Abstract

ESCARRAGA-PAREDES, Diana del Socorro; TORRESCANO-VALLE, Nuria  and  ISLEBE, Gerald A.. Modern pollen rain-vegetation relationship of plant communities the northwest Yucatan peninsula, Mexico. Polibotánica [online]. 2014, n.38, pp.27-52. ISSN 1405-2768.

The Petenes Biospher Reserve (RBLP) vegetation forms a valuable ecological unit, and it is urgent to develop more awareness of this hotspot. Palynological analysis is a useful tool for the interpretation of vegetation dynamics, analyzing biological distribution patterns. In order to analyze the relationship pollen rain-vegetation gradient through the plant communities of Northwest Yucatan Peninsula, 30 vegetation plots were established and pollen spectrum was analyzed in surface sediment samples, in different types of vegetation types located within the RBLP. The results were analyzed with association methods, classification, and statistical modeling to identify the degree of relationship between the vegetation within the Reserve and pollen rain. Of the 50 taxa identified in the pollen rain, 13 show some degree of association; those with high degree of association were mangrove Rhizophora mangle, Avicennia germinans and Conocarpus erectus. Most of the species in the forest show high values of over-representation and under-representation, Bursera simaruba, Euphorbiaceae and Fabaceae showed association. Of 20 taxa used for correlation, Avicennia germinans and Conocarpus erectus correlated to the different communities of mangrove vegetation, but no correlation to forest taxa. The ordination shows grouping defined by a hydrological gradient, an important factor that determined the vegetation structure and dispersal ability. The relationship between pollen rain and vegetation RBLP is an essential tool for paleoecological studies and provides information on the current ecological dynamics.

Keywords : modern pollen rain; plant communities; Los Petenes; Yucatan Peninsula; Campeche.