Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

The hydrological performance of Prosopis juliflora (Sw.) growth as an invasive alien tree species in the semiarid tropics of northeastern Brazil

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Biological Invasions Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The fast-growing tree Prosopis juliflora was introduced into the drought-prone region of Caatinga in Brazil northeast some decades ago, forming now extensive populations that threaten native biodiversity and disrupt the physiognomy of the local flora. Semiarid tropical forests, such as those that occur in the Caatinga, experience periods of seasonal drought which interrupt cambial activity in woody plants, leading to the formation of annual growth rings that can be used to analyze tree age, growth variability over time and its interactions with climate. We produce a tree-ring width chronology of P. juliflora, in order to establish how this plant is linked to local climate variability, which in turn supports its role as an invasive species in the Caatinga forest. Statistical analyses of the potential effects of climatic variables on this chronology is related directly to the wet season (March–July) and torrential downpours occurring during the dry season (January–February). Moreover, the chronology is inversely related to mean temperature and insolation, which could potentially be linked to rapid loss of moisture in soils due to high temperatures. These findings provide important insights into the growth dynamics of this invasive species, which should contribute to the decision-making of managers and environmental agencies on the development of effective exotic forest management practices in the Caatinga region.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

Source: splink

Fig. 2

Source: INMET

Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Alvarez JA, Villagra PE, Villalba R (2011) Factors controlling deadwood availability and branch decay in two Prosopis woodlands in the Central Monte, Argentina. Forest Ecol Manag 262:637–645

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Alvarez JA, Villagra PE, Villalba R, Debandi G (2013) Effects of the pruning intensity and tree size on multi-stemmed Prosopis flexuosa trees in the Central Monte, Argentina. Forest Ecol Manag 310:857–864

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Alves JMB, Souza E, Repelli CA, Vitorino M, Ferreira N (1997) Episódios de La Niña na bacia de oceano Pacífico Equatorial e a distribuição sazonal e intra-sazonal das chuvas no setor norte do Nordeste Brasileiro. Rev Brasil Meteorol 12:63–76

    Google Scholar 

  • Andrade LA, Fabricante JR, Oliveira FX (2009) Invasão biológica por Prosopis juliflora (Sw.) DC.: impactos sobre a diversidade e a estrutura do componente arbustivo-arbóreo da caatinga no estado do Rio Grande do Norte, Brasil. Acta Bot Bras 23:935–943

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Andrade LA, Fabricante JR, Oliveira FX (2010) Impactos da invasão de Prosopis juliflora (sw.) DC. (Fabaceae) sobre o estrato arbustivo-arbóreo em áreas de Caatinga no Estado da Paraíba, Brasil. Acta Sci Biol Sci Mar 32(3):249–255

    Google Scholar 

  • Anholetto Jr CR (2011) Dendroecologia e composição isotópica (δ13C) dos anéis de crescimento de árvores de Cedrela odorata, Meliaceae, na Caatinga e Mata Atlântica do Estado de Sergipe, Brasil. Dissertation. University of São Paulo, Esalq-USP

  • Azevedo GF (1982) Como e porque a algarobeira foi introduzida no Nordeste. In: Fonseca FCE, Mota APB, Azêvedo CF, Trindade I, Cruz JF, Brito RAL (eds) Simpósio Brasileiro sobre Algaroba 1. Natal, EMPARN, pp 300–306

    Google Scholar 

  • Barajas Morales J, León Gómez C (1989) Anatomía de maderas de México: espécies de una selva baja ca. Ed. Instituto de Biología, UNAM, México

    Google Scholar 

  • Barbosa DCA, Barbosa MCA, Lima LCM (2003) Fenologia de espécies lenhosas da Caatinga. In: Leal IR, Tabarelli M, Silva (eds) Ecologia e Conservação da Caatinga. Editora Universitária UFPE, Recife, pp 657–693

    Google Scholar 

  • Barros AHC (2012) Climatologia do estado de Alagoas: dados eletrônicos. Embrapa Solos

  • Blasing TJ, Solomon AM, Duvick DN (1984) Response function revisited. Tree Ring Bull 44:1–15

    Google Scholar 

  • Borchert R (1998) Responses of tropical trees to rainfall seasonality. Clim Changes 39:381–393

