Background:

Quebrada de Santa Bárbara Natural Resources Protection Area (QSBNRPA) stands out for its biodiversity and the coexistence of six genera of conifers, but an updated and complete floristic inventory is not available; hence the objective of this work was to generate it and characterize its vegetation.

Questions:

What is the diversity, extinction risk, and distribution of the vascular flora and what types of vegetation develop in the QSBNRPA?

Studied species:

Tracheophytes.

Study site and dates:

QSBNRPA, Durango; July 2018 to September 2019.

Methods:

A preliminary list assembled database records from the CIIDIR herbarium and virtual collections. It was enriched by collected specimens at 15 stations and four reference trails. The species were catalogued by their extinction risk, endemicity and distribution. Species richness was compared against 11 inventories from other Mexican zones using a taxonomic diversity index (TDI). The vegetation was characterized by its physiognomy and taxonomic composition.

Results:

The vascular flora included 79 families, 211 genera and 352 species, with a TDI of 198 spp./km2. Six species at risk included in NOM-059-SEMARNAT-2010, 63 taxa listed in the IUCN, 34 endemic species to Durango and neighboring states, and 17 microendemics were recorded. The vegetation composition includes Pinus-Quercus mixed forest, coniferous forest, and acuatic and subacuatic vegetation.

Conclusions:

Considering previous works, an increase of 76 % was achieved in the inventory of the vascular flora of the APRNQSB. The updated data of the flora of the APRNQSB are fundamental for the development and establishment of strategies of management and conservation.

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