Ecological significance of Berberis microphylla shrubs: a comprehensive study on understory vegetation, Patagonia, Argentina

BUSTAMANTE GIMENA; ROSINA SOLER; MIRIAM ARENA; PAULA RODRIGUEZ; MATTHEW RUGGIRELLO; ORTIZ GUILLERMO; ALYSSA ROUDEBUSH; PAULINA AGOSTINI

Madrid

Congreso; XX Congreso Internacional de Botánica; 2024

Sociedad botanica Española

Plant biomass and the species prevalent under shrubs on human-degraded sites are important aspects for understanding habitat productivity and vegetation dynamics of terrestrial ecosystems to take action with restoration measures. Shrubs became relevant as potential nurse plants for other plants under the context of climate change. This study evaluates the role of Berberis microphylla shrubs on understory plant biomass and understory species frequency in the southernmost native forests (Nothofagus antarctica), Argentina disturbed by fire and cattle. Plant biomass and species frequency were recorded under and outside B. microphylla shrubs (n=44) in three different forest sites. Plant biomass was collected with a 650 cm2 quadrat, dried in the lab, and separated into dead and alive (differentiating woody, ferns, forbs, and grasses), which were subsequently weighed. Understory species frequency was evaluated in situ on a 45cm-transect under and outside the shrub, with the point intercept method every 5 cm. The accumulation of dead biomass was similar inside and outside the canopy. The only groups that showed differences in alive biomass were forbs and ferns which were higher under the shrub compared to the out-of-shrub condition (p=0.001 and p=0.01, respectively). There was a higher frequency of forbs under the shrub than outside (p=0.033), and higher woody plants outside than inside (p