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Borchert R, Rivera G, Hagnauer W (2002) Modification of vegetative phenology in a tropical semi-deciduous forest by abnormal drought and rain. Biotropica 34:27–39

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Burkart A (1976) A monograph of the genus Prosopis (Leguminosae subfam. Mimosoideae). J Arnold Arbor 57:450–525

    Google Scholar 

  • Campos JN (2014) Secas e políticas públicas no semiárido: ideias, pensadores e períodos. Estudos avançados 28:65–88

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Castro MA (1994) Maderas Argentinas de Prosopis: Atlas Anatómico. Secretaría General de la Presidencia de la Nación Argentina, Buenos Aires

    Google Scholar 

  • Cook ER (1985) A time series analysis approach to tree-ring standardization. Dissertation. University of Arizona

  • Cook ER, Peters K (1981) The smoothing spline: a new approach to standardizing forest interior tree-ring width series for dendroclimatic studies. Tree Ring Bull 41:45–53

    Google Scholar 

  • Cunha E (1985) Os Sertões. Editora Brasiliense S.A., São Paulo

    Google Scholar 

  • Dellinger AS, Essl F, Hojsgaard D, Kirchheimer B, Klatt S, Dawson W, Pergl J, Pyšek P, van Kleunen M, Weber E, Winter M, Hörandl E, Dullinger S (2016) Niche dynamics of alien species do not differ among sexual and apomictic flowering plants. New Phytol 209:1313–1323

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Espínola LA, Júlio Junior HF (2007) Espécies invasoras: conceitos, modelos e atributos. Interciência 32:580–585

    Google Scholar 

  • Fagg CW, Stewart JL (1994) The value of Acacia and Prosopis in arid and semi-arid environments. J Arid Environ 27:3–25

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fichtler E, Trouet V, Coppin HBP, Worbes M (2004) Climatic signals in tree rings of Burkea africana and Pterocarpus angolensis from semiarid forests in Namibia. Trees Struct Funct 18:442–451

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fisher JB (1986) Branching patterns and angles in trees. In: Givnish TJ (ed) On the economy of plant form and function. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, pp 493–523

    Google Scholar 

  • Fritts HC (1976) Tree rings and climate. Academic Press, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Frosi G, Oliveira MT, Almeida-Cortez J, Santos MG (2012) Ecophysiological performance of Calotropis procera: an exotic and evergreen species in Caatinga, Brazilian semi-arid. Acta Physiol Plant 35:335–344

    Google Scholar 

  • Giantomasi MA, Roig FA, Villagra PE, Srur A (2009) Annual variation and influence of climate on the ring width and wood hydrosystem of Prosopis flexuosa DC. Trees using image analysis. Trees Struct Funct 23:117–126

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Giantomasi MA, Roig FA, Villagra PE (2013) Use of differential water sources by Prosopis flexuosa DC: a dendroecological study. Plant Ecol 214:11–27

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Giantomasi MA, Alvarez JA, Villagra PE, Debandi G, Roig FA (2015) Pruning effects on ring width and wood hydrosystem of Prosopis flexuosa DC from arid woodlands. Dendrochronologia 35:71–79

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gomes P (1961) A algarobeira. Ministério da Agricultura, Serviço de Informação Agrícola. Serie SIA

  • Hammer Ø, Harper DAT, Ryan PD (2001) PAST: paleontological statistics software package for education and data analysis. Palaeontol Electron 4(1):9

    Google Scholar 

  • Hastenrath S (1991) Climate dynamics of the tropics. Springer, Berlin

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Hastenrath S, Heller L (1977) Dynamics of climate hazards in Northeast Brazil. Q R Meteorl Soc 103:77–92

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hastenrath S, Wu MC, Chu PS (1984) Towards the monitoring and prediction of Northeast Brazil droughts. Q R Meteorl Soc 110:411–425

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Holmes RL (1983) Computer-assisted quality control in tree-ring dating and measurement. Tree Ring Bull 43:69–78

    Google Scholar 

  • Karlin U, Diaz R (1984) Potencialidad y manejo de algarrobos em el arido subtropical argentino. Programa Nacional de Recursos Naturales Renovables, SECYT, Córdoba

