Resumen

RAMOS-MONTANO, Carolina  y  GARCIA-CONDE, Mary R.. Ecosystem characteristics associated with livestock farming  in the Arauca department (Colombia): challenges regarding climate change. Orinoquia [online]. 2016, vol.20, n.1, pp.28-38. ISSN 0121-3709.

Four types of ecosystem having different degrees of livestock intervention were characterised regarding the Colombian Orinoquia region’s floodplain (Arauca department) during an intense dry season lasting from January to March 2010: savannah pastureland, wooded savannah, gallery forest and piedmont conserved forest. Each ecosystem’s microclimatic conditions (humidity and air temperature), the soil’s physical-chemical characteristics (water retention capacity, cation exchange capacity, pH, phosphorous and micronutrient content), vegetal diversity (richness and abundance) and regenerative potential (soil seed bank diversity and germination rates) were evaluated for establishing which ecosystem parameters were most affected by livestock during the drought and evaluating environmental regulation capacity and natural recuperation potential. The results demonstrated that (regarding almost all aspects) the pastureland-type ecosystem contrasted greatly with piedmont conserved forest, the latter having the greatest biodiversity, least variability concerning temperature and relative humidity, greatest water retention capacity, greatest topographical variability providing specific regeneration sites and the most balanced micronutrient content in soil. The seed banks, harbouring propagules enduring the dry season so as to germinate in more favourable conditions, had the greatest diversity and abundance in wooded savannah, thereby highlighting the fact that this ecosystem had the greatest options for ecological recuperation than savannah pastureland. The study showed the importance of tree cover on the floodplain, especially regarding ecosystem self-regulation during seasons involving unfavourable weather. Livestock production systems involving a forestry component are recommended, as well as ensuring that forest remnants are conserved.

Palabras clave : Gallery forest; piedmont forest; Orinoquía; pastureland; climate regulation; wooded savannah; soil.

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