Abstract
This study investigated the regeneration variation of five commercially valuable tree species in relation to different intensities of felling in fourteen 4-ha plots in an area under experimental forest management. This experiment was carried out in a typical Amazonian tropical forest sample on "terra-firme," in Manaus (AM). Plots were logged 7 and 8 years (1987 and 1988), or 3 years (1993) before the study. All trees with height greater than 2 m, and diameter at breast height (DBH) smaller than 10 cm were measured. Only Aniba hostmanniana, Ocotea aciphylla, Licaria pachycarpa, Eschweilera coriacea and Goupia glabra were sufficiently common for individual analyses. These species have high timber values in the local market. Eight years after logging, the species responded differently to logging intensities. The numbers of individuals of Goupia glabra and Aniba hostmanniana were positively related to the intensity of logging, while Ocotea aciphylla, Licaria pachycarpa, and Eschweilera coriacea showed no statistically significant response. In the most recently (1993) logged areas, Goupia glabra and Aniba hostmanniana had higher numbers of individuals than the control plots.
Highlights
The dynamics and diversity of tropical forests are strongly influenced by natural tree falls, which make the forest appear as mosaic composed of trees of various sizes and ages (e.g. Brokaw & Scheiner, 1989; Brown, 1993; Denslow, 1980; Whitmore, 1991)
In 1985, a project was initiated in a forest management station of the Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia to evaluate the effects and benefits of commercial timber extraction in fourteen 4-ha plots subjected to projected intensities of logging that varied from 35% to 65% of total volume
One plot felled in 1987 was not surveyed because this plot had an area with extensive slopes, and a sandy area in which temporary puddles formed in the rainy season, and this could introduce habitat variation not associated with selective logging
Summary
The dynamics and diversity of tropical forests are strongly influenced by natural tree falls, which make the forest appear as mosaic composed of trees of various sizes and ages (e.g. Brokaw & Scheiner, 1989; Brown, 1993; Denslow, 1980; Whitmore, 1991). Brokaw & Scheiner, 1989; Brown, 1993; Denslow, 1980; Whitmore, 1991) This occurs because seedlings of different tree species may achieve optimal growth under different light regimes in differently sized gaps Studies of gap dynamics and effect of edges are fundamental to understand the causes and possible direction of forest succession and can be important indicators of sustainability of tropical forest management systems (Johns, 1997; Whitmore, 1991). This study aimed to evaluate the individual responses of the five most common desirable trees in the established regeneration in the same area the experimental logging was studied by Vieira (1995) and Magnusson et al (1999)
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