RESEARCH

Multiple-purposes Land Mapping and Resources

Inventory
SILVIA DIANA MATTEUCCI
Universidad Nacional Experimental Francisco de Miranda
Coro, Venezuela

AiDA COLMA
Universidad Nacional Experimental Francisco de Miranda
Coro, Venezuela

LAURA PLA*
Escuela de Postgrado
Facultad de Agronomia, UCV
Maracay, Venezuela

ABSTRACT / A land classification and resources inventory of

Falc6n State was underiaken with the aim of gathering baseline information to help in development planning. The study

FalcOn State, in northwestern Venezuela, comprises

24,750 km2 of a mosaic of landscapes whose intricacy is
due to the extreme variations in relief and topography
and to the history of human occupation. An inventory of
land types and natural resources was required to serve as
a basis for land-use planning at the state level. Because
there was scarce and scattered previous information, a
reduced research team, an intricately dissected landscape,
availability of fairly recent photoeoverage and good
cartographic sheets at scale 1/100,000, and the need to
give an answer in a short time, a landscape approach
(Mabbutt 1968) was selected.
The integrated approach, introduced by Christian
and Stewart (1953), and applied since then to various
situations (UNESCO 1968, Stewart 1968, FAO 1976,
Jurdant and others 1974, Beckett and others 1972) has
proved adequate for the study of undeveloped regions.
The method is based on the concept that it is possible to
identify recurring land-units of similar genesis, characterized by distinctive topography, vegetation, and soils.
These land-units can be assembled in land systems on the
basis of their geographic and genetic relationships
(Christian 1958). The correlations between topography,
vegetation, and soils arise from a long history of land-

area, located in northwestern Venezuela, comprises an ecologically diverse region, due both to its varied geomorphology
and to its history of human occupation. A landscape approach
was used. Qn the basis of photointerpretation, examination of
existing literature, and field work, uniform land units (physiognomic units) were delineated and described in terms of landform, soil, vegetation, drainage pattern, and climate. These
were grouped in homogeneous units (HU) on the basis of their
potential natural vegetation through the delimitation of climax
complexes. The last hierarchy, the land systems, comprise the
geomorphogenetically related HU. The results are presented
at different levels of generalization and integration, in verbal
and cartographic descriptions, and they are stored in standardized formats to ensure ease of comprehension and handling and to meet different needs. This report describes the
methods employed for the survey and data presentation, and
discusses its applicability and limitations.

scape formation (Christian 1952). In regions in which

human activity has partially changed the natural vegetation, land-units can be assigned to the correct category by
extrapolation of natural vegetation remnants to cultivated neighbouring segments of similar landform, soils
and relationships to other landforms (Christian 1958). In
regions with a long history of human occupation, the
patterns that result from land use may be correlated with
landform and soils. In such cases, recognition of landunits and land systems is done through the identification
of those patterns (Christian and Stewart 1968, Satyanarayan and Dhruvanarayan 1968).
Falc6n State is in an intermediate situation, in which
land use has been extensive but recent. Thus, it is not
imprinted in the landscape. Shifting agriculture has
caused a gamut of seral stages, and has been so intense
and inadequate to natural environmental conditions, that
natural vegetation remnants are almost absent. Accordingly, the basic methodology was modified to meet the
local conditions and needs.
This article describes the methods employed to obtain
a hierarchical classification of the land and a natural
resources inventory, it shows examples of the formats
used for presentation of results, and it discusses the
applicability and limitations of the results obtained.

KEY WORDS: Land classification; Topography; Natural resources

inventory

The Study Area

*Present address: UniversidadNacional ExperimentalFrancisco de

Miranda, Coro,Venezuela.

Falc6n State is located in northwestern Venezuela,

between latitudes 10o18 ' and 12o13 ' N, and longitudes

EnvironmentalManagement Vol. 9, No. 3, pp. 231-242

9 1985 Springer-VerlagNew York Inc.

232

s.O. Matteucciand others

70=009

........

" ~

FALCON STATE, VENEZUELA

'~' / ,,'P~AGUA,*'/

,,._..,,_.~---~.

E'S'E22R,.,ME.

"

I.,,.#//A////!, //: /

KM

~
.

SEMIARID ZONE

[----'7 SUBHUMIO ZONE

.~,.. LIMIT between ZONES

LIMIT between PROVINCES

Figure l. Physiographic provinces and climatic zones in Falc6n State, Venezuela.

68~
and 71~
W. Topographic diversity results in
heterogeneous hydrological conditions and in a mosaic of
landscapes arranged in a parallel pattern in an E N E WSW direction. Five physiographic provinces occupy
the territory: the Coastal Plains, the Coastal Piedmont,
Falc6n Ranges, the Central Valleys, and the Eastern
Maritime Valleys (Figure 1).

