Diversidade de macrofauna do solo em veredas com diferentes estágios de conservação

Abstract

Considered as one of the Cerrado's phytophysiognomies, veredas are hygrophilous communities, which have a great ecological role, but which have suffered drastically from human action over the years. An important bioindicator for veredas ecosystems is litter, which consists of a layer of organic matter found in the upper part of the soil, and which is home to a great diversity of terrestrial arthropods. Thus, the objective of this study was to analyze the occurrence of soil macrofauna in veredas with different levels of dryness in the North of Minas Gerais. Two areas were selected for sampling, being vereda Almescla (preserved vereda) and vereda Peruaçu (degraded vereda). Sampling was performed in 24 plots (10m x 20m) in each vereda, where were sampled soil macrofauna using pitfall traps. As a result, 5,055 individuals of the Phylum Arthropoda were recorded, comprising four classes, 20 orders, 89 families and 396 morphospecies. The most abundant orders were Hymenoptera, Blattodea, Diptera, Hemiptera and Araneae. The most abundant families were Formicidae, Termitidae, Cicadellidae, Sarcophagidae and Sciaridae. As for food guilds, the most representative were omnivores, herbivores, detritivores and predators. Both total richness and total abundance were greater in Peruaçu than in Almescla. Furthermore, the middle zone had a higher total abundance of arthropods compared to the edge and bottom. Ants were the most representative group in the entire study and it is possible that the greater occurrence of macrofauna in the Peruaçu vereda is strongly influenced by the group. The results show that changes in the structure and composition of vegetation in vereda environments can affect the richness and abundance of soil macrofauna.