Vinicio Carrión

• Ph. D.
• Principal Investigator at Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja

Fruits of Palo Santo (Bursera graveolens) are used for essential oil extraction. The extraction process is very efficient, because up to 3% of the fresh fruits can be transformed into essential oil; however, a considerable amount of waste is concurrently produced (>97% of the fresh biomass). Recent developments in Ecuadorian policies to foster envi...

Semi deciduous dry forests in southern Ecuador are valued internationally for their conservation significance, and important locally as a source of timber for agroforestry. Data with which to evaluate the compatibility of these interests is currently lacking. In permanent sample plots (PSP) established according to a simple random design, 12 specie...

Local farmers' knowledge of edaphic fertility indicators is a decisive factor for decision making and sustainable soil management. Thus, the purpose of this study was to determine soil fertility indicators according to the criteria of small farmers and contrast it with scientific knowledge. A field study was developed in northern Ecuador, where 95...

This study evaluated the effects of land-use change (L-UCH) on dung beetle community structure (Scarabaeinae) in a disturbed dry ecosystem in southern Ecuador. Five different L-UCH classes were analyzed by capturing the dung beetle species at each site using 120 pitfall traps in total. To determine dung beetle abundance and diversity at each L-UCH,...

This study addresses the critical knowledge gap regarding heavy metal contamination in the soils of the Arenillas Ecological Reserve (AERv), located on the southwest coast of Ecuador. Despite being a fragile and highly biodiverse ecosystem, little is known about the magnitude, spatial distribution, and drivers of heavy metal contamination in this r...

This study examines the convergence between traditional and scientific knowledge regarding the use of fire and its potential to trigger wildfires, with possible impacts on ecosystems and human well-being. The research encompasses three distinct natural regions of Ecuador: the coast, the highlands, and the Amazon. Data on traditional fire use were c...

The páramos have a great diversity of flora, including terricolous non-tracheophyte photoautotrophs (bryophytes and lichens). Bryophytes and lichens are very sensitive to environmental changes related to anthropogenic fires, livestock, and agricultural activities. We determined for the first time in Ecuador the effects of prescribed fires on the py...

Citation: Carrión-Paladines, V.; Fries, A.; Hinojosa, M.B.; Oña, A.; Álvarez, L.J.; Benítez, Á.; Rodríguez, F.L.; García-Ruiz, R. Effects of Low-Severity Fire on Soil Physico-Chemical Properties in an Andean Páramo in Southern Ecuador. Fire 2023, 6, 447. https://doi. Abstract: The high Andean páramos (AnP) are unique ecosystems that harbor high bio...

The montane shrublands of southern Ecuador represent one of the least studied ecosystems, which in the last decade have been seriously threatened by increasing wildfires, deforestation, overgrazing, and conversion to forest plantations. Our main objective was to determine, at the local scale, the diversity of species composing the biological soil c...

Background The Indigenous Kichwa Saraguro people of southern Ecuador have long relied on traditional burning to manage their environment. However, their traditional use of fire in one of the most important ecosystems in southern Ecuador, the herbaceous paramo, is not well known. This lack of knowledge does not allow for the improvement of local reg...

Background Andean montane forests (AMF) are biodiversity hotspots that provide fundamental hydrological services as well as carbon storage and sequestration. In recent decades, southern Ecuador AMFs have been seriously threatened by increased logging and conversion to forest plantations with exotic species. In this context, our main objective was t...

Background The deforestation caused by road construction is one of the main drivers for both biodiversity and function loss in tropical ecosystems. Terricolous cryptogams are pioneers in colonizing roadside and they are limited by environmental and edaphic factors, thus, cryptogams may act as pioneers for ecosystem rehabilitation at roadside. Meth...

Humid montane scrublands (HMs) represent one of the least studied ecosystems in Ecuador, which in the last decade have been seriously threatened by the increase in wildfires. Our main objective was to evaluate the effects of wildfire severity on physicochemical soil properties in the HMs of southern Ecuador. For this purpose, fire severity was meas...

Roadsides are common ecosystems worldwide, with specific environmental characteristics and multiple effects on plant diversity. As such, they represent examples of highly dynamic anthropogenic ecosystems. Our objective was to assess patterns of vascular species diversity in response to elevation and soil characteristics on a roadside in the Andean...

La dinámica de degradación de la lignina y la celulosa se analizó mediante un experimento de biodegradación en estado sólido, usando residuos de la extracción de aceite esencial del árbol de Palo Santo (Bursera graveolens). Por lo tanto, dos especies nativas de Xylaria spp. y un hongo exótico Trametes versicolor se incubaron en el sustrato gastado...

Tropical ecosystems are under increasing pressure from changes in land use (Ch-LUs). These changes signifi cantly alter the quality/health of the soil, thus minimizing the possibilities for further development and human well-being. This occurs in the buffer zone of the Podocarpus National Park (PNP), where the majority of the population has recentl...

Las criptógamas terrestres (briófitos y líquenes) son de los primeros colonizadores de zonas alteradas, por lo que pueden ser considerados como una alternativa de restauración de áreas de compleja regeneración como los taludes de las carreteras.

Biodegradation of Residues from the Palo Santo (Bursera graveolens) Essential Oil Extraction and Their Potential for Enzyme Production Using Native Xylaria Fungi from Southern Ecuador. The degradation dynamics of lignin and cellulose were analyzed by means of a solid-state biodegradation experiment, using residues from the essential oil extraction...

The degradation dynamics of lignin and cellulose were analyzed by means of a solid state biodegradation experiment, using residues from the essential oil extraction of the Palo Santo tree (Bursera graveolens). As such, two native Xylaria spp. and an exotic mushroom Trametes versicolor were incubated on the spent substrate (Residues of B. Graveolens...