Geologyand Geomorphology
Most of Falc6n's territory is underlain by Tertiary
sediments, which outcrop in the uplands. Several episodes of continental and marine deposition in the geosyncline, which occupied most of the study area, produced
interbedded shales and sandstones, with layers of conglomerate and limestone. Falc6n Ranges started uplifting
in the Lower Miocene, and tectonic mo~,ements continued up to the end of the Pliocene. The lowlands are
overlain by Quaternary deposits.
The Coastal Plains Province comprises the Paraguana
Peninsula, the isthmus, and the alluvial plains to the west
of these. Relief is low and even. The highest elevation
corresponds to an isolated hill (815 m) in the peninsula.
The shore, subjected to the trade winds from the ENE, is
overlain by recent sand deposits, in segments of beaches or
of dunes. The rivers, which traverse the plain s from south

to north, are intermittent and carry flash floods with

suspended sediments in the rainy season.
The Piedmont Province constitutes a belt of transitional topography, with erosional and depositional landforms, located between the coastal plains and the mountain ranges. Its elevation goes from 100 m to 400 m
toward its southern border. It consists mainly of a
succession of tilted fault block ridges that stretch parallel
tO the mountain ranges and are formed by interbedded
sandstone and shale.
The Falc6n Ranges Province occupies 44% of the
study area and encompasses three parallel ridges separated by wide valleys. The northern and medium ridges
are divided into three main mountain masses by gorges
and valleys through which inner rivers flow northward
and discharge into the Venezuelan Gulf. The slopes are
steep and the relief is great, formed by knife-edged
divides and V-shaped ravines. The elevation ranges from
200 to 1500 m (800 m on the average). To the east, some
mountain remnants are found within the Eastern Maritime Valleys Province. On top of these remnants, as well
as on the easterly mountain mass of the northerly ridge,
karst landscapes have developed. The thick limestone
masses reach a height of up to 350 m of exposed rocks.
The Central Valleys Province encompasses the syncli-

Land Mapping and Resources Inventory

Table 1.

233

Field questionnaire, a
Date:
Aerial photo no.:
Cartographic sheet no.:

Nearest settlement: (Name)

UFI no.:
Questionnaire no.:

A) Physical environment
Slope:
Erosion:
Microtopography:
Rockiness class:
Type of fragments:
Land use
type:
degree:

Altitude:
Soil texture:
Landform:
External drainage:
Stoniness class:
Soil color:
Water sources:
Litter coverage: %

B) Vegetation structure
Growth form

C) Flora
Species

Height (x) % Cover

xmax
xmin
% Cover

Periodicity

Spatial pattern

Leaf
Texture Size Shape

Phenological stage

Thorniness

Growth form

aEach of the four parts (data on location; physical environmental attributes; vegetation structure, flora) goes on a separate sheet. The ranks and
classes for the physical parameters are shown in Table 2. Growth-form cover is assessed according to Fosberg's scale (Fosberg 1967); for spedes
cover the Braun-Blanquet scale was modified to include the intermediate classes 6%-15% and 16%-25% cover. 2, = average growth-form height;
xmax and xmin refer to maximum and minimum heights of the green mass.

nal valleys between the mountain ranges. Topographic

relief is low and mostly plain or undulating, except for
some low foothills and elongated, narrow buttes. Rivers
are intermittent and dried water courses are overlain by
salt deposits from the gypsiferous shales of the neighbouring highlands.
T h e Eastern Maritime Valleys Province comprises
the basins of the four main rivers that flow to the east and
north from the Falc6n Ranges and discharge into the
Caribbean Sea. T h e basins are limited by low divides
formed by undulating high plains or mountain remnants.
T h e elevation goes from 300 m at the foothills to 0 m on
the shoreline. Slopes are mild to null, and the plains near
the coast become temporarily or permanently flooded at
places.
Climate
T h e study area, subjected to surface trade winds from
the Caribbean Sea, presents a local climatic a n o m a l y
(Lahey 1973). At this latitude, in such a marine location,
abundant precipitation would be expected. However, the
coastal fringe has a dry climate with limited and erratic
rainfall, except for the short sections of N-S-oriented
continental shorelines.
On the mountain ranges, orographic precipitation is
produced, with rain shadows on the lee sides of the
ridges. Rainfall is heavier, as well, in those valleys
opened to the E N E . T h e summits are subjected to daily

