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Successional age and forest structure in a Costa Rican upper montane Quercus forest

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 July 2009

Maarten Kappelle ,
Thorwald Geuze ,
Miguel E. Leal  and
Antoine M. Cleef
Maarten Kappelle
Affiliation:
Hugo de Vries Laboratory, Department of Biology, University of Amsterdam, Kruislaan 318, 1098 SM Amsterdam, The Netherlands, email: kappelle@bio.uva.nl
Thorwald Geuze
Affiliation:
International Agricultural College Larenstein, P.O. Box 9001, 6880 GB Velp, The Netherlands
Miguel E. Leal
Affiliation:
Hugo de Vries Laboratory, Department of Biology, University of Amsterdam, Kruislaan 318, 1098 SM Amsterdam, The Netherlands, email: kappelle@bio.uva.nl
Antoine M. Cleef
Affiliation:
Hugo de Vries Laboratory, Department of Biology, University of Amsterdam, Kruislaan 318, 1098 SM Amsterdam, The Netherlands, email: kappelle@bio.uva.nl
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Abstract

Changes in structure of a Costa Rican upper montane Quercus forest were studied in twelve 0.1 ha plots along a chronosequence including 8- to 20-year-old Early Secondary Forest (ESF), 25- to 32-year-old Late Secondary Forest (LSF) and mature Primary Forest (PF). In 1.2 ha 2854 stems ≥ 3.0 cm dbh belonging to 42 tree species were recorded. Tree species richness per 0.1 ha ranged from 15 to 30. Diversity indices did not change significantly during succession. Stem density did not differ significantly among successional phases, while basal area was significantly higher in PF than in ESF and LSF. Maximum canopy height and basal area increased linearly during the first three decades of recovery. Height and dbh showed a significant, logarithmic regression for all forest phases. A period of 84 y was estimated as the theoretically minimum time needed for structural recovery. The maximum canopy height and basal area recovered two to five times slower in upper montane than in lower montane or lowland Neotropical forests.

Keywords

chronosequenceCosta Ricadisturbancedynamicsforest structureQuercusrecoveryregenerationsecondary successiontropical montane forest
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Tropical Ecology , Volume 12 , Issue 5 , September 1996 , pp. 681 - 698
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1996

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References

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