INFLUENCE OF INTERSPECIFIC VARIATION ON TREE CARBON STOCK OF A BRAZILIAN CERRADO

ABSTRACT Cerrado is a biodiversity hotspot and possibly the most threatened tropical savanna in the world. Although Cerrado has an important role in the global carbon balance, studies about carbon stock in the biome are rare, especially with estimates per species. Thus, we estimated the carbon content and stock by species in a Cerrado area. We destructively sampled 120 trees from 18 species to determine tree aboveground biomass at a cerrado sensu stricto remnant. The carbon content in dry biomass was determined in laboratory and for the species not sampled an average value was used. The biomass of the remaining inventoried trees was estimated using an allometric equation. The carbon content in dry biomass had mean of 50.5 ± 0.20% and the carbon stock for the Cerrado remnant accounted for 22,385.46 kg ha-1. Results indicated that some species had higher carbon stock than others. The number of individuals, their size and wood density are key points that need to be considered in the evaluation of carbon stock in forests with large number of species. Maintaining species that contribute to higher carbon stock is essential to keep a positive carbon balance in Cerrado areas