Journal
BRAZILIAN JOURNAL OF BIOLOGY
Volume 68, Issue 3, Pages 459-465Publisher
INT INST ECOLOGY
DOI: 10.1590/S1519-69842008000300002
Keywords
cerrado; savanna; litterfall; leaf decomposition
Categories
Funding
- Fapesp
- CNPq
Ask authors/readers for more resources
We investigated annual litterfall and leaf decomposition rate in a cerrado site. We collected woody plant litter monthly from April 2001 to March 2002 and from July 2003 to June 2004. We placed systematically 13 litter traps (0.5 x 0.5 m) in a line, 10 m one from the other. We sorted litter into 'leaves', 'stems', 'reproductive structures', and 'miscellanea' fractions, oven-dried them at 80 degrees C until constant Mass and weighed the dry material. To assess leaf decomposition rate, we packed leaves recently shed by plants in litter bags. We placed seven sets of nine litter bags in a line, 10 m one from the other, on the soil surface and collected nine bags each time after 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 9, and 12 months. Total and leaf litter productions showed a seasonal pattern. Leaf litterfall was the phenological attribute that showed the strongest response to seasonality and drought. Decomposition was slower in the cerrado that we studied compared to a more closed cerrado physiognomy, reflecting their structural and environmental differences. Thus, decomposition rates seem to increase from open to closed cerrado physiognomies, probably related to an increase of humidity and nutrients in the soil.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available