Estimating the ages of successional stands of tropical trees from growth increments

Abstract

Inability to age tropical trees has imposed major limitations on the basic and applied science of tropical forests. Here advantage was taken of even-aged stands present in successional chronosequences found on Amazonian Whitewater river meanders to simplify the assumptions needed to estimate tree ages from growth measurements. Growth increments of eight common early successional species were measured in 21 0.5-ha plots evenly distributed over chronosequences from the earliest post-pioneer stage to mature Ficus-Cedrela stands representing approximately the mid-point of primary succession. Increment measurements, based on 4 or 5 y of growth, were arrayed in scatter diagrams against the midpoints of the growth intervals. A loess regression of the points, weighted for the higher mortality of slow-growing individuals, was then conducted to generate a 'best estimate lifetime growth trajectory' (BELGT) of a 'typical' individual surviving to maturity. The BELGT curves were integrated to generate a set of derived curves describing the time required by a 'typical' surviving individual to attain any given size up to the maximum for the species. Predictions of the ages of particular stands were derived from these latter curves and found to agree within 3 to 20% of ages independently estimated from the rate of point bar accretion.

Análise estrutural e considerações sobre a dinâmica sucessional de dois fragmentos florestais semideciduais do Jardim Botânico Municipal de Bauru, SP, Brasil

“…A ocorrência de diferentes microhabitats originados por perturbações (Mueller-Dumbois 1995), como clareiras (Whitmore 1989;Brokaw & Scheiner 1989), ou a proximidade da borda em um fragmento (Nunes et al 2003;Rodrigues et al 2003), locais com maior luminosidade (Remmert 1991;Terborgh et al 1997), podem ter fornecido as condições necessárias para a ocupação dessas espécies.…”

Management criteria for Ficus insipida Willd. (Moraceae) in Amazonian white-water floodplain forests defined by tree-ring analysis

“…Thus, a polycyclic selection system is not appropriate for the management of this fast-growing tree species. F. insipida is a shade intolerant/light demanding pioneer naturally occurring in more or less even-aged young successional stages in the Amazonian floodplain forests [26,34] and thus adequate for a monocyclic silvicultural system [17,36]. The application of a monocyclic system for F. insipida could be a rotation period of 17 years when trees reach their optimum volume increment rates.…”

“…), Moraceae, with a wood density of 0.38 ± 0.03 g cm −3 [22]. Though generally a riparian species in early successional stages of the Central and Western Amazonian várzea [26,34], F. insipida is frequent in diverse forest types of the Neotropics (Fig. 1).…”

Diameter Increment Modeling in an Araucaria Forest Fragment Using Cluster Analysis

“…Terborgh et al (1997) said that individual trees of a given size may represent a significant age difference. Therefore, trees of a given age can reach different sizes, which means that individuals of a given size or age may be growing at many different rates, negatively affecting the estimation of growth trajectory and life span.…”