Seasonally Dry Tropical Forests

✍ Scribed by Stephen H. Bullock (editor), Harold A. Mooney (editor), Ernesto Medina (editor)

• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• Year: 2009
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 459
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

Prolonged seasonal drought affects most of the tropics, including vast areas presently or recently dominated by 'dry forests'. These forests have received scant attention, despite the fact that humans have used and changed them more than rain forests. This volume reviews the available information, often making contrasts with wetter forests. The world's dry forest heterogeneity of structure and function is shown regionally. In the neotropics, biogeographic patterns differ from those of wet forests, as does the spectrum of plant life-forms in terms of structure, physiology, phenology and reproduction. Biomass distribution, nutrient cycling, below-ground dynamics and nitrogen gas emission are also reviewed. Exploitation schemes are surveyed, and examples are given of non-timber product economies. It is hoped that this review will stimulate research leading to more conservative and productive management of dry forests.

✦ Table of Contents

Cover......Page 1
Frontmatter......Page 2
Contents......Page 10
List of contributors......Page 15
Acknowledgements......Page 18
1 - Introduction......Page 20
Introduction......Page 28
Origin of Central America and the Caribbean islands......Page 30
Physical environment......Page 31
Dry forest distribution and overall structure......Page 35
Forest function and response to seasonal rainfall......Page 43
Use, disturbance and recovery......Page 45
Summary......Page 48
Introduction......Page 54
Physical environment......Page 55
Agriculture and plant products......Page 57
Vegetation structure and function......Page 65
Animals......Page 76
Summary......Page 77
Introduction......Page 83
Distribution and main types......Page 84
Structure and function......Page 94
Dynamics......Page 101
Summary......Page 107
Introduction......Page 112
Physical environment......Page 113
Forest types......Page 118
Human impacts on forest cover......Page 135
Summary......Page 138
Northern Latin America......Page 143
Early and Mid Tertiary......Page 145
Late Tertiary......Page 151
Quaternary......Page 155
Southern United States......Page 157
Summary......Page 159
Introduction......Page 164
Methods and study sites......Page 165
Diversity patterns......Page 169
Structure......Page 176
Dispersal and pollination......Page 180
Floristic composition......Page 181
Endemism......Page 197
Conclusions......Page 201
Summary......Page 202
Introduction......Page 207
Biodiversity......Page 209
Animal responses to climatic seasonally......Page 218
Historical biogeography......Page 221
Endangered species and conservation......Page 224
Summary......Page 226
Introduction......Page 233
Life forms and growth forms......Page 234
Ecophysiological performance under natural conditions......Page 242
Conclusions......Page 249
Summary......Page 250
Introduction......Page 255
Structure......Page 256
Physiology......Page 266
Phenology......Page 272
Summary......Page 281
Introduction......Page 288
Mating patterns......Page 289
Phenology......Page 293
Pollination and dispersal spectra......Page 297
Animal vectors......Page 299
Reproductive effort......Page 302
Summary......Page 307
Introduction......Page 315
Community-level analysis of folivory......Page 316
Community-level analysis of seed predation......Page 325
Effects of herbivory on plant populations and fitness......Page 328
Summary......Page 333
Introduction......Page 337
Biomass distribution......Page 338
Litter production......Page 342
Litter decomposition......Page 347
Net primary productivity......Page 350
Summary......Page 351
Introduction......Page 356
Nutrient concentration and content in biomass......Page 358
Nutrient transfer......Page 360
The microbial hypothesis......Page 366
Summary......Page 368
Introduction......Page 372
Soil respiration and its determinants......Page 373
Fine root dynamics......Page 377
Microbial populations......Page 383
Symbiotic relationships......Page 384
Conclusions......Page 387
Summary......Page 388
Introduction......Page 394
Nitrogen trace gases in the tropics......Page 395
N2O and NO emissions from tropical dry forest......Page 397
Annual budgets and global significance......Page 402
Other processes and other gases......Page 404
Ecosystem conservation and global change......Page 405
Summary......Page 406
Causes and patterns of forest conversion......Page 409
Loss of biotic resources......Page 412
Changes in the physical environment and soil......Page 413
Changes in productivity......Page 425
Conversion of dry and humid tropical forests......Page 427
Summary......Page 428
Introduction......Page 433
Status of ethnobotanical studies......Page 434
Case studies of commerical products......Page 435
Regional studies of indigenous uses......Page 439
Comparison of dry and wet tropical forests......Page 442
Summary......Page 443
Index......Page 448