The aims of this study were: (1) to group information about the tree structure of the upper montane rain forest of Serra do Mar in the state of Paraná (PR), Southern Brazil; and (2) to compare this information with available data from other mountain ranges in Southern and Southeastern Brazil. In the four mountain ranges studied, 2294 tree individuals (perimeter at breast height - PBH > 10 cm) were sampled, which included 28 families, 43 genera and 78 species. The cloud forest sampled in Serra Gigante showed the highest richness (41 species), followed by Serra da Prata (37), Serra da Igreja (34) and Serra do Ibitiraquire (26). The mean tree height was 4.8 m, the PBH was 22.9 cm, the tree abundance was 4779 in/ha, the basal area was 33.5 m²/ha and the Shannon diversity index was 2.68 nats/ind. Combining our data with the published data on the Serra do Mar region, resulting in a total of 11 surveys and 204 plots (10200 m²), a matrix with 75 identified species was obtained. In this matrix, the five most important species in the structure of the forest were Ilex microdonta, Siphoneugena reitzii, Drimys angustifolia, Ocotea porosa and Ilex chamaedrifolia. The cloud forests sampled in Serra do Mar showed lower richness and diversity indexes than the cloud forests in Serra da Mantiqueira (Southeast) and higher richness and diversity than cloud forests in Aparados da Serra Geral (South). These differences are possibly related to the anthropic influences, geographic distances, different centers of endemism, the tropical and subtropical surroundings, and geomorphology, among other factors.
Atlantic Rain Forest; Phytosociology; Sea Mountain Range; Tropical; Tropical
