The recovery of the lower montane cloud forest in the Mucujun watershed, Merida, Venezuela

摘要: High deforestation rates in tropical countries continue to reduce forest cover and thereby habitat quantity quality. However, some places the is recovering expanding thus offsetting biodiversity ecosystem service losses. In order characterize recovery, land use (LUC) changes were analyzed using aerial photographs, taken between 1952 2009, of a peri-urban watershed Andes region Venezuela. The qualities assessed landscape indices hemeroby indicators. that period, increased about 18 %, mainly due abandoned pastures on steep slopes. At same time, urban area expanded 4 % valley bottoms, while crop fields reduced 20 %. results also showed patches aggregating, whereas fragmenting. A reduction direct human impacts forests growing resulted slight recovery lower montane cloud structure plant composition. But non-native species found all LUC categories. During study we documented not only but growth, intensified invasions by which could partially counterbalance positives recovery.