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Seasonal cambium activity in the subtropical rain forest tree Araucaria angustifolia

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Abstract

Information on the timing and dynamics of tree ring formation is essential to assess the seasonal behavior of secondary wood growth and its associated environmental influences. Araucaria angustifolia is a dominant species in highland pluvial ecosystems of southeastern South America. Previous investigations indicated that their growth rings are formed annually, but no information exists about the timing of growth ring formation and the environmental triggers influencing cambium activity. In this paper we examine inter- and intra-annual cambial activity in A. angustifolia, through anatomical and dendrochronological evidence at two study sites, and model the relationships between regional climate variation and intra-annual tree ring formation. The results confirm the annual growth ring formation in A. angustifolia and indicate that its growth season extends from October to April. Day length and temperature were the main environmental factors influencing the seasonal cambium activity. Our results evidence the dendrochronological potential of A. angustifolia for ecological and climatological studies in southeastern South America.

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Acknowledgments

The Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI, Grants SGP II 03SGP211-223 and CRNII 005) and Conselho Nacional de Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento Tecnológico (CNPq) provided research funding and scholarships to this project. Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado do Rio Grande do Sul (FAPERGS) and Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) provided scholarships also. We thank Instituto Brasileiro do Meio Ambiente e dos Recursos Naturais Renováveis (IBAMA) and Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS) for allowing field studies and facilities at FSP and CPM, respectively.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratório de Ecologia Quantitativa, Departamento de Ecologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, 91540-000, Brazil

    Juliano Morales Oliveira, Emiliano Santarosa & Valério DePatta Pillar

  2. Laboratorio de Dendrocronología, Instituto Argentino de Nivología, Glaciología y Ciencias Ambientales, Centro Científico Tecnológico CONICET-Mendoza, CC 330, 5500, Mendoza, Argentina

    Fidel Alejandro Roig

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  1. Juliano Morales Oliveira
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  2. Emiliano Santarosa
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Correspondence to Juliano Morales Oliveira.

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Communicated by S. W. Leavitt.

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Oliveira, J.M., Santarosa, E., Pillar, V.D. et al. Seasonal cambium activity in the subtropical rain forest tree Araucaria angustifolia . Trees 23, 107–115 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00468-008-0259-y

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