Background:

Heteroflorum (Fabaceae) is a monospecific genus endemic to western Mexico. Community attributes of the forest where H. sclerocarpum is found are scarcely known, as well as its similarity with other tropical seasonal forests.

Question:

What is the composition, structure, and diversity of the tropical deciduous forest where H. sclerocarpum is physiognomically dominant?

Study site and date:

The buffer area of the Zicuirán-Infiernillo Biosphere Reserve, in the Churumuco municipality of Michoacán, Mexico, in 2014.

Methods:

In three 0.1-ha sites, we sampled trees with a diameter at breast height ≥ 1 cm and lianas whose rooted stem had a diameter of ≥ 1 cm. We calculated the density, biomass, rank-abundance, rank-basal area curves, as well as alpha and beta diversity measures for each site.

Results:

We recorded 64 species from 21 families in 0.3 ha. Fabaceae had the highest number of genera, species, individuals, and biomass in all sites sampled. The sites varied in richness (33-41 species), density (176-247 individuals), basal area (2-2.9 m2), and maximum height of trees (12-16 m). Rank-abundance curves differed significantly among sites. Rarefaction curves showed that 0Dα and 1Dα did not differ among sites, while 2Dα separated one of the sites, which also showed a different diversity profile. Beta diversity did not show a strong species turnover among sites (0Dβ, 1.38-1.45; 2Dβ, 1.35-1.56).

Conclusions:

The composition of the forest sampled was similar to other seasonal forests, while the density and diversity were among the lowest values.

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