Biodiversity Data Journal : Data Paper (Biosciences)
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Data Paper (Biosciences)
Exploring the vegetation of the coastal road in Puerto Cisnes, southern Chile: a vascular plant inventory
expand article info Jimmy Pincheira-Ulbrich ‡, §, |
‡ Departamento de Ciencias Ambientales, Facultad de Recursos Naturales, Universidad Católica de Temuco. Rudecindo Ortega 02950, Temuco, Chile
§ Núcleo de Estudios Ambientales, Universidad Católica de Temuco, Temuco, Chile
| Laboratorio de Planificación Territorial, Universidad Católica de Temuco, Temuco, Chile
Corresponding author: Jimmy Pincheira-Ulbrich (jpincheira@uct.cl)
Academic editor: Quentin Groom
Received: 30 May 2023 | Accepted: 13 Aug 2023 | Published: 21 Aug 2023
© 2023 Jimmy Pincheira-Ulbrich
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Citation: Pincheira-Ulbrich J (2023) Exploring the vegetation of the coastal road in Puerto Cisnes, southern Chile: a vascular plant inventory. Biodiversity Data Journal 11: e107217. https://doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.11.e107217
 Open Access

Abstract

Background

In areas of low disturbance, such as the Aysén Region of Chile, the presence of roads can inadvertently facilitate the spread of invasive species. To address this issue, it is imperative to maintain up-to-date biological inventories, as they serve as a primary source of information for the conservation of species and ecosystems. However, the maintenance of systematic inventories of vascular plants in Chile is virtually non-existent, especially outside protected wilderness areas. The data we have come from an inventory of vascular plant species along a stretch of coastal road in Puerto Cisnes (Aysén Region), characterised by a cut slope in the rock. The site is located between mountain ranges, in a region known for its protected wilderness areas and low levels of anthropogenic alteration. The study adopted an observational sampling design, using the road as a transect. For each species identified, the growth substrate, habit and dispersal mode were recorded. A total of 70 species (36 herbs, 23 shrubs and 11 trees) belonging to 42 families were found. The most represented families were Hymenophyllaceae (nine species) and Myrtaceae (four species). We recorded nine introduced species belonging to seven botanical families (Cirsium vulgare (Savi) Ten., Crocosmia crocosmiiflora (Lemoine ex Burb. & Dean) N.E.Br., Cytisus scoparius (L.) Link, Digitalis purpurea L., Lotus pedunculatus Cav., Plantago lanceolata L., Polygonum campanulatum Hook. f., Prunella vulgaris L., Rubus constrictus Lefèvre & P.J.Müll). Of these nine species, seven are invasive, while the remaining two species have not been assessed for invasive potential (i.e. Crocosmia crocosmiiflora and Polygonum campanulatum). In particular, Crocosmia crocosmiiflora and Rubus constrictus are new regional records. The majority of species were found growing on the ground (44 species), while a significant proportion were found exclusively on rocky slopes (17 species). According to their seed dispersal mechanism, the most common syndromes were anemochory (32 species) and ornithochory (20 species). Other mechanisms such as mammalochory, ballochory or myrmecochory were less common (less than four species).

New information

This study provides valuable data on the vascular flora of Puerto Cisnes, Chile, a modest human settlement in a minimally altered landscape. The region, dominated by native forests and a burgeoning salmon farming industry, has few inventories, so the database presented here adds significantly to local botanical knowledge. The main novelty of this research is that it is the first inventory carried out on a road in a slightly altered area surrounded by protected wilderness areas (such as Magdalena Island National Park and Queulat National Park). The study systematically categorises species according to substrate, habitat and dispersal mode, dimensions that are rarely combined in a single database.

The inventory identifies 70 species (36 herbs, 23 shrubs and 11 trees) in 42 families. The most represented families were Hymenophyllaceae (with nine species) and Myrtaceae (with four species). Additionally, we recorded, two introduced species (Crocosmia crocosmiiflora and Rubus constrictus) at least 100 km south of their known distribution.

