Environmental drivers for regeneration of Mauritia flexuosa L.f. in Colombian Amazonian swamp forest

Abstract

Mauritia flexuosaL.f. (swamp forest palm) stands are widely distributed in the poorly drained zones offlood plains and low terraces. They provide several economic and cultural resources for local humancommunities and play an important ecological role in Amazonia. To identify the main factors involved inthe natural regeneration dynamics ofM. flexuosa, we surveyed the recruitment, mortality, and survivalrates of seedlings from June 2010 to November 2012 on a 1-ha plot in a flooded forest area of ColombianAmazonia. The recorded mortality and recruitment rates ofM. flexuosawere higher compared to itssurvival rates over time. These three parameters, included in a CCA, were positively correlated to thebasal area (BA) ofM. flexuosaadults. The CCA the first two axes explained 88% of data variance. Whilerecruitment was positively related to flooding levels, mortality was positively related to basal area ofspecies other thanM. flexuosaand to the lowest organic matter percentages in the topsoil. In a PCA firsttwo axes explained 57% of variance and showed positive correlation of both basal area and seedlingabundance ofM. flexuosato soil organic matter content, and to poorly drained soils. Pore water pH andpercentages of sand and clay increased with improved soil drainage conditions