Site data from 291 forest inventory plots in Mixed Dipterocarp Forest in centralSarawak were simplified by factor analysis. The distribution of the 33 commonest canopy tree species was related to site factor scores by 't' tests. There appears to be a degree of edaphic influence on the distribution of many species. Fairly constant soil characteristics related to the lithology of the parent material appear to be more important than ephemerally variable properties such as organic matter or exchangeable cations. Magnesium appears to be particularly important, possibly because of an effect on the capacity of mycorrhizal root systems to absorb phosphorus.

Discrete humus layers are common on podzols under temperate coniferous and tropical heath forests, and patchy layers also occur under some temperate broadleaved forests on non-podzolic soils. We used multiple data sets to test the reported association of humus with oligotrophic but non-podzolic soils under non-heath dipterocarp forest at Lambir, Sarawak. We examined the distribution, morphology and nutrient dynamics of necromass on soils derived from sandstone and shale. Concentrations of the main mineral nutrients were lower in fresh litter on the very oligotrophic sandstone soils than on shale. The rates of litterfall were similar, so that annual litterfall fluxes of all nutrients were lower on sandstone. The lower nutrient concentrations and fluxes in the litter on sandstone resulted in slower decomposition, longer residence times and larger standing crops of forest-floor necromass, with lower concentrations of nutrients. The necromass on sandstone sequestered significantly more N, K and Mg but less Ca and Mn than on shale, with no significant difference for P. The variations in necromass nutrient dynamics were associated with morphological differences. There were mats of densely rooted humus under the litter on sandstone, whereas litter lay directly over the mineral topsoil on shale. Spatial associations with soil nutrients were weak for necromass thickness, but clear for humus. The proportions of nutrients in the litterfall and necromass reflected the stoichiometric profiles of the soils. We attribute the differences in necromass nutrient dynamics and their association with soil reserve nutrients to lower rates of nutrient replenishment from the weathering of sandstone than from shale. Necromass characteristics are robust field indicators of multivariate edaphic differences in these and other tropical forests on Acrisols/Ultisols derived from Tertiary clastic sediments.

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Abstract. Fungal decay of heart wood creates hollows and areas of reduced wood density within the stems of living trees known as stem rot. Although stem rot is acknowledged as a source of error in forest aboveground biomass (AGB) estimates, there are few data sets available to evaluate the controls over stem rot infection and severity in tropical forests. Using legacy and recent data from 3180 drilled, felled, and cored stems in mixed dipterocarp forests in Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo, we quantified the frequency and severity of stem rot in a total of 339 tree species, and related variation in stem rot with tree size, wood density, taxonomy, and species' soil association, as well as edaphic conditions. Predicted stem rot frequency for a 50 cm tree was 53 % of felled, 39 % of drilled, and 28 % of cored stems, demonstrating differences among methods in rot detection ability. The percent stem volume infected by rot, or stem rot severity, ranged widely among trees with stem rot infection (0.1–82.8 %) and averaged 9 % across all trees felled. Tree taxonomy explained the greatest proportion of variance in both stem rot frequency and severity among the predictors evaluated in our models. Stem rot frequency, but not severity, increased sharply with tree diameter, ranging from 13 % in trees 10–30 cm DBH to 54 % in stems ≥ 50 cm DBH across all data sets. The frequency of stem rot increased significantly in soils with low pH and cation concentrations in topsoil, and stem rot was more common in tree species associated with dystrophic sandy soils than with nutrient-rich clays. When scaled to forest stands, the maximum percent of stem biomass lost to stem rot varied significantly with soil properties, and we estimate that stem rot reduces total forest AGB estimates by up to 7 % relative to what would be predicted assuming all stems are composed strictly of intact wood. This study demonstrates not only that stem rot is likely to be a significant source of error in forest AGB estimation, but also that it strongly covaries with tree size, taxonomy, habitat association, and soil resources, underscoring the need to account for tree community composition and edaphic variation in estimating carbon storage in tropical forests.