Increasing liana abundance and biomass in tropical forests: emerging patterns and putative mechanisms

• Published in: Ecology letters Vol. 14; no. 4; pp. 397 - 406
• Main Authors: Schnitzer, Stefan A, Bongers, Frans
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford, UK Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.04.2011; Blackwell
• Subjects: aboveground biomass; Abundance; Africa; Animal and plant ecology; Animal, plant and microbial ecology; barro-colorado island; below-ground competition; Biodiversity; Biological and medical sciences; Biomass; Carbon Cycle; Carbon dioxide; Carbon sequestration; classification; CO2; Community composition; community structure; disturbance; drought; eastern amazonia; Ecosystem; elevated atmospheric co2; Forestry; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; future climate-change; General aspects; General forest ecology; Generalities. Production, biomass. Quality of wood and forest products. General forest ecology; global change; growth & development; ivy toxicodendron radicans; Land use; land use change; liana increases; lianas; Magnoliopsida; Magnoliopsida - classification; Magnoliopsida - growth & development; monitoring; Plant diversity; Population Density; rain-forest; Rainforests; structural changes; temperate forests; toxicity responses; Trees; Tropical Climate; Tropical environments; Tropical forests; tropics; Africa; Modification; disturbance; Carbon dioxide; Tropical forest; Biomass; Perturbation; CO; structural changes; Land use; Dynamical climatology; Climate change; liana increases; Global change; Liana; tropical forests; Planetary scale; land use change; Drought

Ecology Letters (2011) 14: 397-406 ABSTRACT: Tropical forests are experiencing large-scale structural changes, the most apparent of which may be the increase in liana (woody vine) abundance and biomass. Lianas permeate most lowland tropical forests, where they can have a huge effect on tree diversit...