Fenologia de Mauritia flexuosa e Mauritiella armata em ambientes extra amazônicos

Abstract

Palm trees are plant species found in the tropical and subtropical regions of the world. Its biogeographic history is mainly associated with warm and humid regions, and it is considered a key species due to the ecosystemic services it provides. In the Brazilian Cerrado, the Mauritia flexuosa L.f. (buriti) and Mauritiella armata (Mart.) Burret (xiriri) palms share the swamps as habitats and are recognized as an important species in these environments, considered fundamental in this ecosystem and contributing with the diversity and maintenance of water in the Cerrado domain. Many types of research involving palm trees have already been conducted despite the existence of gaps regarding the ecology of the buriti and, especially, the xiriri. Phenological and reproductive biology studies are considered essential tools to understand the factors that influence the reproduction and survival of plant species. In the first chapter, we investigated the reproductive behavior and floral and reproductive biology aspects of Mauritiella armata. We also evaluated the correlation between the reproductive phenophases of the species and the local climatic variables. In the second chapter, we studied the vegetative and reproductive phenological behavior of the M. flexuosa palm for 35 months, correlating them with local environmental variables. Also in this chapter, we discussed the phenological behavior of the buriti in a seasonal climate of the northern region of Minas Gerais, Brazil, and its behavior in its center of origin (the Amazon). Both studied palms are part of an essential phytophysiognomy of the Cerrado and contribute economically and ecologically to the ecosystem.