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Tree species distribution in Andean forests: influence of regional and local factors

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  08 December 2011

Cecilia Blundo ,
Lucio R. Malizia ,
John G. Blake  and
Alejandro D. Brown
Cecilia Blundo*
Affiliation:
Instituto de Ecología Regional (IER), Universidad Nacional de Tucumán, Argentina Fundación ProYungas, Tucumán, Argentina
Lucio R. Malizia
Affiliation:
Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias, Universidad Nacional de Jujuy, Argentina Fundación ProYungas, Tucumán, Argentina
John G. Blake
Affiliation:
Department of Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, University of Florida, USA
Alejandro D. Brown
Affiliation:
Fundación ProYungas, Tucumán, Argentina
*
1Corresponding author. Email: ccblundo@yahoo.com.ar
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Abstract:

We identified and quantified regional and local environmental factors and spatial variation associated with tree-species composition across a 2000-m altitudinal gradient of Andean forest in north-western Argentina. A network of 47 1-ha plots was established along the altitudinal gradient within an area of about 25 000 km2; all trees ≥ 10 cm dbh were identified and measured. Constrained ordinations and variance-partitioning analyses were performed to investigate the determinants of tree-species distribution at the regional scale, across and within forest types (i.e. dry and cloud forests). We marked and measured a total of 22 240 trees belonging to 160 species. Significant environmental factors and spatial location combined accounted for 35% of total variation explained. A high proportion of variation was explained by climatic factors that were spatially structured; after removing the spatial effect, climate explained more variation in species composition across the complete gradient than did local factors. Relative importance of regional and local factors varied with geographic extent. Local factors explained more variation in tree-species composition at the within-forest scale than at the scale of the complete gradient. Our findings support the conceptual model of multi-scale controls on vegetation distribution, where local community composition and abundance result from processes at both regional and local scales.

Keywords

canonical ordinationclimatecloud forestdisturbancedry forestpermanent plotsspacetopography
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Tropical Ecology , Volume 28 , Issue 1 , January 2012 , pp. 83 - 95
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2011

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