Acumulación de biomasa en bosques subtropicales de montaña de Tucumán y su relación con el cambio climático

CARILLA, JULIETA; BLUNDO, CECILIA; MALIZIA, AGUSTINA

Bogota

Taller; Taller internacional Evaluando las respuestas a los cambios ambientales globales; 2017

For Andean regions there are no studies evaluating the patterns of biomass accumulation at large spatial scales or detailed temporal scales, taking into account both mature and secondary forests. Our study system has 25 years of temporal monitoring of mature and secondary forests, both dominated by native and exotic species. In this way, our studied ecosystems constitute an excellent analysis system for the evaluation of the behavior of a highly invasive species such as Ligustrum lucidum in relations to native forest dynamics and interactions with global changes. In this synthesis study we evaluate the relative role of climate change, land use change and invasion by exotic species on the accumulation of biomass in 25 years in subtropical mountain forests. Specifically, we evaluate patterns of biomass accumulation in secondary forests dominated by native species and in secondary forests dominated by the exotic species Ligustrum lucidum in relation to mature forests where no disturbances have occurred and where invasion by exotic species is not significant. The main hypothesis is that in forests close to urbanizations, land use change and the pool of available exotic species become important variables structuring communities and new ecosystems. These, in combinations with increasing rainfall and temperatures, would influence the expansion patterns of invasive species affecting biomass accumulation in relation to native forests. Monitoring and analyzing how forests behave in the context of global change is important to better understand and predict long-term ecosystem dynamics.