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Little is known about the composition of tropical epiphytic communities and the influence of environmental variables on community composition. In this thesis I quantify the diversity and biomass of bromeliads, and other vascular epiphytes along an altitudinal transect on the eastern slope of the southeast Peruvian Andes and then look for species’ adaptations related to patterns of diversity and biomass. I compare patterns with those of woody species. Bromeliad species, like tree species, were found to form ecological zones related to climate. The lowest altitude ecological zone (below 1250 m) is the lowland rainforest (LRF), which has the warmest climate and highest evapotranspiration. In LRF vascular epiphytes are less prominent than other ecological zones, with the lowest bromeliad species richness and lowest vascular epiphyte biomass. However, low water-availability gives rise to most variable shoot morphology of bromeliads. The tropical montane forest (TMF), between 1250 m and 2250 m, is intermediate in climate between the LRF and the tropical montane cloud forest (TCF). The TMF has the highest α-diversity, but species richness is lower than the TCF. The shoot morphology of bromeliads is intermediate between TCF and LRF. The highest altitude ecological zone with forest is the TCF (above 2250 m). The TCF has the highest bromeliad species richness, and lowest diversity of shoot forms. The low diversity of shoot forms represents the need for a large phytotelm (water-impounding shoot) to intercept and store precipitation. The TCF has the highest vascular epiphyte biomass, although the biomass is variable as a consequence of the natural disturbance caused by landslides. Along the transect bromeliad species with CAM photosynthesis are only present in the LRF. Terrestrial bromeliad distribution records covering the Neotropics show CAM photosynthesis is more prevalent in drier environments showing that CAM photosynthesis is primarily an adaptation to drought. Epiphytic bromeliads, pre-adapted to a water-stressed environment show no differences in presence along rainfall gradients, but species with CAM photosynthesis occupy warmer environments.

Japan is one of the world’s 34 biodiversity hotspots, according to Conservation International (CI). The methods used by various organisations to define priorities differ, however, and all have weaknesses when trying to identify hotspots at finer resolutions. The goal of this thesis is to investigate how biodiversity hotspots in Japan could be revealed and mapped in order to encapsulate conservation elements of biodiversity in practical ways and at various scales. Bioquality is a term that emphasises the concentration within a community of elements of biodiversity with high conservation value. It evaluates the global rarity and taxonomic distinctiveness of plant species or infra-specific taxa using four Star categories. At a plant community level, the Genetic Heat Index (GHI), which is a standardised global range size rarity score, is calculated using weighted Star statuses of species in the community. Bioquality hotspots are assessed here for the first time for the flora and vegetation in Japan – and for temperate Asia – by categorising the Japanese flora into Stars and by applying GHI to survey data and literature-based sources. Keys to Stars are developed for the Japanese flora, with adjustments for variability in species geographic range size information and for taxonomic relatedness. A Flora of Japan (FOJ) database was compiled as a BRAHMS database, containing 8,262 accepted names (30,656 taxon names in total, including synonyms) in 258 families – the first full database of Japanese vascular plants. A total of 7,145 taxa are assigned Stars; from the rarest to the widespread class, there are 884 Black, 756 Gold, 833 Blue, and 4,672 Green Star taxa, confirming that Japan as a whole contains a high proportion of globally rare taxa (23% taxa in Black or Gold). A protocol for calibrating the weight of Stars based on species geographic range is developed based on fine-resolution distribution maps within Japan and coarse–resolution Taxonomic Database Working Group (TDWG) code information. The protocol optimises calculation for temperate regions. The first ever bioquality hotspot maps of Japan are produced using two independent data sources on species distribution at national level: 1) 50 botanical prefectures using 4,830 species from the FOJ database; 2) 1,418 Horikawa ‘geoquadrats’ (0.1° latitude by 0.15° longitude grid) maps covering 829 species. The Ryukyu Islands and Ogasawara Islands are identified as bioquality hotspots, and high mountain ranges in mainland Japan are predicted to contain areas potentially high in GHI; the spatial patterns of GHI are generally concordant between maps of different resolutions. These findings highlight that bioquality assessment can be applied meaningfully at various spatial resolutions. Using field sampling data and existing literature, three study sites are further investigated on a local level: 1) the satochi-satoyama landscape, the current national priority area for biodiversity conservation; 2) various vegetation types of Okinawa-jima Island, the Ryukyu Islands; and 3) the Utaki sacred groves within the predicted hotspot of the Ryukyu Islands. The Ryukyu Islands are confirmed to contain bioquality hotspots within many individual sites, while there was generally low GHI across the satochi-satoyama landscape. The field study outcomes, together with a gap analysis of the existing coverage of protected areas, highlight three important points that are directly relevant to national biodiversity conservation planning: 1) the Ryukyu Islands urgently need newly designated protected areas; 2) the satochi-satoyama landscape conservation should redirect its focus on cultural benefits to the public; 3) the existing protected areas, particularly on mountain areas, need re-evaluation in terms of upgrading their status in light of the bioquality assessment.

As society's demands for goods and services from forests increase, there is a corresponding increase in demand for high quality science which can help shape forestry policies for the sustainable management of natural resources. Forestry research is now undertaken in a very diverse range of institutions. The increased outputs from researchers in domains other than traditional forestry schools have not been matched by systematic methods of utilising new or existing information for policy or to identify future research needs that reflect the priorities of people in forestry's extended networks. An analysis of academic papers and informal articles indicated that the term 'evidence-based' is widely used in environmental literature, matching the rates of popularity of the term 'evidence-based medicine', but without the rigorous methodological processes that medicine has adopted to justify the phrase. Two strands of participatory research were undertaken to examine the potential for adopting rigorous evidence-based frameworks for forestry. The first focussed on a process for identifying important questions for policy-focussed forestry research. Using a combination of internet-based surveys and a workshop, some 480 people representing broad interests in the UK forestry sector set out a priority list of research questions. In the second, a group of international researchers and policy makers explored the possibility of using systematic reviews for validating the evidence base for carbon stock assessment under the REDD (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation) process. The results indicate that there is capacity to collaborate to frame questions and critically appraise evidence for important policy issues. The longer-term benefits of adopting gold-standard systematic reviews are clear, however, there are also short-term advantages to be gained from moving incrementally towards this goal. In the aftermath of society's concerns about possible manipulation of science by experts (in the climate science arena), it would be folly for the forestry sector to ignore the benefits that would accrue from adopting genuinely evidence-based procedures for matters of global significance.