cloudiness. Rainfall occurs as heavy showers within short

periods of time.
On the coastal plain, mean annual temperature is of
28~ with only 1 ~176 variation over the year, although
daily temperature varies an average of 10~
T w o climatic zones can be delimited on the basis of
precipitation to potential evapotranspiration ratio. T h e
semiarid zone, with a ratio from 2 to 4, comprises the
Coastal Plains, the Coastal Piedmont, and the Central
Valleys. Mean annual rainfall ranges from 170 m m to
654 mm. Climate is demarcated into two seasons; the
rainy season, by the end of the year, lasts from one to two
months. T h e subhumid zone encompasses the Falcon
Ranges and the Eastern Maritime Valleys. Precipitation
to evapotranspiration ratio ranges from 1 to 2. M e a n
annual precipitation is from 600 m m to 1700 ram.
Rainfall is distributed in one or two rainy seasons.
An arid zone on the coastal fringe and a humid one on
the mountain summits probably exist, but there are not
enough meteorological records to confirm these observations. Climatic pattern, as in m a n y mountainous regions,
is very variable within short distances and largely dependent on topography.
Land Use
T h e aboriginal population that inhabited the study
area practiced agriculture under irrigation; however, it
probably was not until the arrival of Europeans that the

234

Table 2.

s.D. Matteucci and others

Ranksand classes for the physical environmental parameters.

M

A~itude(m)

3
1

3 4"x~-."5

3 2,s
4

=H

0-50
51-100
101-200
201-400
401-800
801-1600

1
2
3
4
5
6

1
Landform = R

Plain
Valley
Hill
Monocline

ES

Type of fragments = F

EE

None
Up to 7.5 cm diameter
7.5 to 25 cm diameter
Larger than 25 cm diameter
1+2
3+2
1+2+3

EC
Stoniness = P

No stones or very few

Stones covering less than 0.1% of the surface
Stones cover 0.1%-3% of the surface
Stones cover 3%-15% of the surface
Stones cover 15%-90% of the surface
Paved with stones

0
1
2
3
4
5

0
1
2
3
4
5
6

Microtopography = M

Rockiness = A

No rock outcrops
Outcrops cover 2%-10% of the surface
Outcrops cover 10%-25% of the surface
Outcrops cover 25%-50% of the surface
Outcrops cover 50%-90% of the surface
A rock outcrop

Even
Dunes
Undulating
Gullied
Mounds

0
1
2
3
4
5

Erosion

Wind = EE; sheet = EL;

furrow = ES; gully = EC
None
Slight
Moderate
Severe

1
2
3
4

Runoff = D

0
1
2
3

Medium
Slow
Rapid
Very slow
Ponded
Very rapid

stress on the environment became significant. European

occupancy in South America occurred along the coasts of
what is now Falc6n State, during the early 1500s.
T h o u g h initially the purpose was to settle in the region,
and livestock was introduced, it soon became a transient
site for exploitive groups. Several attempts at settlement
failed for various reasons, including pirate assaults, and
these failures partly account for the lack of an established
agriculture. Nevertheless, the original vegetation has
been cleared perhaps several times.
Agriculture has dwindled again since about 1940 with
the development of the petroleum industry, which caused
people to abandon the farms in the search of higher
economic gain. As a consequence, large tracts of land
became desertified.

1
2
3
4
5

Slope (%) = S

0
1
2
3
4
5

0-2
2-6
6-13
13-25
25-55
>55

1
2
3

4
5
6

At the present time, the main activity in the semiarid

zone is dryland farming, mostly goat herding at the
expenses of thorn woodland and thorn scrub, without
any pastural management. This causes heavy browsing
pressures around the villages. Subsistence shifting agriculture is also practiced. Wood gathering for fuel is
concentrated near the villages, which are small and
scattered. All resources are used to support the family,
which in general is otherwise unemployed. Standard of
living is low, and middlemen profit from the lack of
managerial techniques. T h e situation is somewhat different around the capital city of Coro, where commercial
horticultural crops are produced under irrigation. In
most of the zone, however, goats are the sole source of
food and income.

Land Mapping and Resources Inventory

,~

'

FALCON

235

STATE, VENEZUELA

"Photocoverage employed in the survey

Figure 2. Photocoverage employed in

the delimitation of the photointerpretation units.
In the subhumid lowlands, pasturelands occupy the
largest areal extent. Burning to replace forest with grass
is extensively practiced. Some management techniques
are applied, but most of the time these are not adapted to
the natural conditions. On th.e sandy shores along the east
coast there are coconut plantations, and some horticultural crops are grown in scattered places near the main
roads. In the humid uplands, coffee plantations have long
been abandoned, and only subsistence agriculture is
practiced.

