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The proportion of damaged trees and the type caused by the selective thinning can have serious impacts on the ecological and economic sustainability of forests. So far, the damage caused by thinning operations in montane tropical forests is unknown. In this study, we try to quantify the damages caused by selective thinning in two types of humid montane forests in southern Ecuador. For this, we installed 52 permanent plots of 50 m x 50 m in two force types. In the valley forest (VF), we extracted an average basal area of 2.75 m² ha–1, in the ridge forest (RF) an average basal area of 0.8 m² ha–1 was extracted. For each felled tree, we counted and categorized the damage separated by large (>20cm DBH) and small ( 20 cm. The extracted basal area significantly influences the proportion of (TD) trees with DBH < 20 cm. In general, the proportion of temporarily damaged (TD) trees is greater than the proportion of permanently damaged (PD) trees in both types of forest. Considering only the heavily damaged trees we can conclude that the damage in total is acceptable.

The main objective of this study was to determine the heterogeneity of tropical mountain rain forests along a micro-altitudinal gradient scale, integrating species functional traits in the separation of communities. To achieve this, a forest area of 13 ha in the Biological Reserve of San Francisco was monitored. First, we performed non-metric multidimensional analyses, and afterwards, we looked for correlations between plot altitude and characteristics of the forest (basal area, the number of species, the number of trees ≥20 cm diameter at breast height, per hectare, the forest canopy opening) were associated. To determine which characteristics significantly influence the separation of forest “communities”, we used a multivariate canonical correspondence analysis (CCA). Finally, we carried out the “Four Corners” analysis, combining abundance matrices, traits and environmental variables. We confirmed that the altitude and some associated characteristics are the key factors for the formation of two forest types. In addition, we determined that the inclusion of species functional traits confirms the separation of forest communities, and that elevation and its associated environmental variables function over relatively small areas and scales.

Conversion of tropical forests is among the primary causes of global environmental change. The loss of their important environmental services has prompted calls to integrate ecosystem services (ES) in addition to socio-economic objectives in decision-making. To test the effect of accounting for both ES and socio-economic objectives in land-use decisions, we develop a new dynamic approach to model deforestation scenarios for tropical mountain forests. We integrate multi-objective optimization of land allocation with an innovative approach to consider uncertainty spaces for each objective. These uncertainty spaces account for potential variability among decision-makers, who may have different expectations about the future. When optimizing only socio-economic objectives, the model continues the past trend in deforestation (1975–2015) in the projected land-use allocation (2015–2070). Based on indicators for biomass production, carbon storage, climate and water regulation, and soil quality, we show that considering multiple ES in addition to the socio-economic objectives has heterogeneous effects on land-use allocation. It saves some natural forest if the natural forest share is below 38%, and can stop deforestation once the natural forest share drops below 10%. For landscapes with high shares of forest (38%–80% in our study), accounting for multiple ES under high uncertainty of their indicators may, however, accelerate deforestation. For such multifunctional landscapes, two main effects prevail: (a) accelerated expansion of diversified non-natural areas to elevate the levels of the indicators and (b) increased landscape diversification to maintain multiple ES, reducing the proportion of natural forest. Only when accounting for vascular plant species richness as an explicit objective in the optimization, deforestation was consistently reduced. Aiming for multifunctional landscapes may therefore conflict with the aim of reducing deforestation, which we can quantify here for the first time. Our findings are relevant for identifying types of landscapes where this conflict may arise and to better align respective policies.

Information about nutrient dynamics is of upmost importance in order to contribute to the restoration of degraded forest environments in the Andes of southern Ecuador. This study aims to investigate the differences of nutrient dynamics between a native alder (Alnus acuminata) and an exotic pine (Pinus patula) tree species in this region. Based on litterfall, forest floor and mineral topsoil (0–20 cm) of two pine and two alder plantations, we studied the litterfall production and its seasonality; temporal variations of nutrient concentrations, stoichiometric ratios and potential nutrient return (PNR) of leaf-litterfall; mean residence times (MRT) of nutrients in the forest floor; and assessed soil biogeochemical properties. Our results showed that total litterfall production in pine was twice as high as in alder. Litterfall biomass seasonality was similar for both species and highly associated to periods with less precipitation. Pine exhibited the highest seasonality of nutrient concentrations and stoichiometric ratios. PNR of N, K, Ca, and Mn exhibited the major differences between the species. The annual PNR of N and Ca were higher in alder, while those of K and Mn were higher in pine. Pine exhibited higher MRT values for C, N, P, S, Cu, and Zn, while alder showed the higher for Mg, K, Mn, and Ca. In soils, alder exhibited higher concentrations and stocks of nutrients, but not for C. Although, the soil microbial biomass was similar under both species, microbial activity was different. C and net N mineralization were higher in alder, and nitrification dominated over ammonification processes. In general, our findings show a faster cycling of nutrients in alder than in pine.

