Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: http://dspace.utpl.edu.ec/jspui/handle/123456789/19313
Title: What Factors Affect Diversity and Species Composition of Endangered Tumbesian Dry Forests in Southern Ecuador?
Authors: Cabrera Cisneros, H.
Escudero, A.
Luzuriaga, A.
Espinosa íñiguez, C.
Keywords: Anthropogenic degradation
Community diversity
Environmental constraints
Precipitation
Soil physical-chemical features
Temperature
Tropical dry forest
Vegetation
metadata.dc.date.available: 2010-04-11
2017-06-16T22:03:20Z
Issue Date: 1-Jan-2011
Publisher: Biotropica
Abstract: This paper reports a study on species richness and composition of Tumbesian dry forest communities. We tested two alternative hypotheses about species assemblage processes in tropical dry forests: (1) species assemblage is determined by the filtering effect of environmental conditions and (2) species assemblage is determined by facilitative processes along the gradient of water availability, and thus, species richness and evenness increase as water becomes limited. In addition, we also explored the effect of climate and soil conditions on species composition in tropical dry forests. Species composition was sampled in 109 plots in terms of cover and tree diameter at breast height. Climatic, edaphic, topographic and anthropogenic degradation variables were obtained for each plot. We used generalized linear models and canonical correspondence analyses to evaluate the effect of environmental variables on species composition, richness and evenness. Water availability negatively affected richness and significantly determined the species assemblage. Species richness increased from ridges to valleys and evenness increased at higher altitudes. Soil characteristics showed no effect on richness and evenness but soil moisture, nitrogen concentration and soil temperature explained significant fractions of species composition. Although timber extraction and livestock in our study area were of low intensity, it negatively affected richness but had only a minor effect on species composition. Our results suggest that species composition in these endangered tropical dry forests may be at least partially explained by the stress-gradient hypothesis, with higher species richness at drier conditions probably induced by facilitation processes.Abstract in Spanish is available at http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/loi/btp. © 2010 The Author(s). Journal compilation © 2010 by The Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation.
metadata.dc.identifier.other: 10.1111/j.1744-7429.2010.00665.x
URI: http://dspace.utpl.edu.ec/handle/123456789/19313
ISBN: 63606
Other Identifiers: 10.1111/j.1744-7429.2010.00665.x
Other Identifiers: 10.1111/j.1744-7429.2010.00665.x
metadata.dc.language: Inglés
metadata.dc.type: Article
Appears in Collections:Artículos de revistas Científicas



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