Current issue: 58(4)

Scopus CiteScore 2023: 3.5
Scopus ranking of open access forestry journals: 17th
PlanS compliant
Select issue
Silva Fennica 1926-1997
1990-1997
1980-1989
1970-1979
1960-1969
Acta Forestalia Fennica
1953-1968
1933-1952
1913-1932

Articles containing the keyword 'tropical rainforest'

Category : Research article

article id 10019, category Research article
Junyan Liu, Junfeng Tang, Si-Chong Chen, Wenbao Ma, Zheng Zheng, Tingfa Dong. (2019). Do tree cavity density and characteristics vary across topographical habitats in the tropics? A case study from Xishuangbanna, southwest China. Silva Fennica vol. 53 no. 1 article id 10019. https://doi.org/10.14214/sf.10019
Keywords: heterogeneity; cavity-dependant animals; tropical rainforest; biodiversity conservation
Highlights: Cavities were significantly more abundant in high- and low-slope than high-plateau habitats; There are more “butt hollow” cavities in high-slope habitat and they occurred at a lower height; More “crack” cavities in low-slope habitat and they had a narrower entrance diameter; Certain types of cavities are concentrated in specific habitats, which provide opportunities for forest management and biodiversity conservation.
Abstract | Full text in HTML | Full text in PDF | Author Info

Despite the influence of cavities on the survival and distribution of cavity-dependent fauna, the variation in the density and characteristics of tree cavities across different habitat types in tropical forests is unknown. In this study, we surveyed 26 312 living trees from 376 species and compared cavity density and characteristics (height, size, type, and orientation) across five habitat types (valley, low-slope, high-slope, high-gully, and high-plateau) in a 20-hectare tropical rainforest in southwest China. From a total of 2047 cavities, we found that cavity density was mainly driven by habitat rather than tree species richness or diameter at breast height (DBH), and the characteristics of cavities were not uniformly distributed across habitats. Cavities were significantly more abundant in high- and low-slope than high-plateau habitats. Compared with other habitats, more “butt hollow” cavity types were found in high-slope habitat and they occurred at a lower tree height, whereas more “crack” cavities were found in low-slope habitat and they had a narrower entrance diameter. Although the mean orientation of cavities faced towards the northeast, cavity orientation varied significantly across habitat types. Our results indicate that certain types of cavities are concentrated in specific habitat types, which can provide avenues for forest management and biodiversity conservation. We highlight the importance of habitat heterogeneity in providing resources for cavity nesters.

  • Liu, Key Laboratory of Southwest China Wildlife Resources Conservation of Ministry of Education, Key Laboratory of Environmental Science and Biodiversity Conservation (Sichuan Province) and Institute of Plant Adaptation and Utilization in Southwest Mountains, China West Normal University, Nanchong, Sichuan 637009, China; Key Laboratory of Tropical Forest Ecology, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Mengla, Yunnan 666303, China E-mail: liujunyan2300@163.com
  • Tang, Key Laboratory of Southwest China Wildlife Resources Conservation of Ministry of Education, Key Laboratory of Environmental Science and Biodiversity Conservation (Sichuan Province) and Institute of Plant Adaptation and Utilization in Southwest Mountains, China West Normal University, Nanchong, Sichuan 637009, China E-mail: jft@nn.ch
  • Chen, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Wakehurst Place, West Sussex RH17 6TN, UK; Mitrani Department of Desert Ecology, Swiss Institute for Dryland Environmental and Energy Research, Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Midreshet Ben-Gurion, Beer-Sheva 8499000, Israel E-mail: chensichong0528@gmail.com
  • Ma, Ecological Restoration and Conservation of Forests and Wetlands Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Sichuan Academy of Forestry, Chengdu 610081, China E-mail: mawenbao_2000@126.com
  • Zheng, Key Laboratory of Tropical Forest Ecology, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Mengla, Yunnan 666303, China E-mail: dioeco@outlook.com
  • Dong, Key Laboratory of Southwest China Wildlife Resources Conservation of Ministry of Education, Key Laboratory of Environmental Science and Biodiversity Conservation (Sichuan Province) and Institute of Plant Adaptation and Utilization in Southwest Mountains, China West Normal University, Nanchong, Sichuan 637009, China E-mail: dongtf@aliyun.com (email)

Register
Click this link to register to Silva Fennica.
Log in
If you are a registered user, log in to save your selected articles for later access.
Contents alert
Sign up to receive alerts of new content
Your selected articles