Spatial distribution of Eremanthus incanus (Less.) Less. (Asteraceae) in two areas with different degrees of conservation

Abstract

We aimed to evaluate the spatial distribution of Eremanthus incamus in two areas with different degrees of conservation. The study was conducted in the Biribiri State Park, Diamantina municipality, Minas Gerais state, southeastern Brazil. We selected two areas where the species is dominant, the two of them showing different degrees of conservation. In each area, we established one plot of 20 x 20 m, where all E. incanus individuals having height > 0.1 m were sampled. The spatial pattern analysis was performed using the K function proposed by Ripley. In the two study areas, we found a total 269 individuals of E. incanus: 210 in the control area and 59 in the degraded one. In the degraded area, spatial distribution of individuals was aggregated up to 10 m, random between 10 and 13 m and uniform from 13 to 20 m. In the control area, the spatial pattern was aggregated up to 17 m and random from above that value. The spatial pattern of E. incanus in all height classes of the studied populations is different in degraded environments as compared to well-preserved sites.