Resumen

GUEVARA, Rosa; ROSALES, Judith  y  SANOJA, Elio. Vegetación pionera sobre rocas, un potencial biológico para la revegetación de áreas degradadas por la minería de hierro. INCI [online]. 2005, vol.30, n.10, pp.644-651. ISSN 0378-1844.

A survey of colonizing vegetation was undertaken in an area degraded by iron-ore extraction with the purpose of identifying native species for possible restoration. The study was conducted in the vicinity of Los Barrancos mine, located in the Guayana Region, Bolívar State, Venezuela. An inventory of colonizing species and associated soils was produced for herbaceous and shrub-dominated communities on the Southern slope of the mine, towards the Arasiama River (a tributary of the Guri Dam in the Caroní River). The results indicated that a total of 51 species, in 30 families, were present in 7 plots with rocky soils that were strongly acidic (pH <4.5) and with high Fe and Mn content. The most abundant species in the shrub communities were Pterandra sericea, Myrcia citrifolia, Banara nitida, Mimosa microcephala, Jacaranda obtusifolia, Clusia rosea and Lippia origanoides, while in the herbaceous communities were Borreria verticillata, Paspalum millegrana, Ouratea roraimae, Cyperus odoratus, Trachypogon plumosus and Xyris fallax. Most of the colonizing species are typical of communities that are normally associated with rocky outcrops. The paper discusses the significance of these saxicol communities as an alternative for the restoration of areas affected by the iron mining industry in the Venezuelan Guyana.

Palabras clave : Especies Colonizadoras; Guayana Venezolana; Minería de Hierro; Rehabilitación; Revegetación.