Dry Season Den Use by Pygmy Spotted Skunk (Spilogale pygmaea) in a Tropical Deciduous Forest of Mexico

Resumen: Se describió el hábito alimentario del murciélago zapotero (Artibeus jamaicensis) en dos cuevas del estado de Yucatán, México, rodeadas con pequeños parches de vegetación nativa (selva baja caducifolia) y vegetación antropogénica (cultivos y huertos familiares) A pesar de los frutos de 28 especies fueron consumidos por los murciélagos, solamente cinco de ellas resultaron dominantes durante todo el año (Cecropia peltata, Solanum hirtum, Ficus spp. (dos especies) y Vitex gaumeri). Diez de las plantas consumidas por A. jamaicensis en este trabajo se reportan por primera vez en su dieta. Cerca de 12 especies fueron registradas en promedio por mes, con el valor más alto hacia finales de la época de lluvias (septiembre) y los valores más bajos cuando se inicia la temporada de menor precipitación (diciembre y enero). Las especies nativas tuvieron siempre una mayor aportación en el número y peso de semillas en la dieta de A. jamaicensis que las cultivadas (75-100% de cada mes), pero el consumo de ambos recursos muestra el oportunismo de la especie para adecuarse a hábitats perturbados.Abstract:Food preferences for the Jamaican fruit-eating bat (Artibeus jamaicensis) was documented during a year round in two caves of Yucatan, Mexico. Vegetation around the sites was classified as anthropogenic vegetation (crops and backyard house) and scarce remains of original forest (tropical deciduous forest). In spite of 28 species eaten by the Jamaican fruit-eating bat, only five comprise the bulk of the diet (Cecropia peltata, Solanum hirtum, Ficus spp. (two species), and Vitex gaumeri). Ten plant species were reported as the first time in the diet of A. jamaicensis. Around of 12 species were recording each month, with the high values at end of rain season (September) and the lower in the beginning at dry season (December and January). Fruits produced by native plants were preferred over cropped plants (75-100% of each month), but the both kinds of fruits presented in the feces demonstrate the opportunism of the species in disturbed areas.Palabras clave: Artibeus jamaicensis, hábito alimentario, Yucatán, selva baja caducifolia, vegetación secundaria, dominantes, cultivadas, no cultivadas.

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Seasonal effects on soil organic carbon dynamics in a tropical deciduous forest ecosystem in western Mexico

Journal of Tropical Ecology ◽

10.1017/s0266467403003201 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 19 (2) ◽

pp. 179-188 ◽

Cited By ~ 31

Author(s):

Felipe García-Oliva ◽

Biserka Sveshtarova ◽

Magdalena Oliva

Keyword(s):

Microbial Activity ◽

Forest Ecosystem ◽

Deciduous Forest ◽

Dry Season ◽

Soil Samples ◽

Seasonal Effects ◽

Tropical Deciduous Forest ◽

Wet Season ◽

Organic C ◽

Western Mexico

Our study examines the effect of seasonal rains on soil organic C dynamics in a tropical deciduous forest ecosystem in Western Mexico. At the end of the wet season, an accumulation of labile nutrient forms developed and was maintained during the dry season. This accumulation enhances microbial activity in the first rains of the wet season. For example, the litter samples of the dry season had a higher C and N mineralization than those of the wet season. Similarly, the January soil samples had higher C mineralization than October soil samples (55 and 34 μg C g-1 d-1, respectively). These results suggest that the quality of C is strongly affected by the seasonality of rains, which in turn influences microbial activity. This seasonality also influences nutrient redistribution between soil aggregate fractions. Chemical changes across seasons suggest that soil organic matter associated with macro-aggregates represents the main source of energy for microbial activity at the beginning of the wet season, while micro-aggregates protect the labile nutrient forms during the growing season.

