Tropical Rain Forests

14,000,000 Leading Edge Experts on the ideXlab platform

Scan Science and Technology

Contact Leading Edge Experts & Companies

Scan Science and Technology

Contact Leading Edge Experts & Companies

The Experts below are selected from a list of 360 Experts worldwide ranked by ideXlab platform

Braulio Vilchezalvarado - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.

  • resilience of Tropical Rain Forests tree community reassembly in secondary Forests
    Ecology Letters, 2009
    Co-Authors: Natalia Norden, Robin L Chazdon, Anne Chao, Yihuei Jiang, Braulio Vilchezalvarado
    Abstract:

    Understanding the recovery dynamics of ecosystems presents a major challenge in the human-impacted tropics. We tested whether secondary Forests follow equilibrium or non-equilibrium dynamics by evaluating community reassembly over time, across different successional stages, and among multiple life stages. Based on long-term and static data from six 1-ha plots in NE Costa Rica, we show that secondary Forests are undergoing reassembly of canopy tree and palm species composition through the successful recruitment of seedlings, saplings, and young trees of mature forest species. Such patterns were observed over time within sites and across successional stages. Floristic reassembly in secondary Forests showed a clear convergence with mature forest community composition, supporting an equilibrium model. This resilience stems from three key factors co-occurring locally: high abundance of generalist species in the regional flora, high levels of seed dispersal, and local presence of old-growth forest remnants.

  • resilience of Tropical Rain Forests tree community reassembly in secondary Forests
    Ecology Letters, 2009
    Co-Authors: Natalia Norden, Robin L Chazdon, Anne Chao, Yihuei Jiang, Braulio Vilchezalvarado
    Abstract:

    Understanding the recovery dynamics of ecosystems presents a major challenge in the human-impacted tropics. We tested whether secondary Forests follow equilibrium or non-equilibrium dynamics by evaluating community reassembly over time, across different successional stages, and among multiple life stages. Based on long-term and static data from six 1-ha plots in NE Costa Rica, we show that secondary Forests are undergoing reassembly of canopy tree and palm species composition through the successful recruitment of seedlings, saplings, and young trees of mature forest species. Such patterns were observed over time within sites and across successional stages. Floristic reassembly in secondary Forests showed a clear convergence with mature forest community composition, supporting an equilibrium model. This resilience stems from three key factors co-occurring locally: high abundance of generalist species in the regional flora, high levels of seed dispersal, and local presence of old-growth forest remnants.

Natalia Norden - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.

  • resilience of Tropical Rain Forests tree community reassembly in secondary Forests
    Ecology Letters, 2009
    Co-Authors: Natalia Norden, Robin L Chazdon, Anne Chao, Yihuei Jiang, Braulio Vilchezalvarado
    Abstract:

    Understanding the recovery dynamics of ecosystems presents a major challenge in the human-impacted tropics. We tested whether secondary Forests follow equilibrium or non-equilibrium dynamics by evaluating community reassembly over time, across different successional stages, and among multiple life stages. Based on long-term and static data from six 1-ha plots in NE Costa Rica, we show that secondary Forests are undergoing reassembly of canopy tree and palm species composition through the successful recruitment of seedlings, saplings, and young trees of mature forest species. Such patterns were observed over time within sites and across successional stages. Floristic reassembly in secondary Forests showed a clear convergence with mature forest community composition, supporting an equilibrium model. This resilience stems from three key factors co-occurring locally: high abundance of generalist species in the regional flora, high levels of seed dispersal, and local presence of old-growth forest remnants.

  • resilience of Tropical Rain Forests tree community reassembly in secondary Forests
    Ecology Letters, 2009
    Co-Authors: Natalia Norden, Robin L Chazdon, Anne Chao, Yihuei Jiang, Braulio Vilchezalvarado
    Abstract:

    Understanding the recovery dynamics of ecosystems presents a major challenge in the human-impacted tropics. We tested whether secondary Forests follow equilibrium or non-equilibrium dynamics by evaluating community reassembly over time, across different successional stages, and among multiple life stages. Based on long-term and static data from six 1-ha plots in NE Costa Rica, we show that secondary Forests are undergoing reassembly of canopy tree and palm species composition through the successful recruitment of seedlings, saplings, and young trees of mature forest species. Such patterns were observed over time within sites and across successional stages. Floristic reassembly in secondary Forests showed a clear convergence with mature forest community composition, supporting an equilibrium model. This resilience stems from three key factors co-occurring locally: high abundance of generalist species in the regional flora, high levels of seed dispersal, and local presence of old-growth forest remnants.

Kanehiro Kitayama - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.

  • temperature is a dominant driver of distinct annual seasonality of leaf litter production of equatorial Tropical Rain Forests
    bioRxiv, 2020
    Co-Authors: Kanehiro Kitayama, Masayuki Ushio, Shinichiro Aiba
    Abstract:

    ABSTRACT Intra-annual periodicity of canopy photosynthetic activity and leaf development has been documented in seasonal and weakly-seasonal Tropical Forests in the Amazon and elsewhere. However, vegetative periodicity such as leaf flush and fall in apparently “aseasonal” equatorial Tropical Forests has not been well documented. Moreover, causal drivers of the vegetative periodicity in those Forests have not been identified largely because of the difficulty in performing manipulative experiments targeting whole forest ecosystem dynamics. Here we show a distinct annual seasonality in canopy dynamics using a Fourier analysis with a statistical significance test on the long-term, fortnightly monitored dataset of leaf litterfall in nine evergreen Tropical Rain Forests on Mount Kinabalu, Borneo. Statistically significant annual periodicity occurs across altitudes and soil types in all years irrespective of the year-to-year climatic variability, suggesting that fluctuations in regional climate rather than local micro-climatic, edaphic and/or biotic conditions cause the precise 1-year periodicity. We examine climatic factors that have causative effects on the distinct 1-year periodicity using the spectrum convergent cross mapping that we developed in the present study to distinguish causal relationships from seasonality-driven synchronization. According to the analysis, we find that mean daily air temperature is most strongly, causatively related to the 1-year periodicity of leaf litterfall. However, knowledge on ecophysiolocial and molecular mechanisms underlying temperature-control of Tropical tree growth is limited and further studies are required to understand the detailed mechanisms. (Synthesis) We suggest that intra-annual temperature changes in association with the movement of the interTropical convergence zone cause the distinct annual vegetative periodicity. Because vegetative periodicity can be transmitted to the dynamics of higher trophic levels through a trophic cascade, interactions between vegetative periodicity and daily air temperature, not Rainfall, would more strongly cause changes in the dynamics of equatorial Tropical Rain Forests. Our results show that clear vegetative periodicity (i.e., annual seasonality) can be found in equatorial Tropical Rain Forests under diverse local environments, and that air temperature is a more important factor than the other climate variables in the climate-forest ecosystem interactions.

  • celestially determined annual seasonality of equatorial Tropical Rain Forests
    bioRxiv, 2018
    Co-Authors: Kanehiro Kitayama, Masayuki Ushio, Shinichiro Aiba
    Abstract:

    Annual vegetative periodicity is not well known in equatorial Tropical Rain Forests except for photoperiodically induced or El-Nino-drought induced synchronous flowering/fruiting. The lack of vegetative periodicity such as leaf flush and fall in these Forests has been believed to reflect an "aseasonal" climate. In the present study, we show a distinct annual seasonality in canopy dynamics using a Fourier analysis with a statistical significance test on the long-term, fortnightly monitored dataset of leaf litterfall in nine Bornean evergreen Tropical Rain Forests on Mount Kinabalu. Such periodicity occurs across altitudes and soil types in all years irrespective of the year-to-year climatic variability, suggesting that regional climatic factors rather than local edaphic and/or biotic conditions cause the precise 1-year periodicity. We examine climatic factors that have causative effects on the distinct 1-year periodicity using a newly developed spectrum convergent cross mapping analysis that can distinguish causal relationships from seasonality-driven synchronization. We find that mean daily air temperature is most strongly, causatively related to the 1-year periodicity of leaf litterfall. We suggest that annual temperature changes in association with the movement of the interTropical convergence zone cause the distinct annual vegetative periodicity. Because vegetative periodicity can be transmitted to the dynamics of higher trophic levels through a trophic cascade, interactions between vegetative periodicity and daily air temperature, not Rainfall, would more strongly cause changes in the dynamics of forest ecosystems. Our results show that we need to redefine our concept of equatorial "aseasonal" Tropical Rain Forests, and that air temperature is a more important factor than other climate variables in the climate-forest ecosystem interaction.

  • characteristics of phosphorus fractions in the soils derived from sedimentary and serpentinite rocks in lowland Tropical Rain Forests borneo
    Soil Science and Plant Nutrition, 2018
    Co-Authors: Daiki Yokoyama, Taiki Mori, Rota Wagai, Syuntaro Hiradate, Kanehiro Kitayama
    Abstract:

    ABSTRACTSoil organic phosphorus (P) is an important P source for biota especially in P-limited Forests. Organic P has various chemical formations which differ in bioavailability and these organic P can be degraded by phosphatase enzymes. Here, we report soil P fractions inferred from solution 31P-NMR spectroscopy and soil phosphatase activities of two Tropical Rain Forests on contrasting parent materials; sedimentary and ultramafic igneous (serpentinite) rocks. Compared to the sedimentary soils and previous studies, P fractions of the serpentinite soils have distinctly high proportions of pyrophosphate and scyllo-inositol hexakisphosphate (scyllo-IP6). The accumulation of pyrophosphate and scyllo-IP6 may be related to strong sorptive capacity of iron oxides present in the serpentinite soils, which implies a consequent low P availability in the serpentinite soils. Mean value of soil phosphatase activities was higher in the serpentinite soils than in the sedimentary soils, suggesting that biota in these ser...

  • effects of nitrogen and phosphorus fertilization on the activities of four different classes of fine root and soil phosphatases in bornean Tropical Rain Forests
    Plant and Soil, 2017
    Co-Authors: Daiki Yokoyama, Nobuo Imai, Kanehiro Kitayama
    Abstract:

    Soil hydrolysable P can be a main P source for biota in P-limited Tropical Rain Forests. Soil hydrolysable P occurs in various chemical fractions, including, monoester P, diester P, pyrophosphate and phytate, which need enzymatic hydrolysis into orthophosphate before their assimilation into biota. We examined whether P-limited plants and microbes preferentially hydrolyzed specific fraction of soil hydrolysable P and whether those in different successional stages had different abilities to hydrolyze various soil hydrolysable P. We measured four classes of phosphatase (phosphomonoesterase, PME; phosphodiesterase, PDE; pyrophosphatase, PyP; and phytase, PhT) activities for fine-roots and soils in nitrogen (N) and P fertilized primary and secondary Tropical Rain Forests in Sabah, Malaysia. P fertilization reduced PME, PyP and PhT activities for fine-roots and PME and PyP activities for soils. Fine-roots in primary Forests had higher PME and PyP activities whereas those in secondary Forests had higher PhT activities. We suggest that P-limited trees and microbes depend more on hydrolysable P degraded by one step of enzymatic reaction (monoester P, pyrophosphate, and phytate) as a P source. We also suggest that trees have different soil-organic-P acquisition strategies in association with their life history strategies.

  • long term c n and p allocation to reproduction in bornean Tropical Rain Forests
    Journal of Ecology, 2015
    Co-Authors: Kanehiro Kitayama, Yuki Tsujii, Ryota Aoyagi, Shinichiro Aiba
    Abstract:

    Summary Tropical Rain Forests in SE Asia are well known for the occurrence of supra-annual synchronous reproductive events, masting. Answering the question how trees allocate carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) to such irregular but gregarious reproduction requires a long-term observation. We conducted a 10-year continuous monitoring of litterfall in eight Tropical Rain Forests, which differ significantly in P (and N) availability on Mount Kinabalu, Borneo. Mean P concentration in reproductive organ litter decreased significantly with increasing P-use efficiency of net primary production (PUE), an index of P deficiency. Therefore, P in reproductive organ litter became diluted as the magnitude of P deficiency increased. Mean annual litterfall (kg ha−1 yr−1) of reproductive organs over the 10 years ranged from 128.5 to 730.9 across the eight Forests. Long-term C allocation ratio to reproductive organs (i.e. C in reproductive organs per C in total litterfall) varied from 2.0% to 7.8% across the eight Forests and did not relate with PUE, indicating that long-term C allocation ratio to reproduction was not controlled by the availability of the most critical soil nutrient. Long-term N allocation ratio to reproduction varied from 2.7% to 9.9% and significantly positively related with C allocation ratio. The quotient of N allocation ratio to C allocation ratio ranged from 1.1 to 1.4. Long-term P allocation ratio to reproduction varied from 9.8% to 16.4%. The quotient of P allocation ratio to C allocation ratio ranged from 1.6 to 5.0. Therefore, Tropical trees allocated much greater proportion of P to reproduction than C and N over the 10 years. Moreover, trees disproportionately increased P allocation to reproduction with decreasing C allocation to reproduction. Trees adjusted P allocation relative to C allocation and maintained a narrow range of P allocation ratio to reproduction in the long run in each site. Synthesis. Reproduction in Bornean Tropical Rain Forests costs more P than C and N. Our results suggest that reproductive events in these Forests are regulated by P at the level of overall long-term mean. Understanding patterns and processes of reproductive events requires a long-term monitoring of nutrient dynamics.

Robin L Chazdon - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.

  • resilience of Tropical Rain Forests tree community reassembly in secondary Forests
    Ecology Letters, 2009
    Co-Authors: Natalia Norden, Robin L Chazdon, Anne Chao, Yihuei Jiang, Braulio Vilchezalvarado
    Abstract:

    Understanding the recovery dynamics of ecosystems presents a major challenge in the human-impacted tropics. We tested whether secondary Forests follow equilibrium or non-equilibrium dynamics by evaluating community reassembly over time, across different successional stages, and among multiple life stages. Based on long-term and static data from six 1-ha plots in NE Costa Rica, we show that secondary Forests are undergoing reassembly of canopy tree and palm species composition through the successful recruitment of seedlings, saplings, and young trees of mature forest species. Such patterns were observed over time within sites and across successional stages. Floristic reassembly in secondary Forests showed a clear convergence with mature forest community composition, supporting an equilibrium model. This resilience stems from three key factors co-occurring locally: high abundance of generalist species in the regional flora, high levels of seed dispersal, and local presence of old-growth forest remnants.

  • resilience of Tropical Rain Forests tree community reassembly in secondary Forests
    Ecology Letters, 2009
    Co-Authors: Natalia Norden, Robin L Chazdon, Anne Chao, Yihuei Jiang, Braulio Vilchezalvarado
    Abstract:

    Understanding the recovery dynamics of ecosystems presents a major challenge in the human-impacted tropics. We tested whether secondary Forests follow equilibrium or non-equilibrium dynamics by evaluating community reassembly over time, across different successional stages, and among multiple life stages. Based on long-term and static data from six 1-ha plots in NE Costa Rica, we show that secondary Forests are undergoing reassembly of canopy tree and palm species composition through the successful recruitment of seedlings, saplings, and young trees of mature forest species. Such patterns were observed over time within sites and across successional stages. Floristic reassembly in secondary Forests showed a clear convergence with mature forest community composition, supporting an equilibrium model. This resilience stems from three key factors co-occurring locally: high abundance of generalist species in the regional flora, high levels of seed dispersal, and local presence of old-growth forest remnants.

Yihuei Jiang - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.

  • resilience of Tropical Rain Forests tree community reassembly in secondary Forests
    Ecology Letters, 2009
    Co-Authors: Natalia Norden, Robin L Chazdon, Anne Chao, Yihuei Jiang, Braulio Vilchezalvarado
    Abstract:

    Understanding the recovery dynamics of ecosystems presents a major challenge in the human-impacted tropics. We tested whether secondary Forests follow equilibrium or non-equilibrium dynamics by evaluating community reassembly over time, across different successional stages, and among multiple life stages. Based on long-term and static data from six 1-ha plots in NE Costa Rica, we show that secondary Forests are undergoing reassembly of canopy tree and palm species composition through the successful recruitment of seedlings, saplings, and young trees of mature forest species. Such patterns were observed over time within sites and across successional stages. Floristic reassembly in secondary Forests showed a clear convergence with mature forest community composition, supporting an equilibrium model. This resilience stems from three key factors co-occurring locally: high abundance of generalist species in the regional flora, high levels of seed dispersal, and local presence of old-growth forest remnants.

  • resilience of Tropical Rain Forests tree community reassembly in secondary Forests
    Ecology Letters, 2009
    Co-Authors: Natalia Norden, Robin L Chazdon, Anne Chao, Yihuei Jiang, Braulio Vilchezalvarado
    Abstract:

    Understanding the recovery dynamics of ecosystems presents a major challenge in the human-impacted tropics. We tested whether secondary Forests follow equilibrium or non-equilibrium dynamics by evaluating community reassembly over time, across different successional stages, and among multiple life stages. Based on long-term and static data from six 1-ha plots in NE Costa Rica, we show that secondary Forests are undergoing reassembly of canopy tree and palm species composition through the successful recruitment of seedlings, saplings, and young trees of mature forest species. Such patterns were observed over time within sites and across successional stages. Floristic reassembly in secondary Forests showed a clear convergence with mature forest community composition, supporting an equilibrium model. This resilience stems from three key factors co-occurring locally: high abundance of generalist species in the regional flora, high levels of seed dispersal, and local presence of old-growth forest remnants.