The Influence of Volcanism, Soils, and Climate in the Endemicity Levels of Asteraceae in the Arequipa Region (Southern Peru)

We present the diversity of Asteraceae in the Arequipa Region of southern Peru, an area strongly influenced by volcanism, which has given rise to different soil types and has determined a very wide bioclimatic and vegetational zonation. We present the distribution of Asteraceae endemisms of Peru and Arequipa, and of the dry puna. For this purpose, we have used the bioclimatic methodology of Rivas-Martínez, the characteristic soils of each collection point, and the distance of the collection localities from the volcanoes. In the Arequipa Region, we found 232 species of Asteraceae, of which 49 are endemic to Peru or to the dry puna and 7 are endemic to the studied area. Of these endemics, 10 are thermotropical, 1 is mesotropical, 3 are supratropical, and 3 are orotropical bioindicators, being mainly distributed in two large groups of soils: sandy and saline or gypsiferous soils, mostly located within the thermotropical belt of the coastal desert, and andosols and cambisols distributed from the thermotropical to the cryorotropical belts of the Andes. The greatest number of endemics and semi-endemics are found in the vicinity of the arc formed by the Misti, Chachani and Pichu-Pichu volcanoes.