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
- Part V Cloud forest water use, photosynthesis, and effects of forest conversion
- Part VI Effects of climate variability and climate change
- 54 Meso-scale climate change due to lowland deforestation in the maritime tropics
- 55 The impact of deforestation on orographic cloud formation in a complex tropical environment
- 56 Meso-scale climate change in the central mountain region of Veracruz State, Mexico
- 57 Potential effects of global climate change on epiphytes in a tropical montane cloud forest: an experimental study from Monteverde, Costa Rica
- 58 Climatic change impacts on tropical montane cloud forests: fire as a major determinant in the upper zones of Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania
- 59 Historical 14C evidence of fire in tropical montane cloud forests in the Chimalapas region of Oaxaca, southern Mexico
- 60 Biennial variation in tree diameter growth during eight years in tropical montane cloud forests on Mount Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia
- 61 Modeling the dynamics of tropical montane cloud forest in central Veracruz, Mexico
- Part VII Cloud forest conservation, restoration, and management issues
- References
61 - Modeling the dynamics of tropical montane cloud forest in central Veracruz, Mexico
from Part VI - Effects of climate variability and climate change
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
- Part V Cloud forest water use, photosynthesis, and effects of forest conversion
- Part VI Effects of climate variability and climate change
- 54 Meso-scale climate change due to lowland deforestation in the maritime tropics
- 55 The impact of deforestation on orographic cloud formation in a complex tropical environment
- 56 Meso-scale climate change in the central mountain region of Veracruz State, Mexico
- 57 Potential effects of global climate change on epiphytes in a tropical montane cloud forest: an experimental study from Monteverde, Costa Rica
- 58 Climatic change impacts on tropical montane cloud forests: fire as a major determinant in the upper zones of Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania
- 59 Historical 14C evidence of fire in tropical montane cloud forests in the Chimalapas region of Oaxaca, southern Mexico
- 60 Biennial variation in tree diameter growth during eight years in tropical montane cloud forests on Mount Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia
- 61 Modeling the dynamics of tropical montane cloud forest in central Veracruz, Mexico
- Part VII Cloud forest conservation, restoration, and management issues
- References
Summary
ABSTRACT
The area covered by tropical montane cloud forest (TMCF) in central Veracruz, eastern Mexico, has decreased rapidly over the last 50 years. Deforestation has been accompanied by fragmentation of the remaining forest. Restoring the TMCF and the important ecological services it provides (e.g. high-quality water, soil protection, biodiversity conservation) requires an understanding of ecosystem dynamics. This study investigates the dynamics of fragments of old-growth TMCF in central Veracruz, with particular reference to regeneration after abandonment of other land uses. A modified version of the process-based forest growth model FORMIND was used. FORMIND is individual-tree-oriented and simulates the spatio-temporal dynamics of an uneven-aged mixed forest stand. Model modifications included: (i) grouping of tree species according to their light demands and maximum height, (ii) defining regeneration, growth, and mortality parameters for each species group, and (iii) developing allometric relations of tree geometry. Model verification was achieved by comparing model outcomes and field data. The model was able to reproduce the structure of old-growth TMCF. Simulations of forest regeneration revealed that aggregated variables (e.g. total stem number and total basal area) reached values similar to those of old-growth forest after approximately 80 years, whereas the proportion of basal area of the different species groups continued to change until ~300 years after the start of succession. These insights can be used to support regional decision-making in forest conservation and restoration planning.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Tropical Montane Cloud ForestsScience for Conservation and Management, pp. 584 - 594Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2011
References
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