    Google Scholar 

  • Knüsel S, Conedera M, Rigling A, Fonti P, Wunder J (2015) A tree-ring perspective on the invasion of Ailanthus altissima in protection forests. Forest Ecol Manag 354:334–343

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Köppen W (1948) Climatología: con un estudio de los climas de la tierra. Fondo de Cultura Económica, México

    Google Scholar 

  • Lima Alencar PH, Araújo JC, Távora Costa RN (2017) Gully erosion in the Caatinga biome, Brazil: measurement and stochastic modelling. In: Geophysical research abstracts, vol 19, EGU2017-962

  • Lima ALA, Sampaio EVSB, Castro CC, Rodal MJN, Antonino ACD, Melo AL (2012) Do the phenology and functional stem attributes of woody species allow for the identification of functional groups in the semiarid region of Brazil? Trees 26:1605–1616

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lins and Silva ACB (1997) Characteristics of Prosopis juliflora invasion of semi-arid habitats in Northeast Brazil. Dissertation, University of Durham

  • Liu Y, Oduor AMO, Zhang Z, Manea A, Tooth IM, Leishman MR, Xu X, van Kleunen M (2017) Do invasive alien plants benefit more from global environmental change than native plants? Glob Change Biol 23:3363–3370

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lockwood JL, Hoopes MF, Marchetti MP (2007) Invasion ecology. Blackwell Publishing, Malden

    Google Scholar 

  • Machado ICS, Barros LM, Sampaio EVSB (1997) Phenology of Caatinga species at Serra Talhada, PE. Biotropica 29:57–68

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Magalhães AR (2012) Introdução. Centro de Gestão e Estudos Estratégicos (Brasil). A questão da água no nordeste. Agência Nacional de Águas, Brasília, pp 21–29

    Google Scholar 

  • Mansur RJCN, Barbosa DCA (2000) Physiological behavior in young plants of four trees species of Caatinga submitted the two cycles of water stress. Phyton 68:97–106

    Google Scholar 

  • Mattos PP, Braz EM, Domene VD, Sampaio EVSB, Gasson P, Pareyn FGC, Alvarez IA, Baracat A, Araújo EL (2015) Climate-tree growth relationships of Mimosa tenuiflora in seasonally dry tropical forest, Brazil. Cerne 21:141–149

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mendes BV (1997) Biodiversidade e desenvolvimento sustentável do semi-árido. SEMACE, Fortaleza

    Google Scholar 

  • Murphy PG, Lugo AE (1986) Ecology of tropical dry forest. Annu Rev Ecol Syst 17:67–88

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nascimento CES (2008) Comportamento invasor da algarobeira Prosopis juliflora (Sw) DC. nas planícies aluviais da caatinga. Thesis. Federal University of Pernambuco

  • Neves dos Santos JC, Andrade EM, Augusto Medeiros PH, Simas Guerreiro MJ, Queiroz Palácio HA (2017) Land use impact on soil erosion at different scales in the Brazilian semi-arid. Revista Ciência Agronômica 48:251–260

    Google Scholar 

  • Nobre P (2012) As origens das águas no Nordeste. Centro de Gestão e Estudos Estratégicos (Brasil). A questão da água no nordeste. Agência Nacional de Águas, Brasília, pp 31–43

    Google Scholar 

  • Nobre P, Shukla J (1996) Variations of sea surface temperature, wind stress, and rainfall over the tropical Atlantic and South America. J Clim 9:2464–2479

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nogueira Jr FC (2011) Estrutura e composição de uma vegetação ripária, relações dendrocronológicas e climáticas na Serra dos Macacos em Tobias Barreto, Sergipe-Brasil. Dissertation, Federal University of Sergipe

  • Nogueira FC, Pagotto MA, Roig FA, Lisi CS, Ribeiro AS (2018) Responses of tree-ring growth in Schinopsis brasiliensis to climate factors in the dry forests of northeastern Brazil. Trees 32(2):453–464

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Oliveira MR, Chiavone-Filho O, Rodrigues JME, Medeiros JTN (1999) Estudo das condições de cultivo da Algaroba e Jurema Preta e determinação do poder calorifico. Ciência e Tecnologia 7:93–104

    Google Scholar 

  • Orvis KH, Grissino-Mayer HD (2002) Standardizing the reporting of abrasive papers used to surfasse tree-ring samples. Tree Ring Res 58:47–50

