Tropical rain forest structure, tree growth and dynamics along a 2700-m elevational transect in Costa Rica

Rapid biological changes are expected to occur on tropical elevational gradients as species migrate upslope or go extinct in the face of global warming. We established a series of 9 1-ha plots in old-growth tropical rainforest in Costa Rica along a 2700 m relief elevational gradient to carry out lon...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:PloS one 2015-04, Vol.10 (4), p.e0122905-e0122905
Main Authors: Clark, David B, Hurtado, Johanna, Saatchi, Sassan S
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Altitude
Analysis
Biodiversity
Canopies
Canopy gaps
Climate change
Cloud forests
Coefficient of variation
Costa Rica
Elevation
Environmental aspects
Forest floor
Forests
Global temperature changes
Global warming
Migration
Population Dynamics
Protection and preservation
Rain
Rain forests
Rainforest
Rainforests
Remote sensing
Species diversity
Species Specificity
Tree growth
Trees
Trees - growth & development
Tropical Climate
Tropical forests
Wood
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Summary:Rapid biological changes are expected to occur on tropical elevational gradients as species migrate upslope or go extinct in the face of global warming. We established a series of 9 1-ha plots in old-growth tropical rainforest in Costa Rica along a 2700 m relief elevational gradient to carry out long-term monitoring of tropical rain forest structure, dynamics and tree growth. Within each plot we mapped, identified, and annually measured diameter for all woody individuals with stem diameters >10 cm for periods of 3-10 years. Wood species diversity peaked at 400-600 m and decreased substantially at higher elevations. Basal area and stem number varied by less than two-fold, with the exception of the 2800 m cloud forest summit, where basal area and stem number were approximately double that of lower sites. Canopy gaps extending to the forest floor accounted for
ISSN:1932-6203
1932-6203
DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0122905