Keywords

invasive species, filmy ferns, vascular plants, rupicolous plants, fjords

Introduction

Inventories are indispensable for understanding the spatial and temporal distribution of species. Such baseline information can serve multiple purposes, such as the generation of species distribution models (Weigelt et al. 2019), ecosystem restoration (Rai 2022) and the management and control of invasive exotic species (Fuentes et al. 2010). In Chile, as in many other Latin American countries, species monitoring is virtually non-existent (Möller and Muñóz-Pedreros 2014, Fuentes et al. 2010, Moussy et al. 2021), leaving little information to track the movement of species or their populations within a region. Certain groups, such as invasive plants, can significantly impact ecosystems, nutrient cycling, water production and fire regimes (Weidlich et al. 2020). These species colonise open areas, such as roadsides or railway lines (Deeley and Petrovskaya 2022), but systematic monitoring of these types of sites is lacking (Weigelt et al. 2019).

Inventories conducted on roads facilitate the study of species movements and their dispersal to other sites, enabling the prevention and management of potential biological invasions (e.g. Pauchard and Alaback 2004, Fuentes et al. 2013, Deeley and Petrovskaya 2022). Inventories are, therefore, needed to identify which new species are establishing in a given area and to act as an early warning system to prevent potential impacts. The identification and control of invasive species can contribute to the 14th and 15th goals of the Sustainable Development Goals (United Nations 2015) and, in particular, to the post-2020 global biodiversity framework (CBD 2021).

The Aysén Region of Chile has a limited number of inventories (e.g. Tomé et al. (2007), Teillier and Marticorena (2002), Quintanilla et al. (2008), Rodríguez et al. (2008), Promis et al. (2013), Sánchez-Jardón et al. (2013), Ramírez et al. (2014)); therefore, the database presented in this work contributes to the local understanding of the flora. The main novelty of this study is that it is the first inventory carried out on a road in a slightly modified area surrounded by protected wilderness areas (i.e. Magdalena Island National Park and Queulat National Park). The study includes the systematic categorisation of species based on substrate, habitat and dispersal mode, aspects rarely reported in a single database (but see Pincheira-Ulbrich et al. (2021)).

The inventory presents a total of 70 species (36 herbs [Fig. 5], 23 shrubs [Fig. 6] and 11 trees [Fig. 7]) belonging to 42 families (Table 1, Suppl. material 1). We recorded nine introduced species belonging to seven botanical families. Of these nine species, seven are invasive (Cirsium vulgare (Savi) Ten., Cytisus scoparius (L.) Link, Digitalis purpurea L., Lotus pedunculatus Cav., Plantago lanceolata L., Prunella vulgaris L., Rubus constrictus P.J. Müll. & Lefèvre), while the remaining two species (i.e. Crocosmia crocosmiiflora and Polygonum campanulatum) have not been assessed for invasive potential (Fuentes et al. 2013, Fuentes et al. 2020). The most represented families were Hymenophyllaceae (nine species, Fig. 4) and Myrtaceae (four species, e.g. Fig. 7a, e). Two new records of introduced species (Crocosmia crocosmiiflora and Rubus constrictus, Fig. 3) were recorded at least 100 km south of their known distribution (Fuentes et al. 2013, Rodriguez et al. 2018, Fuentes et al. 2020).

Table 1.
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Vascular plants along a coastal road in Puerto Cisnes, Aysén Region, Chile. Species: Scientific name of a species. Habit: Climbing shrub, herb, liana, shrub and tree. Site where species were observed: Transect 1, Transect 2, Isolated rock, Transect 3. Seed dispersal syndrome: anemochorous, ornithochorous, mammalochory, ballochory, myrmecochory according to Armesto and Rozzi (1989), Wilson et al. (1996) and Salvande et al. (2011). Geographical origin: native, endemic and introduced according to Rodriguez et al. (2018). *: Invasive species according to Fuentes et al. (2013) and Fuentes et al. (2020). 1: presence, 0: absence

