Grazers and fires: Their role in shaping the structure and functioning of the Río de la Plata Grasslands

José M. Paruelo; Martín Oesterheld; Alice Altesor; Gervasio Piñeiro; Claudia Rodríguez; Pablo Baldassini; Gonzalo Irisarri; Luis López-Mársico; Valério D. Pillar

doi:10.25260/EA.22.32.2.1.1880

Autores/as

José M. Paruelo INIA La Estanzuela. Colonia, Uruguay. IFEVA, Universidad de Buenos Aires, CONICET, Facultad de Agronomía. Buenos Aires, Argentina. IECA, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República. Montevideo, Uruguay
Martín Oesterheld IFEVA, Universidad de Buenos Aires, CONICET, Facultad de Agronomía. Buenos Aires, Argentina
Alice Altesor IECA, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República. Montevideo, Uruguay
Gervasio Piñeiro IFEVA, Universidad de Buenos Aires, CONICET, Facultad de Agronomía. Buenos Aires, Argentina. Facultad de Agronomía, Universidad de la República. Montevideo, Uruguay
Claudia Rodríguez IECA, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República. Montevideo, Uruguay
Pablo Baldassini INIA La Estanzuela. Colonia, Uruguay. IFEVA, Universidad de Buenos Aires, CONICET, Facultad de Agronomía. Buenos Aires, Argentina
Gonzalo Irisarri IFEVA, Universidad de Buenos Aires, CONICET, Facultad de Agronomía. Buenos Aires, Argentina. Sustainable Agriculture Sciences, Rothamsted Research. North Wyke, UK
Luis López-Mársico IECA, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República. Montevideo, Uruguay
Valério D. Pillar Departamento de Ecologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul. Porto Alegre, Brasil

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.25260/EA.22.32.2.1.1880

Palabras clave:

perturbaciones, pastizales, servicios ecosistémicos, huella ambiental

Resumen

Los Pastizales del Río de la Plata (PRP) son una de las áreas más extensas de ecosistemas abiertos (pastizales, arbustales y sabanas) del mundo. Históricamente, estos sistemas han experimentado, y lo siguen haciendo, una enorme pérdida de hábitats naturales. Más aun, en buena medida, su importancia ha sido invisibilizada frente a sistemas boscosos. El área remanente de ecosistemas abiertos (EA) varía según las fuentes del 38 al 58% del área original. Los EA son agroecosistemas particulares porque pueden combinar el suministro tanto de servicios ecosistémicos (SE) de provisión como de regulación y soporte. La maximización del suministro de SE en estos hábitats naturales depende, en parte, de comprender el papel de las dos principales perturbaciones que operan en ellos: el pastoreo y el fuego. Aunque estas dos perturbaciones son componentes naturales de los EA, son manipuladas por prácticas humanas. En este artículo revisamos el papel del pastoreo y el fuego en la estructura y el funcionamiento del PRP, partiendo de su papel durante el final del Pleistoceno y el Holoceno, y resumiendo evidencias de los efectos actuales del pastoreo y el fuego sobre la vegetación, la fauna y los procesos biogeoquímicos. Las evidencias muestran que los sistemas ganaderos en EA tienen, en dimensiones claves de la huella ambiental tales como la preservación de hábitats y la oferta de SE, el menor impacto entre las actividades agropecuarias. Los valores estimados de producción de carne equivalente en los EA representan una alta proporción de la producción total de la región, un volumen de producción capaz de cubrir el consumo de un 2.5% de la población mundial.

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