Important aspects of spatial distribution patterns may be missed, and the determination of relative species abundances may carry a strong quantitative and qualitative bias when analyses rely completely on epiphytic plants found on larger trees. 10% of all taxa, was almost always found on small diameter stems and branches of trees with small DBH at lower and intermediate heights within the forest.Ĭonclusions: Applying pre-established zonation schemes may lead to misleading results in biodiversity studies with epiphytes. A sixth group of epiphytes, comprising ca. Results: Six different groups of species were detected, five of them preferring different substrates on larger trees (as defined by (1) the height above ground at the attachment site, (2) the diameter of the substrate and (3) the occurrence on stem vs branches/twigs) and resembling to some extent the original Johansson zones. Methods: A complete census of the vascular epiphytes on all trees > 1 cm DBH in 0.4 ha of undisturbed lowland forest was analysed with both cluster and discriminant analysis to detect groupings of epiphyte species. Location: Lowland rainforest of the San Lorenzo Crane Plot, Republic of Panama. Does a survey of the epiphytes found on larger trees really yield a representative sample of the local community? Question: Vertical zonation schemes are widely used in biodiversity studies with vascular epiphytes as a tool to capture spatial distribution patterns, the one most commonly used was proposed by Johansson more than 30 years ago.
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