Species Habit Transect 1 Transect 2 Isolated rock Transect 3 Seed dispersal syndrome Geographic origin
Acaena ovalifolia Ruiz & Pav. Herb 1 1 0 0 Epizoochory Native
Acrisione cymosa (J. Remy) B. Nord. Shrub 0 1 0 0 Anemochory Endemic
Adiantum chilense Kaulf. Herb 1 1 0 0 Anemochory Native
Amomyrtus luma (Molina) D. Legrand & Kausel Tree 1 1 0 1 Ornithochory Native
Aristotelia chilensis (Molina) Stuntz Tree 0 1 0 0 Ornithochory Native
Asplenium dareoides Desv. Herb 1 0 0 1 Anemochory Native
Asplenium trilobum Cav. Herb 0 1 1 1 Anemochory Native
Asteranthera ovata (Cav.) Hanst. Shrub 1 1 0 0 Ornithochory Native
Azara lanceolata Hook.f. Shrub 1 1 0 1 Ornithochory Native
Berberis darwinii Hook. Shrub 1 1 0 0 Ornithochory Native
Berberis microphylla G. Forst. Shrub 0 1 0 0 Ornithochory Native
Blechnum chilense (Kaulf.) Mett. Herb 1 1 1 0 Anemochory Native
Blechnum penna-marina (Poir.) Kuhn Herb 0 1 0 1 Anemochory Native
Caldcluvia paniculata (Cav.) D. Don Tree 1 1 1 0 Anemochory Native
Campsidium valdivianum (Phil.) Skottsb. Shrub 1 1 0 0 Anemochory Native
Diplolepis pachyphylla (Decne.) Hechem & C. Ezcurra Herb 0 0 0 1 Anemochory Native
Chusquea culeou E. Desv. Herb 0 0 0 1 Anemochory Native
Cirsium vulgare (Savi) Ten. Herb 0 0 0 1 Anemochory Introduced*
Crocosmia crocosmiiflora (Lemoine ex Burb. & Dean) N.E.Br. Herb 0 1 0 0 Hydrochory/zoochory Introduced
Cytisus scoparius (L.) Link Shrub 0 1 0 0 Ballochory/ myrmecochory Introduced*
Digitalis purpurea L. Herb 0 1 0 0 Multiple Introduced*
Drimys winteri J.R. Forst. & G. Forst. Tree 1 0 0 1 Ornithochory Endemic
Dysopsis glechomoides (A. Rich.) Müll. Arg. Herb 0 1 0 0 Ballochory/ myrmecochory Endemic
Embothrium coccineum J.R. Forst. & G. Forst. Tree 0 1 0 0 Anemochory Native
Ercilla syncarpellata Nowicke Shrub 0 1 0 0 Ornithochory Endemic
Fascicularia bicolor (Ruiz & Pav.) Mez Herb 0 1 0 0 Ornithochory Endemic
Fuchsia magellanica Lam. Shrub 1 1 0 0 Ornithochory Native
Galium hypocarpium (L.) Endl. ex Griseb. Herb 1 1 0 1 Mammalochory/saurochory Native
Gaultheria phillyreifolia (Pers.) Sleumer Shrub 0 1 0 0 Ornithochory/saurochory Native
Griselinia racemosa (Phil.) Taub. Shrub 1 1 1 0 Ornithochory Native
Gunnera magellanica Lam. Herb 0 1 0 0 Mammalochory Native
Gunnera tinctoria (Molina) Mirb. Herb 0 1 0 0 Mammalochory Native
Hydrangea serratifolia (Hook. & Arn.) F. Phil. Shrub 1 1 0 0 Multiple Native
Hymenoglossum cruentum (Cav.) C. Presl Herb 1 0 0 0 Anemochory Native
