WOODY ENCROACHMENT IN THE TRANSITIONAL ZONE BETWEEN AMAZÔNIA-CERRADO-PANTANAL

Recent studies suggest that vegetation encroachment is occurring in the Brazilian Savannah (Cerrado) and in its transitional ecotones. This study aimed to quantify woody encroachment in the ‘Serra das Araras’ protected area, located at the transition among Amazônia – Cerrado – Pantanal biomes, over a 32-year time period. We used a remote sensing approach based on the time-series analysis of the maximum Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI) as an index of woody encroachment, from the Landsat collection. We found that three-quarter of the Serra das Araras presented clear evidence of woody encroachment. The savannah class was the most affected, with 89% of its area presenting evidence of a woody encroachment process. The historical fire suppression seems to have favored the vegetation encroachment in Serra das Araras protected area.