Structural and floristic profile of the woody component of six cerradao areas

(Structural and floristic profile of the woody component of six cerradao areas). A large number of studies describes the structure and composition of cerradao, however there is no standardization regarding data collection, rendering it difficult to conduct ample comparisons and the emergence of a structural and floristic profile for the cerradao. Our aim is to establish a structural-floristic profile of the cerradao woody component and verify the overlap of forest, savanna and generalist species. We conducted the vegetation survey in sites in six states: DF, MG, MS, MT, PI and TO. The cerradao did not present a homogenous structure or floristic consistency among sites, presenting itself as a heterogeneous phytophysiognomy. Structurally it presented great variations, with both open and closed formations (density 652-1732 ind. ha(-1); basal area 12.83-22.45 m(2) ha(-1)). Species richness varied from 49 (MS) to 129 (MT). Floristical variation and dissimilarity was strong among the six sites with only six species occurring in all sites, where as 184 species are exclusive to one site. Although species composition is comprised of a mixture of forest and savanna species, we detected a greater participation of savanna species, with the exception of the MT site that presented a larger proportion of forest species. The general floristic and structural dissimilarity pattern observed indicates great heterogeneity of cerradao woody flora distribution following the general patter for the Cerrado biome.