Vegetation of the La Invernada Valley (Don Carmelo Private Reserve) in the central-west of San Juan province (Argentina)

Abstract

Background and aims: Studies of plant communities in the Andean sector of San Juan province (Argentina) are scarce. In the provincial Precordillera, La Invernada valley was declared a protected area in 1993 with the name of Private Reserve of Multiple Uses Don Carmelo. Despite being an area of interest from the phytogeographical point of view, it lacks studies of its vegetation. The objective of this work was to determine floristically the plant communities, the vegetation floors and the phytogeographical units of the reserve

M&M: A total of 146 floristic releves were made, and environmental variables as slope, geomorphologic unit, altitude, plant cover were recorded, and physic-chemical analyses of soils were carried out. The biologic and chorologic spectra for each community were performed. Obtained data were analyzed using multivariate methods.

Results: In total, 143 vascular plant species were recorded, and ten plant communities determined. Dominant life forms were chamaephytes and hemicriptophytes. Chorologically the studied area belongs to the Cuyano District of the phytogeographical province of Puna, while below 2600 m a.s.l. elements of Cardonal and Monte are found.
Conclusions: The plant community diversity indicates the geomorphological diversity and complexity in the studied area. The higher surface phytogeographycally belongs to the Puna region. The altitude, slope and type of substrate result the determinant environmental parameters respect to the plant communities.