Estimating species-specific wood density from the genus average in Indonesian trees

Abstract

To be able to make accurate estimates of the carbon stocks present in the world's tropical forests, there is a growing need for accurate tree biomass estimations on large spatial scales (Chave et al. 2004, Cummings et al. 2002, Nascimento & Laurance 2004). Wood-specific gravity forms an important component of these biomass estimations (Baker et al. 2004, Magcale-Macandog 2004, Nogueira et al. 2005). Even though Chave et al. (2004) found that the most important source of error in above-ground biomass estimation (AGB) is currently related to the choice of allometric model, Baker et al. (2004) show that for two estimates of AGB in Amazonian forests derived using different allometric equations, stand-level specific wood gravity still explained 45.4% and 29.7% of the total variation in AGB.