Almacenamiento de carbono de dos especies vegetales dominantes en un bosque andino de la cuenca del río las piedras

Abstract

An allometric model was used for estimating aboveground biomass and carbon stored in a secondary andean forest. The quantified total aboveground biomass was 380 t ha-1, where the two most dominant forest species, Quercus humboldtii and Myrcianthes leucoxyla, contributed 32,6 % of the total. The content of carbon in aboveground biomass was 190 t C ha-1, which represent 697 t CO2e that have not yet been released into the atmosphere. Q. humboldtii contributed 41,8 t C ha-1 and 153,1 t CO2e; while M. leucoxyla contributed 20,2 t C ha-1 and 73,9 t CO2e. Microclimatic variables were also recorded at certain distances along an edge-interior forest gradient. Changing trends were established for the behavior of these variables, exhibit a low but significant correlation between the microclimate and distance gradient, which would indicate that the vegetation of the permanent plot is determined by a spatial, floristic and / or structural pattern that influences significantly the microclimate of the forest. All these results valued the forest as a biological resource, which in relation to microclimatic characteristics, highlight the importance of the protection and conservation of andean forests in a context of climate change.