Abstract
We compared stump sprouting by three common timber species in Suriname on the basis of sprout origins on stumps, sprout densities, and sprout height:diameter ratios. We then compared some leaf and stem functional traits of 15–18-month-old resprouts and nearby conspecific saplings of the same height (0.5–3.5 m) but unknown age. Stumps of Dicorynia guianensis Amsh. (29–103 cm in diameter) produced the most sprouts (x = 9.2/stump), followed by the 50–71 cm diameter stumps of Eperua falcata Amsh. (10.6/stump), and the 30–78 cm diameter Qualea rosea Amsh. (5.9/stump); sprout density did not vary with stump diameter. Sprouts emerged from the lower, middle, and upper thirds of the stumps of all three species, but not from the vicinity of the exposed vascular cambium in Qualea. With increased resprout density, heights of the tallest sprout per stump tended to increase but height:diameter ratios increased only in Dicorynia. Compared to conspecific saplings, sprouts displayed higher height-diameter ratios, higher leaf-to-wood mass ratios (LWR), and lower wood densities, but did not differ in leaf mass per unit area (LMA) or leaf water contents. These acquisitive functional traits may reflect increased resprout access to water and nutrients via the extensive root system of the stump. That we did not encounter live stump sprouts from the previous round of selective logging, approximately 25 years before our study, suggests that stump sprouts in our study area grow rapidly but do not live long.
Highlights
Stump sprouting is common among trees in ecosystems characterized by frequent top-killing disturbances such as from fire [1] but is common in the tropics after storms [2] and logging [3,4,5].Resprouting is the basis of silvicultural coppice management systems, such as those used for many centuries in Europe to produce firewood and small-dimension building materials [6]
We studied the sprouts from stumps of the dominant species harvested: Dicorynia guianensis Amsh
In the selectively logged lowland tropical forest we studied in Suriname, of three commercial timber species, the two Fabaceae (Dicorynia and Eperua) often sprouted in ways that differed from the one sampled Vochysiaceae (Qualea)
Summary
Stump sprouting is common among trees in ecosystems characterized by frequent top-killing disturbances such as from fire [1] but is common in the tropics after storms [2] and logging [3,4,5].Resprouting is the basis of silvicultural coppice management systems, such as those used for many centuries in Europe to produce firewood and small-dimension building materials [6]. In the tropics, coppicing is commonly used for the rapid production of small stems for fiber and fuel from species of Eucalyptus and Acacia [7]. Where stands are managed for the production of large timber trees, it is less clear that stump sprouts are beneficial given the likelihood that they will develop basal rots before. In this study we explore stump sprouting by three species of commercial timber trees in Suriname to understand the silvicultural roles of stump sprouts after selective logging. We investigate the exceedingly rapid growth rates of stump sprouts by comparing several leaf and stem functional traits between resprouts and saplings (i.e., individuals growing directly from seed) of conspecifics of the same height. Comparisons of the three study species, which differ somewhat in life-history traits, are used as a preliminary assessment of the generality of emergent patterns related to stump sprouting and characteristics of the sprouts themselves
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