    Google Scholar 

  • Pagotto MA, Roig FA, Ribeiro AS, Lisi CS (2015) Influence of regional rainfall and Atlantic sea surface temperature on tree-ring growth of Poincianella pyramidalis, semiarid forest from Brazil. Dendrochronologia 35:14–23

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pallardy SG, Kozlowski TT (2008) Physiology of woody plants. Elsevier, Amsterdam

    Google Scholar 

  • Pasiecznik NM, Felker P, Harris PJC, Harsh LN, Cruz G, Tewari JC, Cadoret K, Maldonado LJ (2001) The Prosopis juliflora—Prosopis pallida complex: a monograph. HDRA, Coventry

    Google Scholar 

  • Pegado CMA, Andrade LA, Félix LP, Pereira MP (2006) Efeitos da invasão biológica de algaroba - Prosopis juliflora (Sw.) DC. sobre a composição e a estrutura do estrato arbustivo-arbóreo da caatinga no Município de Monteiro, PB, Brasil. Acta Bot Bras 20:887–898

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Piraino S, Roig FA (2016) Assessing the sensitivity of riparian algarrobo dulce (Prosopis flexuosa DC) radial growth to hydrological changes. Geochronometria 43:1–8

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Piraino S, Abraham EM, Diblasi A, Roig-Juñent FA (2015) Geomorphological-related heterogeneity as reflected in tree growth and its relationships with climate from Monte Desert Prosopis flexuosa DC woodlands. Trees Struct Funct 29(3):903–916

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Prado DE (2003) As caatingas da América do Sul. In: Leal IR, Tabarelli M, Silva JMC (orgs) Ecologia e Conservação da Caatinga. Editora Universitária da Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Recife, pp 3–74

  • Ramírez-Martínez M, Terrazas T, Aguilar-Rodríguez S, Guadalupe Martínez-Ávalos J (2017) Wood anatomy of species of a deciduous dry forest at Tamaulipas. Mexico Madera y Bosques 23:21–41

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rao VB, Lima MC, Franchito SH (1993) Seasonal and interannual variations of rainfall over eastern Northeast Brazil. J Clim 6:1754–1763

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rejmánek M, Richardson DM (2013) Trees and shrubs and invasive alien species—2013 update of the global database. Divers Distrib 19:1093–1094

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rizzini CT, Coimbra-Filho AF, Houaiss A (1988) Ecossistemas brasileiros. Enge-Rio, Index Editora

    Google Scholar 

  • Roig FA (1993) Informe nacional para seleccion de germoplasma en especies de Prosopis en la República Argentina. IADIZA, Mendoza

    Google Scholar 

  • Roig FA, Villalba R (2008) Understanding climate from Patagonian tree rings. In: Rabassa J (ed) Developments in quaternary. Science series. Elsevier, Amsterdam, pp 411–435

    Google Scholar 

  • Sampaio EVSB (2010) Caracterização do Bioma Caatinga - características e potencialidades. In: Gariglio MA, Sampaio EVSB, Cestaro LA, Kageyama PY (eds) Uso Sustentável e Conservação dos Recursos Florestais da Caatinga. Serviço Florestal Brasileiro, Brasília, pp 27–96

    Google Scholar 

  • Silva VPR, Pereira ERR, Almeida RSR (2012) Estudo da variabilidade anual e intra-anual da precipitação na região nordeste do Brasil. Revista Brasileira de Meteorologia 27:163–172

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Silva AC, Prata APN, Souto SS, Mello AA (2013) Aspectos de ecologia de paisagem e ameaças à biodiversidade em uma unidade de conservação na Caatinga, em Sergipe. Revista Árvore 37(3):479–490

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Simberloff D, Martin JL, Genovesi P, Maris V, Wardle DA, Aronson J, Courchamp F, Galil B, García-Berthou E, Pascal M, Pyšek P, Sousa R, Tabacchi E, Vilá M (2013) Impacts of biological invasions. What’s what and the way forward. Trends Ecol Evol 28:58–66

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Singh KP, Kushwaha CP (2005) Emerging paradigms of the tree phenology in dry tropics. Curr Sci India 89(6):964–974