Materials and Methods

Survey Planning Stage
To determine the best way to organize the survey and
to choose the most relevant environmental factors and
parameters, the available literature was assessed. Concurrently, a field trip through the main roads was done to
recognize the general nature of the landscape and to
check some of the previously collected information.
The study area has been greatly modified by man's
activity, and it showed various degrees of erosion and
recovery. Many of the vegetation types now present are
far removed from natural vegetation and they do not
represent site potential. It was postulated that this situation would obscure the correlations between vegetation,
landform, and soils, and that vegetation units would be
smaller than landform units.
There was some information available, but it had
been obtained at different scales and with various methods, and usually it covered restricted portions of the study
area. Moreover, most of the data did not relate to the
present land condition. Thus, the existing information
was inadequate to appreciate properly the various

=m====
~0 20 30

No photocoverage available

10 0

resources of the region as a whole. It became necessary to

undertake a simultaneous study of vegetation and environment.
The main physiographic provinces and climatic zones
were delineated (Figure 1), and a preliminary description was made. The minimum area to be classified and
plotted was set at 0.25 km 2. A field questionnaire (Table
1) was prepared, tested along a N-S transect, and
adjusted as necessary. Classes and ranks for the parameters used are shown in Table 2. Data collection took into
account the possibility of applying a parametric
approach later.
Photointerpretation
Vertical, panchromatic, 1/60,000 to 1/25,000 scale
aerial photographs dated from 1960 to 1977 (Figure 2)
were interpreted stereoscopically. Land segments were
delineated on the basis of homogeneous image signatures
including a combination of tone, pattern, and texture.
Thus, the boundaries do not necessarily coincide with
geomorphic divisions or specific landforms; they may
reflect major changes in vegetation structure.
Deductive interpretation was employed, and a
description of each unit on the basis of landform, topography, vegetation structure, drainage pattern, land use,
and roads was prepared. This description was later
discussed and modified as necessary during ground survey. The results were compiled on transparent xerox
copies of 1/100,000 scale topographic sheets by means of
an optical pantograph.
The 556 photointerpretation units obtained were
numbered, and sample sites were selected. Since the aim
of the survey was to gather information regarding the
natural resources without an a priori decision about the

236

s.D. Matteucci and others

P.U.N~ 144
Name: Alto de Mujica

District: Z a m o r a
Location: 11~ , N - 6 9 ~
Area: 90.63 km 2
No. of UFIs: 1
Altitude: 200 m
Accessibility: easy

'W

27.7~ 474 rnm

Puerto Cumarebo (13 m)

17

lOO

f
8o

3C

Climatic zone: subhumid

Climate:
Meteorological station: Puerto Cumarebo
Physiographic province: Coastal Piedmont
Soil: orthid
Soil survey: semidetailed; COPLANARH, 1975
Water sources: no
Hydrological studies: no
Drainage pattern: parallel

L"-:

G
20

.20

10-

'"~' M k

M .; ']

~ 6

N 6

Vegetation structure: open semideciduous scrub

Dominance type: Bourreria cumanensis, Phyllostylon rhamnoides,

Bulnesia arborea
Land use: pastoralism (goats raising without management practises),
firewood gathering
Degree of land use: slightly transformed

economic activity to be developed, collection of field data

was planned for all those units that differed in one or
more of the attributes employed to describe it. Extrapolations to supposedly similar units were not accomplished
without confirmatory ground observations.
Field Work

A weekly itinerary was planned every fortnight, so

that field data collected during one week could be
systematized, the photointerpretation revised, and
boundaries corrected as necessary during the next week.
in the field, each unit was traversed as far as' roads
permitted, in order to verify its uniformity and the
general consistency between its description and field
conditions. Details not visible on the aerial photo were
added to the descriptions, which were modified as necessary. On the chosen sites, the questionnaire was
answered after examination of the site and discussions
between the team members. Ground photographs were
taken to supplement descriptions. Plant samples were
taken for later identification when they were not recog-

Figure 3. Example of ecogram of a physiognomie unit. The

references of symbols employed in the eeogram, as well as the
ranks and classes of the parameters, are shown in Table 2.

nized on the field. During traveling, boundaries between

units were checked and changed as necessary on the
photographs and sheets. There was more boundary
checking in the east, where photocoverage was outdated.
Interpretation of Field Data and Compilation of Maps

The field investigations confirmed what had been

hypothesized during the first stage, that is, that the
photointerpretation units were associated with the landforms and present vegetation structure, as determined by
differences in past and present land-use practices. These
units represented a series of seral stages, from seminatural ecosystems to fully transformed systems. In the
former, basic ecosystem components and their interrelations are not yet damaged, though there has been some
use of resources, mainly vegetation; they comprise land
tracts in which selective wood gathering or browsing on
natural vegetation has occurred. The transformed systems comprise land segments where the natural ecosystem has been ehangedby total deforestation for cultivation or for cattle raising, or for urban or industrial

Land Mapping and Resources Inventory

Table 3.

