Introduction:

Anthropogenic disturbances such as dredging affect the structural and functional components of riparian forests, compromising their capacity to provide ecosystem services.

Objectives:

To quantify the loss of vegetation cover of a riparian forest by dredging activities in the Pitillal River (Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco).

Materials and methods:

The multispectral NDVI index was used with land use and vegetation change matrices to determine the extent, loss of vegetation cover and impact at the time of dredging and one year after the event.

Results and discussion:

The dredging area was 6.93 ha, of which 2.82 ha (40.7 %) were severely affected areas with total loss of vegetation cover; bare soil increased in surface area by 736 %. One year after clearing, the beginning of a succession process was identified, with bare soil being replaced by herbaceous plants and shrubs.

Conclusion:

This forest was severely damaged by dredging but showed possible recovery after the impact.