Floristic Reproductive Phenology of the State University of Ceará, Itaperi Campus, Fortaleza-CE

The coastal region of Ceará is called the Coastal Zone Vegetation Complex, due to the variety of plants present, including species from the Cerrado, Caatinga, Atlantic Forest, Amazon Rainforest and Restinga. Fragments of this vegetation in urban areas are fundamental for ecosystem services, including climate regulation, biodiversity conservation and resource provision. Given the importance of these fragments, the aim was to characterize the reproductive phenological patterns of the Itaperi Campus of the State University of Ceará, using circular statistics. We compiled 318 exsiccates of 184 species collected from 1988 to 2023, available in the herbarium of the Natural History Museum of Ceará Prof. Dias da Rocha and on the SpeciesLink platform. The Rayleigh test showed that flowering (r= 0.95) and fruiting (r= 0.98) were seasonal, concentrated between June and August, with July being the average date. Despite the seasonality, flowers and fruit are available every month of the year, making it an important resource for local and migratory fauna. The data from the herbariums has also enabled a monthly calendar to be drawn up, which could support other research and scientific and educational activities that depend on the collection of specific reproductive material. The lack of correlation between flowering and fruiting and monthly rainfall suggests new directions for research, which should consider the availability of water in the soil and analysis at the population level.