Changes in Paramo Vegetation Along an Elevation Gradient in Southern Ecuador

Abstract

KEATING, PHILIP L. (Department of Geography, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL 33124-2060). Changes in paramo vegetation along an elevation gradient in southern Ecuador. J. Torrey Bot. Soc. 126:159-175. 1999.The characteristics of shrub and grass paramo communities were examined at a site in Podocarpus National Park, southern Ecuador. Forty-one 3 X 2 m plots were established within these montane communities (32503385 m elevation) to determine how the composition and structure of the vegetation vary along an elevation gradient. Detrended Correspondence Analysis was used to examine plant community patterns and the environmental factors associated with them. Three vegetation communities were recognized in the ordination analyses: grass paramo, shrub paramo, and high-elevation patches of shrubs. Although the majority of herbaceous species occurred in a wide range of habitats, the distribution of woody species varied markedly with elevation. Because this site is located further south than paramo communities described previously, it contains an unusual combination of species. Nearly 120 species of vascular plants occurred, the majority of which are locally rare. Many of the families and genera, however, are common throughout the Neotropical highlands.