Hymenophyllum cuneatum Kunze Herb 1 0 1 0 Anemochory Endemic
Hymenophyllum dentatum Cav. Herb 1 1 1 1 Anemochory Native
Hymenophyllum falklandicum Baker Herb 0 0 1 0 Anemochory Native
Hymenophyllum krauseanum Phil. Herb 1 1 0 0 Anemochory Native
Hymenophyllum pectinatum Cav. Herb 1 1 0 0 Anemochory Native
Hymenophyllum peltatum (Poir.) Desv. Herb 1 0 1 1 Anemochory Native
Hymenophyllum plicatum Kaulf. Herb 1 1 1 0 Anemochory Native
Laureliopsis philippiana (Looser) Schodde Tree 1 1 1 1 Anemochory Native
Leptinella scariosa Cass. Herb 0 1 0 0 Anemochory Native
Lomatia ferruginea (Cav.) R. Br. Tree 1 1 0 0 Anemochory Native
Lophosoria quadripinnata (J.F. Gmel.) C. Chr. Herb 1 1 1 0 Anemochory Native
Lotus pedunculatus Cav. Herb 0 1 0 0 Anemochory Introduced*
Luma apiculata (DC.) Burret Tree 0 1 0 1 Ornithochory Native
Luzuriaga polyphylla (Hook.) J.F. Macbr. Subshrub 1 1 0 1 Ornithochory Endemic
Luzuriaga radicans Ruiz & Pav. Subshrub 0 1 0 0 Ornithochory Native
Megalastrum spectabile (Kaulf.) A.R. Sm. & R.C. Moran Herb 0 1 0 0 Anemochory Native
Mitraria coccinea Cav. Shrub 1 1 0 0 Ornithochory Native
Myrceugenia planipes (Hook. & Arn.) O. Berg Tree 0 0 0 1 Ornithochory Native
Nertera granadensis (Mutis ex L.f.) Druce Herb 1 1 0 0 Ornithochory/saurochory Native
Philesia magellanica J.F. Gmel. Subshrub 0 1 0 0 Ornithochory Native
Plantago australis Lam. Herb 0 1 0 0 Hydrochory Endemic
Plantago lanceolata L. Herb 0 1 0 0 Hydrochory Introduced*
Polygonum campanulatum Hook. f. Herb 1 0 0 0 Hydrochory/zoochory Introduced
Prunella vulgaris L. Herb 0 1 0 0 Myrmecochory Introduced*
Ranunculus repens L. Herb 0 1 0 0 Hydrochory Native
Rhaphithamnus spinosus (Juss.) Moldenke Shrub 0 0 0 1 Ornithochory Native
Raukaua laetevirens (Gay) Frodin Shrub 0 1 0 1 Ornithochory Native
Ribes magellanicum Poir. Shrub 1 1 0 0 Ornithochory Native
Rubus constrictus Lefèvre & P.J.Müll Shrub 0 1 0 0 Endozoochory Introduced*
Sarmienta scandens (J.D. Brandis ex Molina) Pers. Shrub 0 1 0 0 Anemochory Endemic
Serpyllopsis caespitosa (Gaudich.) C. Chr. Herb 1 0 1 1 Anemochory Native
Sophora cassioides (Phil.) Sparre Tree 0 0 0 1 Hydrochory Endemic
Sticherus squamulosus (Desv.) Nakai Herb 0 1 0 0 Anemochory Endemic
Synammia feuillei (Bertero) Copel. Herb 0 0 0 1 Anemochory Native
Tepualia stipularis (Hook. & Arn.) Griseb. Shrub 1 1 0 0 Anemochory Native
Weinmannia trichosperma Cav. Tree 0 1 0 0 Anemochory Native
Figure 1.  

