Potencial madeireiro e forrageiro de uma área de caatinga na Comunidade Mocambo de Baixo, Patos - PB.

Abstract

The Caatinga, a predominant biome in the Northeast of Brazil, has plant and animal species that have developed mechanisms that allow them to resist the adverse edaphoclimatic conditions recorded in the region. This work aimed to know the floristic composition of a caatinga fragment in the rural community farm called Mocambo de Baixo, in Patos PB and to analyze the potential of the tree plant component. The forest inventory was carried out in the area, in which the tree species were identified, the circumference at chest height (CAP), circumference at ground level (CNS), total height (H) were measured. The soil sampling of the area was carried out, being divided in two (vegetated area and nonvegetated area). The parameters density, frequency, dominance, coverage value, importance value, ShannonWeaver diversity index and Pielou's equability were evaluated. A total of 1402 individuals were found, 534 adults, 510 regenerating and 358 dead. 10 species, 10 genera and 06 families were verified for adults and 08 species, 08 genera and 05 families for regenerants. The species with the highest representativeness for both adults and regenerators was Aspidosperma pyrifolium, the botanical families with the greatest expressiveness were Apocynaceae, Euphorbiaceae and Fabaceae, in both stages. It was observed that cattle, goats, sheep and donkeys graze in the area, as well as firewood, which has degraded the area. Densities of 953, 7 ind.ha1 and 910.71 ind.ha1 were found for adults and regenerators, respectively. The highest values of coverage and importance were obtained by A. pyrifolium. The Shannon (H ') index was 1.38 and the Pielou (J') equability index was 0.60. The adult individuals were concentrated in class I both for diameter (1.9 4, 4 cm) and for height, whereas, (1.4 3.4 m), the regenerating ones, the largest amount was registered in class II (> 1 m). The timber stock in the area presented an estimate for the stacked volume of approximately 38 st.ha1. The area is in a process of degradation, due to the low number of individuals and little diversity of species in the arboreal and regenerative strata, with a predominance of pioneers, low wood stock, overgrazing and anthropism. It is necessary to use appropriate management techniques for the use of timber and forage species, which are essential for the rural owners of the locality, starting with the immediate fallow of the area, as a crucial measure for their recovery.