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Tree-Ring Formation, Radial Increment Periodicity, and Phenology of Tree Species from a Seasonal Semi-Deciduous Forest in Southeast Brazil

IAWA Journal ◽

10.1163/22941932-90000179 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 29 (2) ◽

pp. 189-207 ◽

Cited By ~ 85

Author(s):

Claudio S. Lisi ◽

Mário Tomazello Fo ◽

Paulo C. Botosso ◽

Fidel A. Roig ◽

Vivian R.B. Maria ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Tree Rings ◽

Tree Species ◽

Deciduous Forest ◽

Growth Ring ◽

Climatic Conditions ◽

Dry Season ◽

Tree Age ◽

Radial Increment ◽

Future Studies ◽

Southeast Brazil

Many tropical tree species produce growth rings in response to seasonal environmental factors that influence the activity of the vascular cambium. We applied the following methods to analyze the annual nature of treering formation of 24 tree species from a seasonal semi-deciduous forest of southeast Brazil: describing wood anatomy and phenology, counting tree rings after cambium markings, and using permanent dendrometer bands. After 7 years of systematic observations and measurements, we found the following: the trees lost their leaves during the dry season and grew new leaves at the end of the same season; trunk increment dynamics corresponded to seasonal changes in precipitation, with higher increment (active period) during the rainy season (October–April) and lower increment (dormant period) during the dry season (May–September); the number of tree rings formed after injuries to the cambium coincided with the number of years since the extraction of the wood samples. As a result of these observations, it was concluded that most study trees formed one growth ring per year. This suggests that tree species from the seasonal semi-deciduous forests of Brazil have an annual cycle of wood formation. Therefore, these trees have potential for use in future studies of tree age and radial growth rates, as well as to infer ecological and regional climatic conditions. These future studies can provide important information for the management and conservation of these endangered forests.

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Paleoecological and archaeological implications of a Late Pleistocene/Early Holocene record of vegetation and climate from the Pacific coastal plain of Panama

Quaternary Research ◽

10.1016/s0033-5894(02)00021-2 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 59 (1) ◽

pp. 79-87 ◽

Cited By ~ 64

Author(s):

Dolores R. Piperno ◽

John G. Jones

Keyword(s):

Tropical Forest ◽

Late Pleistocene ◽

Coastal Plain ◽

Deciduous Forest ◽

Early Holocene ◽

Tropical Deciduous Forest ◽

Human Occupation ◽

Core Sediment ◽

The Pacific ◽

Holocene Record

AbstractA phytolith record from Monte Oscuro, a crater lake located 10 m above sea level on the Pacific coastal plain of Panama, shows that during the Late Pleistocene the lake bed was dry and savanna-like vegetation expanded at the expense of tropical deciduous forest, the modern potential vegetation. A significant reduction of precipitation below current levels was almost certainly required to effect the changes observed. Core sediment characteristics indicate that permanent inundation of the Monte Oscuro basin with water occurred at about 10,500 14C yr B.P. Pollen and phytolith records show that deciduous tropical forest expanded into the lake’s watershed during the early Holocene. Significant burning of the vegetation and increases of weedy plants at ca. 7500 to 7000 14C yr B.P. indicate disturbance, which most likely resulted from early human occupation of the seasonal tropical forest near Monte Oscuro and the development of slash-and-burn methods of cultivation.

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Wood Specific Gravity in Species from Two Tropical Forests in Mexico

IAWA Journal ◽

10.1163/22941932-90001041 ◽

1987 ◽

Vol 8 (2) ◽

pp. 143-148 ◽

Cited By ~ 37

Author(s):

Josefina Barajas-Morales

Keyword(s):

Specific Gravity ◽

Tropical Forests ◽

Tropical Rainforest ◽

Deciduous Forest ◽

Woody Species ◽

T Test ◽

Tropical Deciduous Forest ◽

Wood Specific Gravity ◽

Dry Deciduous Forest

The specific gravity of 220 woody species, half of them from a tropical rainforest, half from a tropical deciduous forest was measured. The two groups were compared using a Student t-test. The results show highly significant differences in specific gravity between the species from the two areas: woods from the dry deciduous forest tend to be much heavier than those from the rainforest.