Study area in Puerto Cisnes. T1: transect 1, corresponding to a small transect in the north. T2: transect 2, corresponding to most of the road. Yellow circle, corresponding isolated rock in the middle of transect 2. T3: transect 3, corresponding to the beach in the south.

a
b
c
d
Figure 2.

Study sites.

a: Transect 1;  
b: Transect 2;  
c: Isolated rock;  
d: Transect 3.  
a
b
c
d
e
f
Figure 3.

A sample of introduced plants.

a: Cirsium vulgare;  
b: Crocosmia crocosmiiflora;  
c: Digitalis purpurea;  
d: Prunella vulgaris;  
e: Polygonum campanulatum;  
f: Rubus constrictus.  
a
b
c
d
e
f
Figure 4.

A sample of filmy ferns (Hymenophyllaceae) diversity.

a: Hymenophyllum cuneatum;  
b: Hymenophyllum falklandicum;  
c: Hymenophyllum dentatum;  
d: Hymenophyllum krauseanum;  
e: Hymenophyllum pectinatum;  
f: Hymenophyllum plicatum.  
a
b
c
d
e
f
Figure 5.

A sample of herbs diversity.

a: Acaena ovalifolia;  
b: Dysopsis glechomoides;  
c: Leptinella scariosa;  
d: Nertera granadensis;  
e: Gunnera tinctoria;  
f: Ranunculus repens.  
a
b
c
d
e
f
Figure 6.

A sample of shrub diversity.

a: Azara lanceolata;  
b: Berberis darwinii;  
c: Gaultheria phillyreifolia;  
d: Raphithamnus spinosus;  
e: Fuchsia magellanica;  
f: Tepualia stipularis.  
a
b
c
d
e
f
Figure 7.

A sample of trees diversity.

a: Amomyrtus luma;  
b: Caldcluvia paniculata;  
c: Drimys winteri;  
d: Embothrium coccineum;  
e: Luma apiculata;  
f: Sophora cassioides.  

Project description

Study area description: 

Puerto Cisnes is a small coastal town in the Aysén Region of Chile (44°43'46.33"S, 72°40'51.85"W). It is located in a small bay of the Puyuhuapi Channel, adjacent to the mouth of the Cisnes River (Fig. 1), opposite the Magdalena Island National Park and a few kilometres from the Queulat National Park. The landscape is diverse and includes native forests, channels and mountain ranges. The town has a population of about 7,000 and the salmon industry is the main economic activity, with tourism a secondary activity.

Design description: 

Data collection took place between 24 and 26 February 2017. Sampling followed an observational protocol using the road as a transect with a continuous walk-through approach being employed (Brower et al. 1997). An inventory of species occurrences was conducted along a transect of approximately 2.45 km, covering both sides of the road and the rock face forming the fjord escarpment. In the near-vertical cut areas adjacent to the road, species growing within the first few metres, easily accessible from the road, were recorded. Whilst safety constraints prevented direct sampling from higher areas, an attempt was made to identify all species visible from the base of the cut. Each species was recorded at the time of first detection, regardless of subsequent occurrences within the transect. The primary aim of this strategy was to capture the broadest possible diversity of species within the constraints of the study area (Diekmann et al. 2007). The width of the transect was dictated by the physical constraints of the site, namely the road and the adjacent rock face (Diekmann et al. 2007, Speak et al. 2018). On the beach, the average transect width was 10 m.

The data were organised according to four sampling locations: Transect 1, corresponding to a small transect in the north; Transect 2, corresponding to most of the road; Isolated Rock, corresponding to a point in the middle of Transect 2; and Transect 3, corresponding to the beach in the south (Fig. 2). The urban area was excluded from the study. After data collection, the information was formatted according to the Darwin Core Standard for Biodiversity Data (https://dwc.tdwg.org/). The refinement of this criterion by Groom et al. (2019) enhances its suitability for the study and management of invasive species by providing a more detailed representation of the native status, establishment level and site occupancy means of the organism.

Sampling methods

Sampling description: 

Field notes, photographs and some difficult-to-identify specimens taken along the transects were examined in the laboratory. Three types of data were described: (i) taxonomic identity, according to Marticorena and Rodríguez (Marticorena and Rodríguez 1995, Marticorena and Rodríguez 2001, Marticorena and Rodríguez 2003, Marticorena and Rodríguez 2005, Marticorena and Rodríguez 2011), (ii) microhabitat substrate (soil, rock escarpment, tree) as observed in the field, (iii) growth form (climber, epiphyte, liana, terricolous), according to Rodriguez et al. (2018), (vi) habit (herb, shrub, subshrub and tree), according to Rodriguez et al. (2018), (vi) dispersal syndrome (anemochorous, ornithochorous, mammalochory, ballochory, myrmecochory), according to Armesto and Rozzi (1989), Wilson et al. (1996), Salvande et al. (2011) and (vi) geographic origin (native, endemic, introduced) according to Rodriguez et al. (2018) and Fuentes et al. (2020). Taxonomic nomenclature followed Rodriguez et al. (2018) and the International Plant Names Index (IPNI 2022).

