Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation
Alternative Title
Productos químicos para bloquear los rayos ultravioleta en el dosel del bosque y en los líquenes del sotobosque
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Publication Date
May 2008
Abstract
Lichens produce over eight hundred secondary metabolites, many of which are found nowhere else in nature. Many of these chemicals have UV-blocking properties, including usnic acid and many depsides. These chemicals could affect colonization success between understory and canopy lichens. In Monteverde, Costa Rica, a total of 244 lichens were extracted from six trees, half from canopy branch tips and half from the trunk in the understory. Canopy coverage was significantly higher in the understory (t-test, F = 88.78, p < 0.05). In the pooled population, usnic acid was present in the branch tips more often than on the trunks (after Yates correction factor X2 c = 26.23, df = 1, p = 3.03E-07). Conversely, depsides were present more often on the trunks (after Yates correction factor X2 c = 26.23, df = 1, p = 3.02E-07). The differences in the chemical constituents, which are associated with differences in lichen community composition, may reflect adaptations that allow niche partitioning along light gradients.
Resumen
Los líquenes producen más de ochocientas metabolitos secundarios, muchos de los cuales se encuentran en ningún otro lugar en la naturaleza. Muchas de estas sustancias tienen propiedades bloqueadoras de los rayos UV, incluyendo el ácido úsnico y depsides muchos. Estos productos químicos pueden afectar la colonización de éxito entre los líquenes sotobosque y dosel. En Monteverde, Costa Rica, un total de 244 líquenes se extrajeron de seis árboles, la mitad de puntas de las ramas del dosel y la mitad del tronco en el sotobosque.
Keywords
Lichens--Ecology, Lichen communities, Cloud forest ecology, CIEE Spring 2008
Palabras claves
Líquenes--Ecología, Comunidades de líquenes, Ecología del bosque nuboso, CIEE Primavera 2008
Extent
10 pages
Geographic Location
Monteverde (Puntarenas, Costa Rica)
Holding Location
Monteverde Institute
Language
English; Spanish
Media Type
Articles
Format
Digital Only
Identifier
M39-00462
Type
Book
Recommended Citation
Heal, Katherine Rose, "UV-blocking chemicals in forest canopy and understory lichens, May 2008" (2008). Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation. 506.
https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/tropical_ecology/506