Abstract

"The limits of alpine vegetation belts have been established mainly based on physiognomic criteria. However, a more objective approach for fixing limits of vegetation belts are methods based on species composition and relative abundance of each species. While these methods are more time consuming, they are more detailed and permit the detection of physical factors affecting the limits of vegetation belts. In this paper we: 1) describe the altitudinal changes of vegetation above timberline, 2) compare vegetation belts defined with physiognomy and two floristic methods (a qualitative one based on altitudinal changes in species composition, and a quantitative one based on changes in dominant species); and 3) detect some environmental factors responsible for the altitudinal distribution of alpine vegetation between 2100 and 3700 masl in the Andes of Santiago, central Chile (33