Tropical Forest Ecology and Management for the Anthropocene

Adapting Tropical Forest Policy and Practice in the Context of the Anthropocene: Opportunities and Challenges for El Yunque National Forest in Puerto Rico. Lugo, is director of the USDA Forest Service International Institute of Tropical Forestry in R´ıo Piedras, Puerto Rico.

Sandra Brown (1944–2017): A Distinguished Tropical Ecologist

Sandra Brown (center) at the 75th anniversary of the USDA Forest Service's International Tropical Forest Institute. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

Figure 1. Dr. Sandra Brown (center) at the 75th Anniversary of the USDA Forest Service International Institute of Tropical Forestry

Introduction to the Special Issue on Tropical Forests

Management and Ecology in the Anthropocene

Tropical Forestry Research in the Anthropocene

We asked our contributing scientists and collaborators to review progress on their lines of research in light of the conditions of the Anthropocene. Manuscripts are part of this Special Issue or are recent products of the Institute's programme.

Conclusions

Insights into forest structure and composition from long-term research in the Luquillo Mountains. Forests 2017,8, 204. Distress of migratory birds wintering in the Caribbean: effects of precipitation on the annual cycle. Forests 2017,8, 115.

Adapting Tropical Forest Policy and Practice in the Context of the Anthropocene: Opportunities and

• Introduction
• Study Setting and Approach
• Shifting Approaches to Land and Resource Management in the EYNF
• Discussion and Implications
• Conclusions

In 2012, EYNF initiated a collaborative, interactive process to revise its Land and Resource Management Plan in accordance with the new USFS planning rule. Historically, EYNF land and resource managers in Puerto Rico have focused primarily on resource protection and damage prevention through a stewardship approach to land and resource management.

Figure 1. U.S. Forest Service Land Management Planning Process (USFS 2012) [54].

The Dynamics of Deforestation in the Wet and Dry Tropics: A Comparison with Policy Implications

• Materials and Methods
• Results
• Discussion
• Conclusions: Research Agendas for Wet and Dry Deforestation

This paper uses international data on deforestation in the wet and dry tropics to identify these dynamics. These dynamics suggest that different types of enterprises drive deforestation in the dry and humid tropics.

Table 1. Data Sources for Variables in Tables 2 and 3.

How Cities Think: Knowledge Co-Production for Urban Sustainability and Resilience

Knowledge Co-Production for Sustainability and Resilience

Other examples of knowledge co-production ideas put into practice include joint knowledge production [13], collaborative adaptive management [14], transdisciplinary research [28] and communities of practice [12]. Knowledge Systems Analysis: A Framework for Designing Knowledge Co-Production in Cities Both variants of the concept of co-production we have discussed are important for urban.

Figure 1. Illustration of the model of co-production of knowledge and society. Derived from Jasanoff and Wynne 1998 (Battelle Press: Columbus, OH, USA).

Knowledge Systems Analysis: A Framework to Design Knowledge Co-Production in Cities Both variants of the concept of co-production we have discussed are important for urban

This view of knowledge underpins the “idiom of co-production” that informs our knowledge systems analysis framework. Several definitions and applications of the concept of knowledge systems can be seen in this context.

Figure 2. Main components of the knowledge systems analysis framework.

Design Philosophies for Knowledge Co-Production for Urban Sustainability and Resilience Understanding the way cities think is necessary to building knowledge infrastructures that

Co-production requires a fundamental transformation of both knowledge and management towards more critical, inclusive and reflective practices. The knowledge systems analysis framework challenges urban researchers and practitioners to ask: do the social and institutional conditions of the system in which they work encourage efforts to co-produce knowledge.

Teams at Their Core: Implementing an “All LANDS Approach to Conservation” Requires Focusing on

• Rethinking Leadership and Effectiveness
• Role of Relational Governance
• Role of Communications
• Final Thoughts and Conclusions

CLCC's organizational structure consists of interconnected but independent strategic teams. Due to the nature of this type of governance, agencies and organizations participating in the CLCC find themselves reflecting on the role they have or wish to have in the network. Many CAT members and staff take on facilitator roles as well as the other types of leadership roles discussed earlier.

Trust that each member's contribution is valued and will be credited appropriately for the benefit of the team and the individual. Other members of the CLCC or others working on the implementation of the Alllands approach in forested landscapes may disagree on a number of points.

