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Collembola as bioindicators of restoration in mined sand dunes of Northeastern Brazil

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Abstract

Opencast mining causes severe environmental impacts by removing the vegetation cover and depleting the fauna. Reforestation methods using native species and diverse pre- and post-disturbance approaches aim to recover the original richness and diversity of species found before the impact. Bioindicators are powerful tools to evaluate the restoration of the original environmental conditions in disturbed areas. We used species richness, endemism and diversity measurements of Collembola to compare successional stages in reforested sites of different ages compared with a control undisturbed area. Richness and abundance of Collembola were subjected to correlation analysis with age of plots and vegetational variables. Areas that were reforested for up to 16 years supported a much lower Collembola species richness than undisturbed areas. Both the age of reforestation plots and vegetation variables (number of trees, diameter of crowns, depth of leaf litter and tree species richness) were positively and significantly correlated to collembolan abundance and richness. The results showed that the diversity of the 16-year-old plot was significantly higher than that of younger areas, but significantly less diverse than that of the control area. Endemic species were more sensitive to disturbance than non-endemics. Thus, species richness and diversity of soil Collembola can be only partially restored with appropriate reforestation methods, and although it takes many years, to some extent even endemic species can be gradually restored. Nevertheless, the maintenance of undisturbed diversity reservoirs linked by ecological corridors to reforested plots is imperative, as only undisturbed areas can support most of the endemic species able to re-colonize reforested sites.

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Acknowledgments

This research project was funded by CNPq project # 507127/2004-8, with a grant to the senior author under the CNPq/DTI program, M.I.M. Hernández had a CAPES/PRODOC grant. Claudeci S. Silva provided data concerning planting on restored areas, Rodrigo A. Costa, Valderêz H. Costa, Rembrandt R.A.D. Rothéa helped in field work, Helder F. Araújo assisted with statistical analyses, Peter Iverson revised the English and L. Deharveng provided important comments and suggestions. Two anonymous referees greatly improved the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centro de Ciências Biológicas e Sociais Aplicadas, Universidade Estadual da Paraíba (UEPB), Campus V, 58058-420, João Pessoa, PB, Brazil

    Douglas Zeppelini

  2. Associação Guajiru—Ciência—Educação—Meio Ambiente, Scientific Board, Federal Inscription number 05.117.699.000.198, Cabedelo, PB, Brazil

    Douglas Zeppelini

  3. Departamento de Sistemática e Ecologia, Centro de Ciências Exatas e da Natureza, Universidade Federal da Paraíba (UFPB), Campus I, João Pessoa, PB, Brazil

    Bruno Cavalcante Bellini & Antônio José Creão-Duarte

  4. Programa Regional de Pós Graduação em Desenvolvimento e Meio Ambiente, Universidade Federal da Paraíba (UFPB), Campus I, C.P. 5122, João Pessoa, PB, Brazil

    Malva Isabel Medina Hernández

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  1. Douglas Zeppelini
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  2. Bruno Cavalcante Bellini
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  3. Antônio José Creão-Duarte
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  4. Malva Isabel Medina Hernández
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Correspondence to Douglas Zeppelini.

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Zeppelini, D., Bellini, B.C., Creão-Duarte, A.J. et al. Collembola as bioindicators of restoration in mined sand dunes of Northeastern Brazil. Biodivers Conserv 18, 1161–1170 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-008-9505-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-008-9505-2

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