Diversity of Plant Communities Surrounding the Hot Springs on the Eastern Flank of the Sierra Madre Oriental, Northeastern Mexico.

ABSTRACT: Geothermally heated ecosystems experience extreme temperatures and play important ecological, cultural, and socio-economic roles in many environments. They support a diversity of plants that are often used by local communities. This study focused on five hot springs with varying geochemical traits in the northeast of Mexico. The diversity surrounding each hot spring was analyzed along with the impact of climatic factors. In total, we observed 2022 individual plants across 155 species and 55 families. Shrub strata dominated the rosetophyll scrub and low thorn forest, while tree strata were more common in the tropical dry forest; the herbaceous stratum exhibited the least diversity across all sites. A decrease in species richness was observed at higher elevations, while species abundance sho

SUBMITTER: Pantoja-Irys JR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12025227 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature