PLANT INVASION AND DESERTIFICATION IN THE SOUTH OF THE MID-WEST WETLANDS OF SAN LUIS (ARGENTINA)

PEDERNERA TOMAS; NIEVAS ROMINA; MOGLIA MARTA

Estancia Grande

Congreso; XXXII Reunión Anual de la Sociedad de Biología de Cuyo; 2014

Sociedad de Biología de Cuyo

Degraded areas are most likely to be invaded by exotic plants. Consequently, areas affected by land degradation in arid, semi-arid and sub-wet dried environments, that are desertified, would be susceptible to invasion by plants. In order to assess invasion by plants and the relationship among invader plants and desertification, 25 (10X30 m) phytosociological Inventories were conducted according to the methodology Zurich-Montpelier School and desertification signs were registred, in the south of the Ramsar Site Guanacache, Desaguadero and Bebedero wetlands (Beazley, Desaguadero and Salina del Bebedero). The richness of invasive plants was low (12 taxa). Among invasive plants, Poaceae and Chenopodicaeae were the most represented taxa (42% of all invasive plants); the taxon with the highest coverage was russian thistle (Salsola kali), the predominant habit was annual herbs and the principal geographical origin was Eurasian. Sites that showed signs of desertification, such as soil removal, deforestation and overgrazing, were the most invaded. We conclude that desertified areas were more susceptible to invasion by plants than those not desertified and we infer that the low number of invasive plants is a consequence of the strict climatic and soil conditions. However, the effects of this change could be devastating due to the low natural vegetation cover and the characteristics of local invasive plants.