237

Exampleof the format employed for the description of a land system.

Land system: Alineaci6n Septentrional Oriental (X)

Area: 1190 km2
Elevation: 20-500 m
Slope: 2%-25%
Geology and geomorphology: undulating plains, underlain by Tertiary interbedded shales and sandstone, overlain by Quaternary alluvial deposits; with scattered rounded low hills underlain by marl with thick marine limestone strata outcropping in the summit
Climate: 1000-1192 mm of annual average precipitation; one or two rainy seasons.lasting 8 months, with peaks in July and
December; short dry spell at the beginning of the year
Drainage pattern: radial on the hills, trellis to pinnated
The system comprises two homogeneousunits (HU):
HU

Landform

Soils

Vegetation

Land use

Xa

Undulating plains

Fine-textured saline s o i l s

Deciduous seasonal forest;

dominance type: Z.

Cattle raising on deforested lands

pterota, Machaerium
spp., Eugenia spp.
Xb

Low hills

Red latheritic on the

slopes; deep organic on
the summits

Cloud forest on the s u m mits; dominance type:

Eugenia spp.

Subsistence farming

Human population is concentrated along the main road, which traverses the system in the E-W direction; human density is
less than 0.1 person/ha; physiographic units: 141,149, 148, 162, 163, I64; I65, 167-P, 200, 20I-P

development. Intermediate stages comprise both units

where woodcutting or goat browsing has been more
intensive, and long-abandoned fields in different stages of
secondary succession, including areas where excessive
grazing or untimely deforestation have resulted in severe
erosion and have caused a significant productive loss.
Relict natural vegetation is almost nonexistent. Thus,
differences between photointerpretation units are due to
landform and present condition of vegetation as well as tO
the direction of succession changes, which can be either
toward recovery or to desertification. The starting stage
of secondary succession and the rate and direction of
change are important factors to be considered in a
tropical zone with the climatic and topographic conditions prevailing in Falc6n, since changes in habitat can be
faster than vegetation recovery, thus precluding restoration toward the natural vegetation type. In such a case, a
different stable community may replace the natural
vegetation type in a progressive secondary succession, or
desertification may occur if succession is regressive.'
All those photointerpretation units that were found to
be similar after field inspection and that were stationed
in the same physiographic province were combined in a
physiognomic unit (PU), and described in terms of
landform, geology, climate, physical habitat conditions,
and present vegetation structure and dominance type.
The 269 physiognomie units thus obtained were mapped
at 1/250,000 scale.
The potential natural vegetation (Mueller-Dombois

and Ellenberg 1974, Westhoff and Van der Maarel

1978) was used as a criterion to obtain the homogeneous
units (HU). A land segment potential natural vegetation
was judged on the basis of stratification and complexity,
diversity of growth forms, composition of woody species,
and presumed direction of succession. Climax complexes
(Whittaker 1978) were identified, and contiguous communities in similar habitat types that belonged to the
same complex were combined.
The homogeneous units were gathered in systems, on
the basis of the prevailing landform and of the geologic
history. The physiognomic units, homogeneous units,
and land systems areas were measured on the map.

Results
The hierarchical classification produced 269 physiognomie units, grouped in 38 homogeneous units and 15
systems. The physiognomic units are mapped at 1/
250,000 scale, and identified by numbers and the name of
a settlement within it. The homogeneous units and the
systems are mapped at a 1/1,000,000 scale. The latter
are named after their geographical position and identified by a roman number, and the former are identified by
the system's roman number followed by a letter.
In order that the information can meet different needs,
it is presented at various levels of integration and generalization. Thematic maps and reports are presented for

238

Table 4.

s.D. Matteucci and others

Summaryof the main characteristics of Falc6n State land systems, a

System
and
area

Geology

2260 km 2

Quaternary alluvial deposits

Floodplain, parallel streamlines

Interbedded
sandstone and
shale, Miocene to Pliocene
Same as I

Dissected coastal plain; radial and trellis drainage

Interbedded
sandstone and
shale Miocene to Pliocene

Tilted faultblock ridges,

some plains &
hills; trellis
drainage

Eocene to Miocenesandstones and

conglomerate

Mountains bordered by low

hills, trellis
and pinnate
drainage

Eocene to Pliocene interbedded sandstone

and shale
Heterogeneous:
same as V,
sandstone and
conglomerate,
marine limestone
Same as VII

