Tree functional traits as predictors of microburst‐associated treefalls in tropical wet forests

Rader, Alana M.; Cottrell, Amy; Kudla, Anna M.; Lum, Tiffany; Henderson, David W.; Karandikar, Harshad; Letcher, Susan G.

doi:10.1111/btp.12761

Cited by 6 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 25 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…On 19 May 2018 a powerful storm hit the study area (Rader et al 2020), causing extensive tree mortality and associated changes in canopy structure in several of the CARBONO plots. All the 2018 data for canopy heights and estimated plot biomass (see following paragraphs) were taken after than storm, beginning on 21 May 2018 .…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatial and temporal scales of canopy disturbance and recovery across an old‐growth tropical rain forest landscape

Clark

Kellner

2021

Ecological Monographs

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The distribution of canopy heights in tropical rain forests directly affects carbon storage and the maintenance of biodiversity. We report results from a unique 20-yr record of annual monitoring of canopy-height distributions across an old-growth tropical rain forest landscape at the La Selva Biological Station in Costa Rica. Canopy heights to 15 m were measured annually in 18 0.50-ha plots at 231 points on a 5 × 5 m grid from 1999-2018 (nine plots in 1999), and heights >15 m were classified as "high canopy." During the study two major disturbance events (one immediately prior to the study) dominated the landscape-scale distribution of canopy heights. Height recovery from the 1997-1998 strong El Ni ño disturbance took approximately 15 yr. Frequency of canopy gaps varied an order of magnitude among years and 96% disappeared in ≤2 yr. High-canopy coverage and gap frequency varied substantially across the local gradients of soil nutrients and topography, and plot-level conditions and trends frequently differed from the landscape-level patterns. In contrast to the two major landscape-level disturbances, significant plot-level disturbances were common throughout two decades. Including a similar data set taken in 1992, canopy-height distributions for the last three decades over this old-growth tropical rain forest landscape are most parsimoniously interpreted as showing local disturbance and recovery and no unidirectional trends over time. Together these results suggest that understanding the landscape-and plot-level dynamics of tropical rain forest canopy-height distributions will require repeat sampling for multiple decades, while accurately measuring gap frequency and recovery will require sample intervals of ≤2 yr.

show abstract

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatial and temporal scales of canopy disturbance and recovery across an old‐growth tropical rain forest landscape

Clark

Kellner

2021

Ecological Monographs

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Data were collected at La Selva Biological Station, Costa Rica, approximately 17 days after an extreme windstorm created more than 600 isolated gaps in the forest (average gap size 180 m 2 , Rader et al, 2020). We surveyed along the Sendero Tres Rios trail in La Selva due to the historical prevalence of O. pumilio in this area and the extent to which the canopy was opened and trees felled by the windstorm.…”

Section: Field Site and Surveysmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…On May 19, 2018, an unprecedented windstorm occurred within a protected rainforest at La Selva Biological Station (La Selva) (Puerto Viejo de Sarapiquí, Heredia, Costa Rica, 10.43, −84.00). This storm, described as an intense, acute, microburst, swept westward over La Selva, and was characterized by high wind speeds (5.2 m/s) that opened more than 600 isolated light gaps over 19.6 km of the forest (Rader et al, 2020 ) in sites where we have studied the behavioral responses of diurnal strawberry poison frogs ( Oophaga pumilio ) to ultraviolet radiation (UV‐B) for nearly two decades (Figure 1 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A natural experiment identifies an impending ecological trap for a neotropical amphibian in response to extreme weather events

Clark

Ota

Smith

et al. 2022

Ecology and Evolution

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Extreme weather events are predicted to increase as a result of climate change, yet amphibian responses to extreme disturbance events remain understudied, especially in the Neotropics. Recently, an unprecedented windstorm within a protected Costa Rican rainforest opened large light gaps in sites where we have studied behavioral responses of diurnal strawberry poison frogs (Oophaga pumilio) to ultraviolet radiation for nearly two decades. Previous studies demonstrate that O. pumilio selects and defends perches where ultraviolet radiation (UV-B) is relatively low, likely because of the lethal and sublethal effects of UV-B. In this natural experiment, we quantified disturbance to O. pumilio habitat, surveyed for the presence of O. pumilio in both high-disturbance and low-disturbance areas of the forest, and assessed UV-B levelsand perch selection behavior in both disturbance levels. Fewer frogs were detected in high-disturbance habitat than in low-disturbance habitat. In general, frogs were found vocalizing at perches in both disturbance levels, and in both cases, in significantly lower UV-B levels relative to ambient adjacent surroundings. However, frogs at perches in high-disturbance areas were exposed to UV-B levels nearly 10 times greater than males at perches in low-disturbance areas. Thus, behavioral avoidance of UV-B may not reduce the risks associated with elevated exposure under these novel conditions, and similarly, if future climate and human-driven land-use change lead to sustained analogous environments.

show abstract

“…Here we take advantage of a large, infrequent disturbance in the Atlantic lowlands of Costa Rica to document aboveground carbon losses, canopy structural changes, and estimated recovery time. On May 19, 2018, a storm delivered 38 mm of rain in a 30-min period at La Selva Biological Station 19 . This blowdown event caused large-scale disturbance in forest structure, creating > 600 new gaps along trails alone, according to local field surveys (Supplementary Fig.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This blowdown event caused large-scale disturbance in forest structure, creating > 600 new gaps along trails alone, according to local field surveys (Supplementary Fig. 1 ) 19 . We collected ultra-high-density drone lidar data after the disturbance to quantify canopy structure and aboveground carbon density (ACD) over 103.5 ha of forest (33 ha in old-growth forest; 70.5 ha in secondary forest 31–66 years old in 2019; Fig.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of a tropical forest blowdown on aboveground carbon balance

Cushman

Burley

Imbach³

et al. 2021

Sci Rep

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Field measurements demonstrate a carbon sink in the Amazon and Congo basins, but the cause of this sink is uncertain. One possibility is that forest landscapes are experiencing transient recovery from previous disturbance. Attributing the carbon sink to transient recovery or other processes is challenging because we do not understand the sensitivity of conventional remote sensing methods to changes in aboveground carbon density (ACD) caused by disturbance events. Here we use ultra-high-density drone lidar to quantify the impact of a blowdown disturbance on ACD in a lowland rain forest in Costa Rica. We show that the blowdown decreased ACD by at least 17.6%, increased the number of canopy gaps, and altered the gap size-frequency distribution. Analyses of a canopy-height transition matrix indicate departure from steady-state conditions. This event will initiate a transient sink requiring an estimated 24–49 years to recover pre-disturbance ACD. Our results suggest that blowdowns of this magnitude and extent can remain undetected by conventional satellite optical imagery but are likely to alter ACD decades after they occur.

show abstract

Tree functional traits as predictors of microburst‐associated treefalls in tropical wet forests

Cited by 6 publications

References 25 publications

Spatial and temporal scales of canopy disturbance and recovery across an old‐growth tropical rain forest landscape

Spatial and temporal scales of canopy disturbance and recovery across an old‐growth tropical rain forest landscape

A natural experiment identifies an impending ecological trap for a neotropical amphibian in response to extreme weather events

Impact of a tropical forest blowdown on aboveground carbon balance

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About