Land management and biodiversity maintenance: A case study in grasslands in the Coastal plain of Rio Grande do Sul

Abstract

Coastal grasslands are one of the most threatened types of grasslands in the southern Brazil. To evaluate if areas with different landuse history differ in current grassland species composition and structure, four areas were selected according to current management: Entisols areas used for extensive livestock breeding (GR1 and GR2 sites); Alfisols areas used for rice production with fallow periods (GRC), and for rotation with soybean (GSB). In each area, soil and grassland vegetation were characterized. We verified that GR1, GSB, GRC and GR2 sites followed a decreasing order of species richness. Despite the higher richness found in GSB and GRC sites, few native perennial species with high coverage were recorded, due to dominating exotics and annuals. In contrast, grasslands used for pasture presented the typical vegetation features. For effective conservation efforts, we highlight the importance to keep grasslands on both soil types.