Microhabitat preferences of six Drosera (Droseraceae) from Tibagi river basin, Paraná state, Brazil

We studied the microhabitats and the climatic requirements of six Drosera taxa, which occur in the subtropical grasslands of the Tibagi river basin. They are annual,or most communly, perennial herbs known as carnivorous plants, whose leaves are transformed into traps for the capture and digestion of small insects as an adaptation for supplying nutricional deficiencies. They usually occur in distrophic substrata. In order to contribute to conservation plans for the species of the genus, threatened by the conversion of the natural grasslands into pastures, we tried to define their preferential habitats and climatic requirements. We verified that the variables of microhabitat and altitude presented significant correlation at 5% probability level, while the variables in annual average relative humidity, annual average temperature and type of substratum types did not show significant correlation.<br>Nós estudamos os microhabitats e as exigências climáticas de seis taxa de Drosera (Droseraceae), que ocorrem nos campos subtropicais da bacia do rio Tibagi. São ervas perenes, conhecidas como plantas carnívoras, cujas folhas são transformadas em armadilhas para a captura e digestão de pequenos animais, o que tem sido referido como adaptação para suprir deficiências nutricionais, já que geralmente ocorrem em substratos distróficos. Para auxiliar na elaboração de planos de conservação para as espécies do gênero, ameaçadas pela conversão dos campos em pastagens, nós procuramos definir os habitats preferenciais e as exigências climáticas. Verificou-se que as variáveis: tipo de microhabitat e altitude apresentam correlação significativa no nível de 5%, enquanto as variáveis: umidade relativa média anual, temperatura média anual e tipo de substrato, não apresentaram correlação significativa. Os resultados obtidos sugerem que a distribuição dos taxa de Drosera estudados está relacionada principalmente com a variação de altitude e o tipo de microhabitat

Growing knowledge: an overview of Seed Plant diversity in Brazil

Abstract An updated inventory of Brazilian seed plants is presented and offers important insights into the country's biodiversity. This work started in 2010, with the publication of the Plants and Fungi Catalogue, and has been updated since by more than 430 specialists working online. Brazil is home to 32,086 native Angiosperms and 23 native Gymnosperms, showing an increase of 3% in its species richness in relation to 2010. The Amazon Rainforest is the richest Brazilian biome for Gymnosperms, while the Atlantic Rainforest is the richest one for Angiosperms. There was a considerable increment in the number of species and endemism rates for biomes, except for the Amazon that showed a decrease of 2.5% of recorded endemics. However, well over half of Brazillian seed plant species (57.4%) is endemic to this territory. The proportion of life-forms varies among different biomes: trees are more expressive in the Amazon and Atlantic Rainforest biomes while herbs predominate in the Pampa, and lianas are more expressive in the Amazon, Atlantic Rainforest, and Pantanal. This compilation serves not only to quantify Brazilian biodiversity, but also to highlight areas where there information is lacking and to provide a framework for the challenge faced in conserving Brazil's unique and diverse flora