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Successional Change and Resilience of a Very Dry Tropical Deciduous Forest Following Shifting Agriculture

Biotropica ◽

10.1111/j.1744-7429.2008.00398.x ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 40 (4) ◽

pp. 422-431 ◽

Cited By ~ 117

Author(s):

Edwin Lebrija-Trejos ◽

Frans Bongers ◽

Eduardo A. Pérez-García ◽

Jorge A. Meave

Keyword(s):

Deciduous Forest ◽

Tropical Deciduous Forest ◽

Shifting Agriculture ◽

Successional Change

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Inventario florístico del Cerro El Cebú y zonas adyacentes en la Reserva de la Biosfera El Triunfo (Polígono V), Chiapas, México

Botanical Sciences ◽

10.17129/botsci.1779 ◽

2017 ◽

pp. 21

Author(s):

Jorge Martínez-Meléndez ◽

Miguel Ángel Pérez-Farrera ◽

Oscar Farrera-Sarmiento

Keyword(s):

Plant Communities ◽

Rain Forest ◽

Tropical Rain Forest ◽

Deciduous Forest ◽

Cloud Forest ◽

Biosphere Reserve ◽

Red List ◽

Tropical Deciduous Forest ◽

Oak Forest

A total of 502 species that belong to 115 families and 301 genera were recorded for Mt. El Cebu and adjacent zones in Polygon V of the El Triunfo Biosphere Reserve. The most speciose families were Orchiclaceae, Fabaceae, Asteraceae, Bromeliaceae and polypodiaceae with 58, 29, 28, 17, and 17 species, respectively. Six plant communities were recognized in the area, among which the cloud forest was the most diverse with 234 species, followed by pine-oak fore st with 150 species, and the tropical rain forest with 127. The oak forest and the tropical deciduous forest were less diverse, with 71 and 39 species, respectively. Only 13 species are included in the Mexican red list of endangered taxa.

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Componentes fenológicos del sistema de cruzamiento monoico de Cnidoscolus spinosus (Euphorbiaceae) en Jalisco

Botanical Sciences ◽

10.17129/botsci.1256 ◽

2017 ◽

pp. 1

Author(s):

Stephen H. Bullock

Keyword(s):

Deciduous Forest ◽

Tropical Deciduous Forest ◽

Western Mexico ◽

Mature Period ◽

Individual Trees ◽

Female Flowers

A hierarchy of phenological features defines the opportunities for breeding in a population of Cnidoscolus spinosus in a tropical deciduous forest in western Mexico. On any one tree, inflorescences develop in rough synchrony and all present flowers of both sexes. Only female flowers develop at the lowest ranks of ramification but only males develop later. Overlap of the mature period of flowers of both sexes is uncommon on one inflorescence of between inflorescences : individual trees are functionally female or male at any moment. lnter-tree synchrony may thus reduce successful breeding. Asynchrony is achieved in part by differences in the onset of flowering, but also by variance in the lenght of individual flowering cycles. The occurrence of two or three cycles per tree during one season for the population increases its breeding opportunities.

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Análisis de crecimiento de tres especies de Caesalpinia (Leguminosae) de la selva baja caducifolia de Chamela, Jalisco

Botanical Sciences ◽

10.17129/botsci.1606 ◽

2017 ◽

pp. 5

Author(s):

Emmanuel Rincón ◽

Pilar Huante ◽

Mariana Álvarez-Añorve

Keyword(s):

Leaf Area ◽

Biomass Allocation ◽

Deciduous Forest ◽

Growth Period ◽

Growth Patterns ◽

Tropical Deciduous Forest ◽

Total Biomass ◽

Allocation Pattern ◽

Location Patterns ◽

Net Assimilation

The objective of this study is to assess the biomass allocation pattern s and growth characteristics of three species of Caesalpinia (Leguminosae) from the highly diverse and seasonal Chamela tropical deciduous forest , where the plant growth period is restricted to the rainy season. The studied species, although they are phylogenetically related, presented different biomass al location patterns and RGR during growth, in order to carry out a differential exploitation of resources and to promote their coexistence. There were differences in relative growth rate (RGR), root to shoot ratio (R/ S), net assimilation rate (E), biomass allocation patterns and total biomass and leaf area attained among the studied species. Caesalpinia eriostachys and C. platyloba showed similar growth patterns between them but contrasting with those of C. sclerocarpa. This suggests a temporal uncuopling of their maximum resource demand. RGR was determined to a greater extent by parameters related with E than by parameters related with the specific leaf area (SLA).

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