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Climate seasonality and tree growth strategies in a tropical dry forest
Author(s) -
GarcíaCervigón Ana I.,
Camarero J. Julio,
Cueva Eduardo,
Espinosa Carlos I.,
Escudero Adrián
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
journal of vegetation science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.1
H-Index - 115
eISSN - 1654-1103
pISSN - 1100-9233
DOI - 10.1111/jvs.12840
Subject(s) - phenology , seasonality , tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests , dry season , precipitation , crown (dentistry) , specific leaf area , biology , leaf area index , trait , ecology , annual growth % , growing season , tropics , botany , geography , photosynthesis , medicine , dentistry , meteorology , computer science , programming language
Abstract Questions Do tree species in seasonally dry tropical forests differ in the timing of their secondary growth? And in their growth rates between consecutive years? If so, how are these contrasting patterns linked to seasonality in climatic variables (temperature, precipitation)? Which is the role of leaf phenology and functional traits as drivers of stem radial increment responses to climate? Location A Tumbesian tropical dry forest in southern Ecuador. Methods We used a 12‐year database of stem radial increments to characterize intra‐ and inter‐annual patterns of secondary growth in 13 co‐existing dominant tree species. For each species, we adjusted an additive model to describe intra‐annual increment patterns and created a mean series of annual increments to describe inter‐annual changes. Adjusted increments were then correlated with monthly temperature and rainfall data over the study period, and also with the crown percentage covered by leaves. The role of functional traits (leaf area, wood density, maximum tree height, seed dry mass) was explored using average trait values per species. Results We observed continuous variation in the seasonality of radial increments, ranging from species that started incrementing their diameter as early as first rains occurred in the season to species that showed delayed responses. Variability in intra‐ and inter‐annual increment patterns was explained by functional traits (leaf area and seed dry mass, and maximum height and wood density, respectively) and leaf phenology, but this variation was not clearly matched with any functional trait configuration. This, combined with the absence of homogeneous responses of annual growth rates to climate, suggests the existence of contrasting strategies that virtually vary in a species‐specific fashion. Conclusions Co‐existing tree species in seasonally dry tropical forests show different growth strategies to face intra‐ and inter‐annual climate variations, which may increase the resilience of these forests against projected climatic variations.