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The population structure of the vascular epiphytes in a lowland forest in Panama correlates with species abundance

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 April 2007

Gerhard Zotz
Gerhard Zotz
Affiliation:
Functional Ecology Group, University of Oldenburg, D-26111 Oldenburg, Germany, and Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Balboa, Panama
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Abstract

The long-term dynamics of epiphyte communities are little studied although such baseline data are urgently needed, in particular in the context of global change. Census data of a vascular epiphyte community from 0.4 ha of undisturbed lowland forest in Panama were used to infer future changes in community composition by deducing population growth from the current size class structure of populations. The study includes 11 387 individuals out of 45 species, ranging in abundance from 16 to 1568 individuals. There was a significant negative correlation between the size of a population and the steepness of the size distribution, indicating that more common species are likely to increase in abundance in the future, while rarer species apparently depend on immigration from other populations to allow local persistence.

Keywords

BromeliaceaeOrchidaceaepopulation dynamicsraritySan Lorenzo crane sitesize class structuretropical forests
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Tropical Ecology , Volume 23 , Issue 3 , May 2007 , pp. 337 - 342
Copyright
2007 Cambridge University Press

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