samples were kept in suspended beds for germination, growth, and subsequent species identification. We were able to identify 85 morphospecies (1,016 individuals). Most of them were categorized as pioneers. Pioneers were also the ecological category that had more individuals (73.12%). The predominant dispersion syndrome was zoochoric, with 58 taxa included. Our results indicate that the seeds are being provided by species that occur around the park, in some cases favored by recent landslides in the area.

Automated summary

The current study evaluated the seed bank diversity and composition in the Municipal Natural Park Sao Francisco de Assis, Brazil. The results showed that most of the identified morphospecies were pioneers, and the predominant dispersion syndrome was zoochoric. The seeds were mainly provided by species occurring around the park and influenced by recent landslides in the area.