Background Global species extinction rates due to forest conversions are increasing. Ecologists, conservationists and governments have adopted various conservation methods. Sacred grove is one conservation option that has gained attention in recent time. We assessed understory species diversity, regeneration and recruitment potentials of four sacred groves in southwestern Nigeria. Overstory tree species were inventoried in eight 800m2 temporary sample plots, systematically laid along two transects of 1000m each. Understory tree species were assessed in 100m2 plots for saplings and 25m2 plots for seedlings in all sample plots. Results Shannon-Wiener diversity index (1.8-3.46 (overstory); 2.65-3.55 (understory)), number of species (32-58 (overstory); 39-78 (understory)) and tree density (309-417 individuals/ha (overstory); 775-1445 individuals/ha (understory)) were comparable and/or higher at the understories than the overstories. Dbh distribution curves showed highest stand density at the lowest class (10–20 cm) and decreased with increasing dbh, indicating good regeneration status and healthy ecosystem. Regeneration was considered good and fair, because in most cases, number of seedlings > saplings > overstory trees or number of seedlings > saplings ≤ overstory trees. The good regeneration status was further confirmed by the good species recruitment in the understory. Some tree species were found to be unique to some sacred groves while some species that were absent in protected forests existed in the groves. The presence of these unique tree species indicated the potential of sacred groves in conserving important tree species. The high regeneration could be attributed to strict access restrictions in the groves, and the taboos and myths feared by the people. However, the high influx of people into sacred groves for festivals and rituals, which results in trampling and burning of seedlings, is a threat to the diversity, regeneration and recruitment potentials of the groves.Conclusion High regeneration and recruitment status maintained in all the sacred groves in this study were achieved using taboos, cultural and traditional methods. These methods could be incorporated in managing forest reserves in Southwestern Nigeria.

Background: The impact of selective thinning on forest diversity has been extensively studied in temperate and boreal regions. However, in the tropics, knowledge is still poor regarding the impacts of this silvicultural treatment on functional diversity, especially in tropical mountain forests, which are considered to be highly biodiverse ecosystems and also endangered by human activities. By evaluating the changes on functional diversity by using different indicators, hypothesizing that selective thinning significantly affects (directly or indirectly) tropical mountain forests, this work promotes sustainable ecosystem use. Methods: A total of 52 permanent plots of 2500 m2 each were installed in a primary mountain forest in the San Francisco Biological Reserve to assess the impact of this silvicultural treatment. Selective thinning can be defined as a controlled process, in which trees that compete with ecologically and/or valuable timber species are progressively removed to stimulate the development of profitable ones, called potential crop trees (PCT). In doing so, the best specimens remain in the forest stand until their final harvest. After PCT selection, 30 plots were chosen for the intervention, while 22 plots served as control plots. The thinning intensity fluctuated between 4 and 56 trees ha&minus, 1 (average 18.8 &plusmn, 12.1 stems ha&minus, 1). Functional Diversity (FD) indices, including the community weighted mean (CWM), were determined based on six traits using the FD package implemented in R software. The difference between initial and final conditions of functional richness (FRic), functional divergence (FDiv), functional evenness (FEve), functional dispersion (FDis), and Rao quadratic entropy (RaoQ) was modeled using linear mixed models (LMM). As fixed factors, we used all the predictors inherent to structural and ecological forest conditions before and after the selective thinning and as a random variable, we used the membership to nested sampling units. Results: Functional Richness (FRic) showed significant changes after selective thinning, the other indexes (FEve, FDis, FDiv, RaoQ) were only influenced by predictors related to ecological conditions and characteristics of the community.

The Chernobyl fallout of 1986 contaminated soils in Southern Germany. Levels of 137Cs activity still remain high in forest soils. The contamination of forest food products still poses a serious problem for consumer health. Silvicultural interventions may offer an option to reduce the bioavailability of 137Cs. The objective of this study is to investigate a possible effect of canopy opening and clearcutting as well as the selection of conifers and broadleaves for stand regeneration on the vertical soil profile of 137Cs. The investigation uses a long-term silvicultural experiment on the artificial regeneration of a spruce stand 30 km southwest of the town Augsburg, Germany. 12 years after silvicultural intervention soil samples were taken horizon-wise and analysed to compare among the treatments. A suite of soil physical and chemical properties was determined per horizon including 137Cs radioactivity, total carbon, texture, and cation exchange capacity. The results show that (i) the 137Cs contamination at this site is high compared to other sites in Central Europe, (ii) regeneration cuttings did not markedly change the vertical 137Cs profile in general within one decade, (iii) clear cutting modified the boundary between the organic soil layer and the mineral soil with expectable effects on the future 137Cs bioavailability.

Central Europe's temperate forests are heavily shaped by centuries of human activity. Their natural vegetation, mainly consisting of beech-dominated (Fagus sylvatica) deciduous forests, has been widely replaced by more profitable species grown outside of their natural ranges. This has strongly influenced forest-dwelling communities. Necessary adaptations to changing climatic conditions and the increasing demand for forest ecosystem multifunctionality are reversing these shifts in tree species composition. Integrative approaches that seek to balance production and conservation goals promote mixed forests of beech with spruce (Picea abies), pine (Pinus sylvestris), or oak (Quercus spp.). These mixed forests more closely resemble the natural vegetation and have reduced vulnerability to disturbances compared to coniferous monocultures, but higher commercial value compared to pure beech forests. However, our understanding of how different levels of admixture of commercially relevant tree species to beech forests affect multi-trophic diversity and community composition remains limited. We investigated herbaceous plants, fungi, oribatid mites, springtails, true bugs, beetles, birds and bats in 41 mature forest stands differing in tree species composition. We assessed the effects of admixtures on abundances and alpha and gamma diversity, i.e. the total number of species per forest type, and a measure of multidiversity by comparing reference beech stands with stands containing varying proportions of admixed species. At the plot level, the proportion of admixtures was especially important regarding oak and pine. Increasing shares of oak positively affected birds, true bugs and herbivorous beetles. