Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- Foreword
- Preface
- Acknowledgements
- Part I General perspectives
- Part II Regional floristic and animal diversity
- Part III Hydrometeorology of tropical montane cloud forest
- Part IV Nutrient dynamics in tropical montane cloud forests
- 39 Spatial and temporal dynamics of atmospheric water and nutrient inputs in tropical mountain forests of southern Ecuador
- 40 Fog deposition and chemistry in a sub-tropical montane cloud forest in Taiwan
- 41 Fog and rain water chemistry in the seasonal tropical rain forest of Xishuangbanna, south-west China
- 42 Spatial heterogeneity of throughfall quantity and quality in tropical montane forests in southern Ecuador
- 43 Effect of topography on soil fertility and water flow in an Ecuadorian lower montane forest
- 44 Human impacts on stream-water chemistry in a tropical montane cloud forest watershed, Monteverde, Costa Rica
- 45 Is there evidence for limitations to nitrogen mineralization in upper montane tropical forests?
- 46 Fine root mass and fine root production in tropical moist forests as dependent on soil, climate, and elevation
- Part V Cloud forest water use, photosynthesis, and effects of forest conversion
- Part VI Effects of climate variability and climate change
- Part VII Cloud forest conservation, restoration, and management issues
- References
40 - Fog deposition and chemistry in a sub-tropical montane cloud forest in Taiwan
from Part IV - Nutrient dynamics in tropical montane cloud forests
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 03 May 2011
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- Foreword
- Preface
- Acknowledgements
- Part I General perspectives
- Part II Regional floristic and animal diversity
- Part III Hydrometeorology of tropical montane cloud forest
- Part IV Nutrient dynamics in tropical montane cloud forests
- 39 Spatial and temporal dynamics of atmospheric water and nutrient inputs in tropical mountain forests of southern Ecuador
- 40 Fog deposition and chemistry in a sub-tropical montane cloud forest in Taiwan
- 41 Fog and rain water chemistry in the seasonal tropical rain forest of Xishuangbanna, south-west China
- 42 Spatial heterogeneity of throughfall quantity and quality in tropical montane forests in southern Ecuador
- 43 Effect of topography on soil fertility and water flow in an Ecuadorian lower montane forest
- 44 Human impacts on stream-water chemistry in a tropical montane cloud forest watershed, Monteverde, Costa Rica
- 45 Is there evidence for limitations to nitrogen mineralization in upper montane tropical forests?
- 46 Fine root mass and fine root production in tropical moist forests as dependent on soil, climate, and elevation
- Part V Cloud forest water use, photosynthesis, and effects of forest conversion
- Part VI Effects of climate variability and climate change
- Part VII Cloud forest conservation, restoration, and management issues
- References
Summary
ABSTRACT
Annual fog deposition and atmospheric chemical deposition were evaluated for a strongly fog-affected coniferous forest at Chi-Lan, Taiwan. Fog capture efficiencies of Chamaecyparis obtusa var. formosana leaves were measured at three heights within the canopy using in situ exposure experiments under contrasting climatic conditions. The efficiencies obtained in this way were multiplied times leaf biomass to calculate stand-level fog deposition rates. Furthermore, a statistical model was developed, linking fog deposition rate to visibility. Using the latter model, annual fog deposition from March 2003 to February 2004 was calculated to be 297 mm, or ~9% of the total atmospheric water input. Fog contributions exhibited a highly seasonal pattern that depended mainly on the amount of precipitation. Due to the higher chemical concentrations of fog compared to precipitation, nutrient deposition via fog played a significant role. Inorganic nitrogen was absorbed by the canopy whereas potassium was leached. It is concluded that fog constitutes an important factor influencing the water and nutrient dynamics of the montane forest ecosystem under study.
INTRODUCTION
The concept of a “montane cloud forest belt” has been recognized in Taiwan for decades (Su, 1984). Although there were few meteorological records on cloud heights at the time, the elevational range of the cloud belt was inferred from temperature lapse rates as calculated from data of more than 150 weather stations (Su, 1984).
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Tropical Montane Cloud ForestsScience for Conservation and Management, pp. 378 - 386Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2011