Resumen

COLOTTI, Eva; CEDENO, Margareth  y  MONTANEZ, Cristian. Meteorological drought and variation of agriculture land in The Margarita Island, Nueva Esparta state, Venezuela. Period 1972-2004. Terra [online]. 2013, vol.29, n.45, pp.11-53. ISSN 1012-7089.

The drought phenomenon is related to the decrease of rainfall affecting the ecosystem and the economy. To know the behavior of meteorological drought on the Margarita Island, it was characterized in space and time for the period 1972-2004, determining its magnitude by the Standardized Precipitation Index. The agricultural surface variation was analyzed using the Agricultural Dynamic Index, to determine the increase or decrease. In Margarita Island the dry months are April and May, and wet the ones are June and December where meteorological drought was classified from slightly dry to extreme drought, with longer dry sequences in quarterly duration; and to 12 and 24 months, sequences were categorized as normal to slightly damp. Although agriculture is not an predominant activity in the island, the agricultural area increased 74% for the period 1993-2004, rejecting the hypothesis about its decline. In conclusion, the drought increased, reaching values below 1.5 SPI categorized as extreme drought, as well as the agricultural area. However, the relationship (increase or decrease) between both variables is not directly proportional, being the most favorable the agricultural areas location, than in areas where the drought has less influence.

Palabras clave : Meteorological drought; agricultural land; Agricultural Dynamic Index; Standardized Precipitation Index.