"Traços funcionais associados à resistência ao fogo de duas palmeiras no Pantanal. "

Abstract

Attalea phalerata Mart. ex Spreng. and Copernicia alba Morong, belonging to the Arecaceae family, popularly known as “acuri” and “carandá”, respectively, which occur predominantly in the South American continent, in Brazil, make up the Pantanal landscape. The species are used for landscaping, food and industrial purposes and perform important ecological functions. Both species are prone to the two seasonal phenomena that characterize the Pantanal - drought and flooding. Attalea phalerata and Copernicia alba are affected by fire events, which occur more frequently during the dry season. Field observations show that young or adult individuals affected by this event remain alive and developing. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the anatomy and phytochemistry of the leaf sheath of the species A. phalerata and C. alba. We searched for micromorphological and chemical characteristics in the sheath of both species, which may be related to the survival of these individuals, since the remaining and living sheaths cover the stipe of these palms, being the first structure to come into contact with fire.