Structure and floristic composition of five caiva area in north plateau of Santa Catarina State, Brazil

Abstract

Caivas are remnants areas of Mixed Ombrophylous Forest, whose inferior stratum is composed of native pastures used for animal consume. The aim of this work was to evaluate the structure and floristic  composition of five caivas areas. Plots of one hectare were used. Every individual with DBH ≥ 5 cm were measured and identified. The parameters of density, frequency, dominance, Importance Value (IV) were calculated. These results showed 24 families and 52 species. The families with the higher number of species were Lauraceae, Myrtaceae, Aquifoliaceae and Sapindaceae and with the higher number of individuals were Myrtaceae, Araucariaceae, Aquifoliaceae and Lauraceae. The Shannon diversity index value showed high floristic diversity in the caivas and the Sorensen index showed floristic similarity among the five caivas areas. Araucaria angustifolia, Myrcia sp. Ocotea porosa, Cinnamodendron dinisii and Ilex paraguariensis were the five most important species based on Importance Value. The results confirmed that the caivas areas represent an important reservoir of native tree species, although they were being management for a long time.

doi: 10.4336/2010.pfb.30.64.303