Table 1. Examples of large-scale partnerships in the United States Caribbean and Non-U.S

Soil Biology Research across Latitude, Elevation and Disturbance Gradients: A Review of Forest Studies

Summary of Results over the Past 25 Years 1. Latitudinal Gradients

Most native earthworm species were found in the elfin and palo Colorado forests (10 and 5 species, respectively). For example, they found in the elf forest (on tops in the LEF) that the decay class of CWD was most strongly correlated with white rot fungi. Zalamea and González [71] found a decrease in total microbial biomass with increasing altitude and humidity from coastal dry forest to mid-elevation wet forest in the Luquillo Mountains of eastern Puerto Rico using a substrate-induced respiration method.

Diversity and abundance of Mycetozoa ('slime moulds') decreased with increasing altitude in the Luquillo Mountains [5,73-76]. Similar to patterns found elsewhere in tropical forest altitudinal gradients, the turnover of fungal assemblages along the altitudinal gradient in the Luquillo Mountains of Puerto Rico was strong with little overlap between adjacent forest types using TRFLP analyzes [5].

Summary of Key Findings

111] found that soil under rotting wood had fewer roots and lower nitrate and magnesium concentrations than paired samples collected 50 cm away from the logs. 112] found that root abundance under versus away from logs changed seasonally, likely due to shifts in relative nutrient availability.

Conclusions

Litter-based invertebrate communities in forest floors and bromeliad microcosms along an altitudinal gradient in Puerto Rico.Ecol. Microhabitat distribution of protostelids in tropical forests of the Caribbean National Forest, Puerto Rico.Mycologia. Protostelids, dictyostelids, and myxomycetes in the litter microhabitat of the Luquillo Experimental Forest, Puerto Rico.Mycol.

Changes in ant species richness and composition during secondary plant succession in Puerto Rico.Caribb. Physical, chemical, and biological properties of soil under decayed wood in a humid tropical forest in Puerto Rico. Forests2016,7, 168.

Trailblazing the Carbon Cycle of Tropical Forests from Puerto Rico

• Foundational Research
• Carbon Flux and Storage Studies at the Institute
• Estimating the Global Role of Tropical Forests in the Carbon Cycle
• Tropical Forests: Carbon Sources or Sinks?
• Outlook

Research was needed to improve understanding of tropical forest carbon budgets and to reduce uncertainty in global estimates of carbon fluxes. Some of the insights gained about tropical forest carbon dynamics from the studies described in this section are listed below. New technology allows a stronger empirical basis for assessing the global role of tropical forests.

Storage and production of organic matter in tropical forests and their role in the global carbon cycle. Biotropica. Research in the Luquillo Experimental Forest has advanced understanding of tropical forests and solved management problems.

Table 1. Consensus on the magnitude of atmospheric global carbon source and sink fluxes (Pg/year) at four historic moments

Insights on Forest Structure and Composition from Long-Term Research in the Luquillo Mountains

Methods 1. Study Site

The species Magnolia splendens was rare in the initial plot measurements at Bisley and El Verde and is now absent from the plots at both sites. Tree structure can recover to pre-disturbance values ​​within a decade in the tabonuco forest of the LEF. Acknowledgments: This USDA Forest Service (USFS) International Institute of Tropical Forestry (IITF) research was conducted in collaboration with the University of Puerto Rico (UPR) as part of the IITF contribution to the Luquillo Long-Term Ecological Research Program (LTER) in LEF .

Ecological consequences of root grafting in Tabonuco (Dacryodes excelsa) trees in the Luquillo Experimental Forest, Puerto Rico.Biotropica. Scatena, F.N. An Introduction to the Physiography and History of the Bisley Experimental Watersheds in the Luquillo Mountains of Puerto Rico; Gen.

Figure 2. Views of vegetation from the Luquillo Experimental Forest, Puerto Rico. Top panel (a) Tabonuco, Dacryodes excelsa, the dominant tree species in forests at lower montane elevations;

The Plight of Migrant Birds Wintering in the Caribbean: Rainfall Effects in the Annual Cycle

Institute Migrant Studies

Precipitation, either on the breeding or wintering grounds, affects the abundance of migrants in the Guánica forest. Winter rainfall effects on Kirtland's warblers in the Bahamas carry over to breeding grounds in Michigan. KIWA winters in the Bahamas archipelago and breeds primarily in Michigan [48], although small breeding colonies have recently been established in Wisconsin and Ontario [49,50].

Although the effects of rainfall on KIWA food supply in the Bahamas at the time of the study by Rockwell et al. Their analysis found that March rainfall in the Bahamas was the best-supported predictor of annual survival probability.

Discussion and Conclusions

Winter precipitation, spring arrival dates and breeding success in the endangered Kirtland warbler (Setophaga kirtlandii). Auk. Factors Affecting the Distribution and Abundance of North American Migrants in the Eastern Caribbean Region. Migratory birds in the Neotropics; Keast, A., Morton, E.S., Eds.; Smithsonian Institution Press: Washington, DC, USA, 1980; p.