    Google Scholar 

  • Stahle DW, Mushove PT, Cleaveland MK, Roig F, Haynes GA (1999) Management implications of annual growth rings in Pterocarpus angolensis from Zimbabwe. Forest Ecol Manag 124:217–229

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stokes MA, Smiley TL (1996) An introduction to tree-ring dating. The University of Arizona Press, Tucson

    Google Scholar 

  • Traveset A, Richardson DM (2006) Biological invasions as disruptors of plant reproductive mutualisms. Trends Ecol Evol 21:208–216

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tsuchiya A (1995) Preliminary study on the relationship between vessel growth of thorny shrubs and water balance in the semi-arid region, northeastern Brazil. Geogr Sci 50:123–131

    Google Scholar 

  • Villalba R, Villagra PE, Boninsegna JA, Morales MS, Moyano V (2000) Dendroecología y dendroclimatología con especies del género Prosopis. Multequina 9:1–18

    Google Scholar 

  • Wakie T, Hoag D, Evangelista PH, Luizza M, Laituri M (2016) Is control through utilization a cost effective Prosopis juliflora management strategy? J Environ Manag 168:74–86

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Williams JLH (2008) Anatomía de la madera en 31 especies de la subfamilia Mimosoideae (Leguminosae) en Venezuela. Rev Colomb For 11:113–135

    Google Scholar 

  • Zenni RD, Ziller SR (2011) An overview of invasive plants in Brazil. Rev Bras Bot 34:431–446

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ziller SR (2006) Espécies exóticas da flora invasoras em Unidades de Conservação. In: Campos JB, Tossulino MGP, Müller CRC (orgs) Unidades de Conservação: ações para valorização da biodiversidade. Instituto Ambiental do Paraná, Curitiba, pp 34–52

Download references

Acknowledgements

This research was conducted in the Development and Environment Program at the Federal University of Sergipe (PRODEMA/UFS). We are especially grateful to the Federal Institute of Sergipe, São Cristóvão (IFS) and to the research team of the Plant Anatomy and Dendrochronology Laboratory at UFS.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Ecology and Dendrology, Instituto Federal de Sergipe, Rodovia BR-101, Km 96, povoado Quissamã, São Cristovão, Sergipe, 49100-000, Brazil

    Francisco de Carvalho Nogueira Jr.

  2. Laboratory of Plant Anatomy and Dendrochronology, Universidade Federal de Sergipe, Av. Marechal Rondon s/n, Rosa Elze, São Cristóvão, Sergipe, 49100-000, Brazil

    Mariana Alves Pagotto & José Roberto Vieira Aragão

  3. Laboratory of Dendrochronology and Environmental History, IANIGLA, CCT-CONICET-Mendoza, Avda. Ruiz Leal s/n, CC 330, PO Box 5500, Mendoza, Argentina

    Fidel Alejandro Roig

  4. Department of Ecology, Universidade Federal de Sergipe, Av. Marechal Rondon, s/n, Rosa Elze, São Cristovão, Sergipe, 49100-000, Brazil

    Adauto de Souza Ribeiro

  5. Department of Biology, Laboratory of Plant Anatomy and Dendrochronology, Universidade Federal de Sergipe, Av. Marechal Rondon s/n, Rosa Elze, São Cristóvão, Sergipe, 49100-000, Brazil

    Claudio Sergio Lisi

  6. Tr. José Alves dos Santos, n. 75, casa 04, Atalaia, Aracaju, Sergipe, 49035-670, Brazil

    Mariana Alves Pagotto

Authors
  1. Francisco de Carvalho Nogueira Jr.
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Mariana Alves Pagotto
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. José Roberto Vieira Aragão
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Fidel Alejandro Roig
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Adauto de Souza Ribeiro
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Claudio Sergio Lisi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Mariana Alves Pagotto.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Electronic supplementary material

Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.

Supplementary material 1 (TIFF 2782 kb)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Nogueira, F.C., Pagotto, M.A., Aragão, J.R.V. et al. The hydrological performance of Prosopis juliflora (Sw.) growth as an invasive alien tree species in the semiarid tropics of northeastern Brazil. Biol Invasions 21, 2561–2575 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-019-01994-y

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-019-01994-y

Keywords

Search

Navigation