The floristic composition and natural regeneration under a 7-year-old legume tree plantation (Acacia auriculiformis, A. mangium e Mimosa tenuiflora) was investigated in comparing with a secondary forest 200 m away at Angra dos Reis, RJ. The hillside was divided in 3 parts following the slope. The lower part of the hillside was the nearest to the natural forest remnant. In 12 plots with 200 m² each, 4 of them in each section of the hillside, 699 plants larger then 40 cm height were observed, distributed in 25 families and 50 species. The families with the most individuals were Meliaceae (298), Euphorbiaceae (70), Piperaceae (64) and Lauraceae (41). The families with the most species were Solanaceae (7), Melastomataceae (5) and Myrtaceae (5). None of the legume species introduced in the area had produced natural regeneration. The evolution of natural succession acurred with a gradient in function of the slope and distance of the remnant natural forest. The higher density of individuals and species richness were found in the lowest part of the hillside.
Succession; legume trees; forest rehabilitation