Same as V

II
550 km 2

III
1130 km 2

IV
1360 km z

V
1440 km 2

VI
1300 km 2

VII
4230 km 2

VIII
1070 km 2
IX
590 km 2

Tertiary gypsipherous
shales

Landform
drainage
pattern

Major soils
Medium textured, locally
clayey and
saline. Camborthids, Torriorthents,
Pateargids,
Haplargids
Shallow, stony,
saline. Orthents, Orthids, Argids

Major
vegetation
type
From thorn
woodland to
deciduous
seasonal forest in a N - S
gradient

Altitude
and
slope
0-160 m
0%-4%

Present
land use
Goat herding on
natural vegetation to the
N; cattle on
seeded pasture to the S

Thorn scrub
and thorn
woodland

0-160 m
0%-6%

Unused marginal lands;

goat herding

Medium
textured
Orthents,
Orthids,
Camborthids,
Salorthids,
Haplargids,
Psamments
Shallow lithic
soils, rock
outcrops. Orthents, Orthids, Argids,
Camborthids
Shallow, lithie
on eroded
slopes; organic on the
summits; reddish brown
elsewhere.
Orthents, Orthids, Argids,
Tropepts, Ustalfs
Same as V

Thorn woodland

0-100 m
0%-4%

Horticultural
crops under
irrigation

Thorn woodland

160-500 m
0%-25%

Goat herding on
natural vegetation, subsistencefarming

Deciduous seasonal forest;

cloud forest

200-800 m
6%-13%

Cattle raising,
subsistence
farming

Deciduous seasonal forest

200-800 m
15%-55%

Same as V,
small undulating upland
plains

Same as V;
limestone outcrops, same as
V and Rendolls, Ustolls

Same as V; deforested for

pasture seeding

400-1200 m
2%-40%

Cattle raising to
the W; goat
herding on
rangelands
Cattle raising,
subsistence
farming;
sugarcane

Mountains and
hills; complex
slopes
Mountains, bordered by low
foothills; radial and trellis drainage

Same as VII

Same as V

300-1500 m
15%-55%

Subsistence
~rming

Shallow lithic
soils with
rock outcrops;
red clayey.
Orthents,
Tropepts, Ustalfs, Ustults,
Orthids, Usterts

Pasture, remnants of deciduous seasonal forest

160-800 m

Cattle raising

Same as I, sand
dunes to tlae
coast

6%-25%

239

Land Mapping and Resources Inventory

Table 4.

Continued.

System
and
area
X
1190 km2

XI
1310 km 2

Geology

Landform
drainage
pattern

Eocene to Pliocene interbedded shale and

sandstone;
marl

Undulating
plains with
scattered low
hills; radial
and pinnate
drainage

Quaternary alluvial deposits

in tectonic basin

Gently undulating plains, localized seasonal and

permanent
flooding; dendritic to parallel drainage
Flat lowlands,
seasonal and
permanent
flooding, bordered by low
hills; parallel
or dendritic
Undulating
plains, low
foothills and
elongated
buttes; Dendritic and
pinnate
drainage
Intermountain
valleys;
featherlike
drainage
Low, flat plains
with isolated
hills; dendritic very
sparse to diffuse drainage

XII
3240 km z

Same as XI

xIiI
1470 kmz

Eocene to Miocene interbedded sandstone

and shale

XIV
680 km 2

Quaternary deposits

XV
2530 km z

Upper Cretaceous to Paleocene igneous rocks,

Tertiary deposits

Major soils
Fine textured,
saline,
patches of
reddish soils.
Orthents,
Tropepts, Ustalfs, Ustults,
Camborthids,
Chromustens, Torriorthents
Same as X and
Ustifluvents,
Argids, Orthids, Usterts,
Ustolls

Same as X

Shallow, lithic
or fine textured overlain
by salt deposits in dried
water courses.
Orthents, Orthids, Argids
Medium to fine
textured. Orthents, O r thids, Argids
Very heterogenous, medium
to fine textured. Torriorthents,
Torripsamments, Camborthids, Aquents, Zorrerts, Orthids,
Orthents

Major
vegetation
type
Pasture, patches
of deciduous
seasonal for-

Altitude
and
slope

Present
land use

20-500 m
2%-25%

Cattle raising,
subsistance
farming

0-160
0%-1%

Cattle raising

est

Same as X,

patches of deciduous seasonal forest

with upper
layer of sclerophyllus
trees
Same as XI

Thorn scrub
and thorn
woodland

Pasture, deciduous seasonal

forest, gallery
forest
Thorn scrub,
thorn woodland, dry evergreen bushland

80-300 m
0.1%- 16%

Cattle raising,
permanent
crops (coconut)

80-200 m
2%-6%

Goat herding on
natural vegeration

375-600 m
6%- 13%

Cattle raising,
goat herding
on natural regetation
Goat herding on
natural vegetation, subsistence farming, annual
crops

