Composição de comunidades termíticas em áreas de cana-de-açúcar e em fragmentos de Mata Atlântica de Pernambuco

Abstract

Atlantic forest fragments, surrounded by crops such as sugarcane, may undergo changes in terms of termite community richness and composition. This study aimed to analyze termite richness in Pernambuco's sugarcane region and to compare the communities found in sugarcane plantations and in Atlantic forest fragments near such plantations. For the richness study, four 1 ha areas were delimited within the plantations in each sugarcane processing plant selected – Trapiche, União & Indústria, São José, and Central Olho D'Água. A comparative analysis between the termites that occur in forest fragments and in sugarcane plantations was carried out at the São José processing plant, where three transects were placed 10, 50, and 300 m parallel to each environment's border, respectively. The insects were collected from all of the micro-habitats in ten intercalated sectors of 10 m2 for each transect. The richness study in the sugarcane plantations recorded 13 species of eight genera and two families (Rhinotermitidae and Termitidae). The number of species varied from six to nine per processing plant. Twelve Termitidae species occurred, of which Subfamily Nasutitermitinae was the richest (S=6). Rhinotermitidae included only one species, which belonged to Subfamily Heterotermitinae. The comparative analysis between the two environments studied revealed 27 termite species in the Atlantic forest fragments, from 17 genera and three families. Termitidae had the greatest number of species (24), Subfamily Nasutitermitinae was the richest. Ten species occurred in sugarcane, including six genera and one family; Subfamily Syntermitinae stood out in terms of species number (S=4). The results showed a higher termite richness than what had been previously recorded for Pernambuco's sugarcane plantations. Additionally, termite associations to forest fragments and sugarcane plantations were distinct – for the latter, species richness decreased the further away the transects were from the forest's edge.