BOSQUE DE ROBLE O PLANTACIÓN DE CONIFERAS, ¿QUÉ PREFIEREN LOS LÍQUENES EPÍFITOS?

Quercus humboldtii is a dominant element in the high Andean forests of Boyacá, Colombia. Despite being an umbrella species, it has a per-capita consumption of 1300 Kg.year-1 and its natural stands are widely replaced with plantations of Pinus patula. This replacement affects the most sensitive epiphyte communities. To track these conditions, lichens were examined on four trees of each phorophytic species. Each tree was divided into five vertical levels and bark roughness and acidity, as well as humidity and luminosity were measured at each level for each tree. The data were analysed by means of diversity indexes, Anova, and multidimensional scaling. 161 lichen fungal species were recorded, 53 of these unique to pine trees and 45 unique to oak trees. Cladonia ceratophylla and Herpothallon rubrocinctum stand out as a frequent species shared between both phorophytes, whereas Astrothelium spp, Anzia leucobatoides y Leptogium diaphanum are exclusive to oaks. Luminosity and bark roughness are factors influencing lichen community formation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]