0-100 m
(830 m)
0%-1%

aThe names of the systemsare given in the legend of Figure 4.

major environmental factors: climate, geology and geomorphology, vegetation, soils, and hydrology.
Each physiognomic unit is described on a standardized format or ecogram, as shown in F i g u r e 3. T h e
polygonal figure shows the physical nature of the habitat,

and was constructed in the fashion of the Lutz phytographs (Shimwell 1971). Each axis represents a physical
parameter. T h e parameters were r a n k e d in such a way
that the higher the value, the more limiting was the
condition. T h e lowest value for each p a r a m e t e r lies on

240

s.o. Matteucci and others

700009

LAND SYSTEMS IN FALCON STATE

",,

-"

69~ '

69000,

68~
t

71000 ,

I
11o30,

70~30'

Villa
110009

KM

,-~ Boundary between systems

,"" Boundary between homogeneousunits

1'0 0 10 20 30

Figure 4. Land systems and homogeneous units (HU) in Falc6n State. Land systems are indicated with roman numbers and HUs
with letters:/, Planicie Aluvial Occidental; II, Sureo de Urumaco; III, Planicie Aluvial Mitare-Seeo; IV, Piedemonte Costero; V,
Serran[a Bariro-Pedregal; 111, Alineaci6n Central Occidental; VII, Alineaci6n Meridional; VIII, Serranla de San Luis; IX,
Alineaci6n Central Oriental; X, Alineaei6n Septentrional Oriental; XI, Cuenea del Hueque; XII, Valles Mar~timos; XIII, Sistema
de Depresiones; )(IV, Valles Intermontanos; XV, Peninsula de Paraguan~.
the perimeter, and the values increase centripetally.
Thus, the polygon shape and size give a visual indication
of the physical condition of the land. The climatic
diagram follows Gaussen's design (Walter and others
1975); it corresponds to the station in the unit or to the
nearest station in a similar topographic position. Vegetation structure is shown in a layer diagram.
In a final report, a general description of each system
is given, as shown in the example of Table 3. Ground
photographs and stereograms are added to illustrate
major features. The distribution of the systems and
homogeneous units is presented in the map (Figure 4). A
summary of the main characteristics of the 15 land
systems is given in Table 4.

Discussion
Land surveys endeavour to divide a region into comprehensive units. If the task is carried out on the basis of
sound ecological principles, the classification approaches
a natural system with standardized attributes. Hence, the

results can be used for various purposes. Uniform land

tracts can be assessed and classified in terms of their
suitability for one or more forms of land use or for nature
conservation, taking into account those attributes relevant for the purpose at hand. The classification can also
serve as a framework for the extrapolation of the results
of site research, or for the choice of sites or resources on
the basis of a global appreciation.
Even though parametric methods for land classification that permit extensive statistical treatment and computerized analysis of data are now available, the landscape approach allows quick identification of uniform
segments at various levels of generalization, an d provides
a framework for objective data gathering. The use of a
"poor man's approach," in which conventional data
collection and analysis, as required for a parametric
method, are replaced as far as possible by a maximum of
less formal observations, is of great practical value as a
first approximation to a regional land survey of large
regions. In some situations, it is the only applicable
approach. Limitations imposed on the results can be

Land Mapping and Resources Inventory

overcome by further study of selected land tracts, once

those with less potential for the desired purpose are
eliminated. Gaps of knowledge with reference to biological and physical attributes, identified in the course of the
first approximation, can be filled, as detailed studies are
undertaken in the chosen land units. At this stage, the
assumed degree of uniformity in landform, geology, soil,
and vegetation within a certain land category should be
subjected to rigorous correlation tests, in order to verify
the basic assumptions. Thus, the system not only allows
the collection of additional data, but it also permits the
improvement of the model through an iterative process.
There is a discussion over terminology, as regards the
definition of different categories of land-units. This is
due to the fact that the names proposed by the Australian
researchers are used with various connotations by different authors. In order to avoid adding to the confusion,
we preferred to give other names to our land-units.
However, the physiognomic unit is equivalent to the land
facet as defined by Perrin and Mitchell (cited in Cooke
1977) as "one or more land elements grouped for practical purposes; part of a landscape which is reasonably
homogeneous and fairly distinct from surrounding terrain." From the practical point of view, these units would
respond uniformly to a certain management practice;
they may constitute the basis for the delimitation and
identification of agroecosystems. The homogeneous units
represent an intermediate category between CSIRO's
land-unit and land system. They were introduced to
account for situations in which, within a land system,
there exist units evolving towards recovery and units
suffering a desertification process; thus, though their
landform and soils do not differ greatly at the present
moment, they differ in their potential natural vegetation.
Similar responses to management practices cannot be
expected. Land systems, described in terms of major
landform and geologic history, are equivalent to CSIRO's complex land systems (Christian and Stewart

1968).
In this survey, scant regard was given to the human
factor. Following FAO's recommendation (FAO 1976)
and in view of the extension and complexity of the area,
the social analysis was left for a future stage in the survey
of selected zones. The results of the survey allow for the
choice of promising sites and resources on the basis of the
physical and biotic characteristics only. The final decision requires consideration of the cultural and economic
components of the system.

