Author(s)

Graciela Pastrán^1*, Eduardo Martínez Carretero^1,2

¹Geobotánica y Ecología Vegetal, Departamento Biología-Museo de Ciencias Naturales, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales, Universidad Nacional de San Juan, San Juan, Argentina.
²Geobotánica y Fitogeografía (IADIZA) (CONICET), Mendoza, Argentina.

Nebkhas, developed by the trapping of sand within the body of a plant, were studied in the Médanos Grandes system, arid central Argentina, during the springs of 2009-2010. The dynamics of nebkhas was studied in three draas (megadunes), and considering both orientations: leeward and windward. The Drift Potential (DP) for the study area was 42, evidencing the inactivity of the sand dunes or the scarce activity only in crests. Dominant sand movement is in south-southeast direction, with deflation processes at the southern side of the nebkhas. All nebkhas showed uniformity in the morphometry. Tricomaria usillo is the dominant plant species in the nebkha formation process; and results showed a significant positive relationship between nebkha and canopy volumes.

Sand Dunes, Nebkhas, Dynamics, Vegetation

Pastrán, G. and Carretero, E. (2016) Phytogenic Mounds (Nebkhas): Effect of Tricomaria usillo on Sand Entrapment in Central-West of Argentina. Journal of Geographic Information System, 8, 429-437. doi: 10.4236/jgis.2016.84036.