Distribution and conservation of Aiouea Aubl. (Lauraceae Juss.) species in Brazil

Abstract

This study aims to present a biogeographic review, the distribution (real and potential), and conservation status of Aiouea Aubl. species (Lauraceae Juss.) in Brazil. The data come from the SpeciesLink Network that integrates primary data from scientific collections and is linked to the system of Biogeography of Flora and Fungi of Brazil (Biogeo), from which the real distribution and potential distribution models for each Brazilian species of Aiouea, based on a consensus model, generated by up to five algorithms. Also analyzed were the situation of endemism in Brazil, the state of conservation, and the rarity of species. A total of 1,433 records were found for 14 species of Aiouea in Brazil. In the selection of records for this study, the percentage of total exclusion was high (64.2%), mainly due to the lack of georeference, and determinator (60.8%). In the evaluation of the consensus models, good results were considered only for species with 20 or more pixels. The others presented many errors, and, therefore, their models serve only to guide new areas for collection. The geographical distribution shows a predominant pattern for the Brazilian Amazon; nine species are endemic in Brazil, and eleven species showed some indication of rarity.