Non-breeding competition between migrant American Redstarts (Setophaga ruticilla) and resident Adelaide voles (Dendroica adelaidae) in the Guánica Biosphere Reserve, Southwestern Puerto Rico. The potential role of hurricanes in the creation and maintenance of Kirtland's Warbler habitat in the Bahamas Archipelago.

On the Shoulders of Giants: Continuing the Legacy of Large-Scale Ecosystem Manipulation Experiments in

Field Manipulation Experiments in the Luquillo Experimental Forest 1. Silviculture (1930s–Today)

Department of the Army personnel determined that the forests in the Luquillo Experimental Forest were similar to the evergreen forests of Southeast Asia. Fenac was the most persistent herbicide in the soil [18], reaching depths of 91 to 122 cm within three months of application, suggesting significant downward movement of herbicides in the soil profile [19]. Overall, picloram proved to be an effective tree defoliant in the Luquillo Experimental Forest, whether applied directly to the soil or to vegetation.

Forest defoliation occurred more rapidly in response to herbicide application than was observed in the irradiation experiment [18]. To understand the effects of drought on the biogeochemistry of tropical soils, small shelters m) were installed in the forest understory of the Luquillo Experimental Forest.

Figure 2. Scientists installing the base and casing for the Cesium radiation source in the Luquillo Experimental Forest

Conclusions

The USDA Forest Service's International Institute of Tropical Forestry (IITF) and the University of Puerto Rico-Río Piedras provided additional support. Odum, H.T.; Pigeon, R.F.A. Tropical rainforest: A study of irradiance and ecology at El Verde, Puerto Rico;. A rainforest chronicle: a 30-year record of changes in structure and composition in El Verde, Puerto Rico.Biotropica.

Sixty-two years of change in subtropical wet forest structure and composition in El Verde, Puerto Rico. Interciencia2009,34, 34. Seven-year responses of trees to experimental hurricane effects in a tropical rainforest, Puerto Rico.For.

Novelty and Its Ecological Implications to Dry Forest Functioning and Conservation

Methods

The high chemical quality of fallen leaf litter in young dry forests (low C/N and C/P) compares favorably with the chemical quality of species groups known for their high primary productivity and cycling of nutrients [37]. 13] found that all dry forests (new or native) in the arid life zone had significant differences in fallen leaf chemistry when compared to forests in other life zones of Puerto Rico. Comparisons show lower mass accumulation and similar nutrient content in dry forest leaf litter of Puerto Rico.

Nevertheless, we found trends and significant differences in element concentrations and ratios between new and native dry forests in Puerto Rico (Figures 2 and 3). Clear bars are native dry forests and the solid bar represents forests of the subtropical dry forest life zone.

Figure 1. Moisture Availability Index and aboveground biomass of Puerto Rican forests [14]

Traits and Resource Use of Co-Occurring Introduced and Native Trees in a Tropical Novel Forest

We studied plants at the biological reserve El Tallonal located in the municipality of Arecibo (18◦2427N 66◦4353W), which is classified as a subtropical moist forest [28]. Large trees (≥10 cm diameter at breast height (DBH)), assumed to be mature trees, were measured in the canopy and in the understory. Variations of the relationship between leaf mass per area (LMA) and (a) N and (b) C concentrations per unit area in the vertical profile of the Castillanovel forest.

However, these parameters varied between forest layers and were always higher in the canopy than in the understory and understory, respectively (Table 2). The results also show that introduced and native species do not occupy overlapping positions in the leaf economic spectrum.

Table 1. List of species analyzed, their botanical families, and the forest stratum at novel Castilla forests.

Substrate Chemistry and Rainfall Regime Regulate Elemental Composition of Tree Leaves in

Karst Forests

Fragments of carbonaceous rock and organic matter slide down and accumulate in the valleys [4,11,12]. Physiological differences can be seen in the case of Tetrazygia elaeagnoides, one of the few Melastomataceae tree species recorded for peaks in the northern karst belt [17,24]. Concentrations of K and Na in leaves are higher in dry karst areas, probably due to their coastal location.

Quantitative description of vegetation structure and diversity in the Rio Abajo Limestone Forest, Arecibo-Utuado, Puerto Rico. Acta Cient. Landscape assessment of tree communities in the northern karst area of ​​Puerto Rico.Plant Ecol.

Table 1. Karst site locations (Lat, Long) and approximate altitude.

Land Use, Conservation, Forestry, and Agriculture in Puerto Rico