Functional evaluation of forest fragments inserted in different matrices in bonfim watershed, petropolis - rj

The structuring of the landscape caused by human activity can result in different patterns of functioning of forest ecosystems. Thus, the present work aims to identify and test the possibility of using ecological indicators for environmental control, based on the characterization of the production and decomposition process of organic matter in forest fragments inserted in different matrices in the Bonfim Watershed, municipality of Petropolis - RJ. Inter and intra-fragment comparisons were made in order to verify the existence of variations resulting from the different matrices in which they are inserted, and whether or not the border effect is configured. Thus, the relationship between litter, vegetation cover and the physical and chemical properties of the soil could be evidenced. The data obtained confirmed the hypotheses that guided the research, because in fact the forms of humus, represented by the dynamics of the organic material of the surface and top of the soil - in the perspective of nutrient cycling - are sensitive to the matrices and the situation of the plot in the fragment (border and interior), making it possible to recognize different levels of anthropization and thus keeping patterns at such levels.