Avaliação da comunidade aquática e adaptabilidade de Wittrockia cyathiformis (Vell.) Leme em fitofisionomias da Mata Atlântica do Paraná

Abstract

The Brazilian Atlantic Forest is widely recognized as a region of high biodiversity. Within this biological richness, the Bromeliaceae family plays a significant role, both in terms of endemic species and as biodiversity enhancers. Among the diversity promoters are tank bromeliads, so named due to the spiral and imbricate arrangement of their leaves, resulting in the accumulation of water and debris, creating an aquatic environment known as a phytotelm. This study focuses on Wittrockia cyathiformis, a tank bromeliad endemic to Brazil and exclusive to the Atlantic Forest. The different forest typologies that make up the Atlantic Forest, such as Mixed Ombrophilous Forest (MOF) and Dense Ombrophilous Forest (DOF), offer an interesting context to investigate the phenotypic variation of W. cyathiformis and its associated aquatic community. In the first chapter, we explored the phenotypic variations of W. cyathiformis in relation to lifestyle habits and forest types. The results indicate that the plant's lifestyle habits do not cause significant phenotypic variations, except for the length of the leaf sheath, which is greater in epiphytes. On the other hand, among forest typologies, bromeliads exhibit distinct phenotypic patterns influenced by bioclimatic conditions. This phenotypic plasticity may assist in the species' adaptation to variable environmental conditions, but the ongoing loss and fragmentation of the Atlantic Forest require conservation measures for the species' persistence. In the second chapter, we conducted a comparative analysis of the diversity and composition of the aquatic macroinvertebrate community in tank bromeliads between forest typologies. We identified four interconnected factors influencing the structure of this community: physical-chemical characteristics related to the bromeliad; local bioclimatic variables (related to Niche Theory); geographic distance (related to Neutral Theory); and the preservation of forest fragments. In this research, we found 10,626 specimens categorized into 105 taxa. We highlighted that DOF presents the highest species richness, and different forest typologies have distinct community compositions among bromeliad phytotelmata. In this chapter, we verified that the diversity and composition of the aquatic community in bromeliads are governed by interdependent factors, supporting our initial hypothesis. As a second predominant factor for richness, land-use matrices, geographic distance, and climate were more relevant than aspects related to the bromeliad. Therefore, we suggest that future studies on bromeliad phytotelmata consider these factors for a more comprehensive understanding of this microecosystem. The results of this research contribute quantitative and qualitative data on W. cyathiformis and its associated fauna in the Atlantic Forest. A new species of Elpidium sp. (Ostracoda) was recorded in each forest type, as well as two new occurrences of Gastropoda species in the state of Paraná. Thus, our results emphasize the fundamental importance of preserving the Atlantic Forest and bromeliad microecosystems.