Geographic coverage

Description: 

Locality of Puerto Cisnes in Chile, situated in a small bay of the Puyuhuapi Channel, next to the mouth of the Cisnes River.

Coordinates: 

-44.7454° and -44.7242° Latitude; -72.6989° and -72.6877° Longitude.

Usage licence

Usage licence: 
Creative Commons Public Domain Waiver (CC-Zero)

Data resources

Data package title: 
Vascular plants along a coastal road in Puerto Cisnes, Aysén Region, Chile.
Number of data sets: 
1
Data set name: 
Vascular plants along a coastal road in Puerto Cisnes, Aysén Region, Chile.
Description: 

The dataset lists 70 vascular plant species found in three transects made along a rural road in Puerto Cisnes, Chile (Suppl. material 1).

Column label Column description
occurrenceID A unique identifier for each occurrence.
scientificName The scientific name of taxon.
scientificNameAuthorship The authorship information for the scientific name.
kingdom The full scientific name of the kingdom in which the taxon is classified.
class The full scientific name of the class in which the taxon is classified.
order The full scientific name of the order in which the taxon is classified.
family The full scientific name of the family in which the taxon is classified.
habitat Habitat type where species was observed (i.e. Road in an evergreen forest, Beach path).
locationRemarks Comments or notes about the location (i.e. Growing on rock, growth in the soil, tree bark or a combination of these).
country The name of the country where the organism was found.
municipality Village around which sampling was carried out.
stateProvince The administrative region where sampling took place.
eventRemarks Name of the street where the transect was located.
locality The specific mention of the sampling unit in which the organism was found (Transects 1, 2, 3 or isolated rock).
samplingProtocol Name of the protocol used during sampling.
decimalLatitude The latitude of the centre of each locality.
decimalLongitude The longitude of the centre of each locality.
dynamicProperties A list of additional measurements for the record. Seed dispersal syndrome, Growth form, Habit.
establishmentMeans Statement about whether a organism has been introduced to a given place and time through the direct or indirect activity of modern humans (i.e. native, introduced).
degreeOfEstablishment The degree to which a organism survives, reproduces and expands its range at the given place and time (i.e. native, invasive, casual, established).
geodeticDatum The geographic coordinates given in decimal latitude and decimal longitude are based on a specific ellipsoid, geodetic datum or spatial reference system (SRS) (i.e. WGS84).
coordinateUncertaintyInMetres Measurement uncertainty in metres.
eventDate The date when the organism was registered.
recordedBy Name of the observer.
recordedByID Unique identifier of the species identifier in ORCID.

Acknowledgements

To Martina Pincheira for her collaboration in the field. To Cristopher Pincheira and Fernanda Sandoval for hosting me in their home, which was used as a laboratory. To Jonathan Urrutia and Jermán Carrasco for their generous help in identifying rare species. To Claudia Carrasco for her dedicated cartographic work. I would like to extend my gratitude to Robert Mesibov for his diligent work in reviewing the database. I also wish to thank Carlos Leopardi, Quentin Groom and an anonymous reviewer for their dedicated efforts in reviewing the manuscript. Their contributions significantly enhanced the quality of this work. This publication was funded by the Núcleo de Investigación en Estudios Ambientales of the Universidad Católica de Temuco.

References

Supplementary material

Suppl. material 1: Vascular plants along a coastal road in Puerto Cisnes, Aysén Region, Chile 
Authors:  Jimmy Pincheira-Ulbrich
Data type:  occurrences
Brief description: 

Vascular plants along a coastal road in Puerto Cisnes, Aysén Region, Chile.

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