Acknowledgments
The research reported herein was supported by the
Research and Development Convention (National

241

Research Council, Venezuelan Science Research Institute, University Institute of Technology of Coro, Central
University of Venezuela, National University Francisco
de Miranda). The preparation of the manuscript was
financed by the National Research Council of Venezuela.

Literature Cited
Beckett, P. H. T., R. Webster, O. M. McNeil and C. W.
Mitchell. 1972. Terrain evaluation by means of a data bank.
Geographical Journal 138:430-456.
Christian, C. S. 1952. Regional land surveys. Journal of the
Australian Institute of Agricultural Sciences 18:140-146.
Christian, C. S. 1958. The concepts of land units and land
systems. Proceedings of the Ninth Pacific Science Congress
20:74-81.
Christian, C. S., and G. A. Stewart. 1953. General report on
survey of Katherine-Darwin Region, 1946. CSIRO Australian Land Research Series, no. 1.
Christian, C. S., and G. A. Stewart. 1968. Methodology of
integrated surveys. Pages 233-280 in Aerial surveys and
integrated studies. Proceedings of the Toulouse Conference.
UNESCO, Paris.
Cooke, R. U. 1977. Applied geomorphological studies in
deserts: a review of examples. Pages 183-225 in J. R. Hails
(ed.), Applied geomorphology. Elsevier, New York.
COPLANARH. 1975. Inventario Nacional de Tierras. MiniSterio de Agricultura y Cr~a, Caracas, Venezuela.
FAO. 1976. Cadre pour l'&aluation des sols. Bulletin Pedologique no. 32. Organisation des Nations Unies pour l'alimentation et l'agriculture, Rome.
Fosberg, F. R. 1967. Classification of vegetation for general
purposes. Pages 73-120 in G. F. Peterken (ed.), Guide to
check sheet for IBP areas. IBP handbook no. 4. Blackwell,
Oxford.
Jurdant, M., V. Gerardin, and L. J. B~lair. 1974. Ecological
land survey, the biophysical basis of land-use planning.
Pages 140-143 in Structure, function and management of
ecosystems. Proceedings of the First International Congress
of Ecology, The Hague, 1974. Centre for Agricultural
Publishing and Documentation, Wageningen, The Netherlands.
Lahey, J. F. 1973. On the origin of the dry climate in northern
South America and the southern Caribbean. Pp. 75-90 in
D . H. K. Amiran and A. W. Wilson (eds.), Coastal deserts:
their natural and human environments. University of Arizona Press, Tucson.
Mabbutt, J. A. 1968. Review of concepts of land evaluation.
pages 11-28 in G. A. Stewart (ed.), Land evaluation.
Macmillan, Victoria, Australia.
Mueller-Dombois, D., and H. Ellenberg. 1974. Aims and
methods of vegetation ecology. John Wiley and Sons, New
York.
Satyanarayan, Y., and V. V. Dhruvanarayan. 1968. Use of
aerial photographs in surveying ground water and vegetation
resources in the arid zone of India. pages 505-508 in Aerial

242

s.D. Matteucci and others

surveys and integrated studies. Proceedings of the Toulouse

Conference. UNESCO, Paris.
Shimwell, D. W. 1971. The description and classification of
vegetation. Sidgwick and Jackson, London.
Stewart, G. A. (ed.). 1968. Land evaluation. Macmillan,
Australia. Victoria,
UNESCO (ed.). 1968. Aerial surveys and integrated studies.
Proceedings of the Toulouse Conference. UNESCO, Paris.
Walter, H., E. Harnickell, and D. Mueller-Dombois. 1975.
Climate diagram maps of the individual continents and the
ecological climatic regions of the earth. Springer-Verlag,
New York.
Westhoff, V., and E. van der Maarel. 1978. The BraunBlanquet approach. Pages 287-399 in R. H. Whittaker
(ed.), Classification of plant communities. Dr. W. Junk, The
Hague.
Whittaker, R. H. 1978. Dominance=types. Pages 65-79 in
R. H. Whittaker (ed.), Classification of plant communities.
Dr. W. Junk, The Hague.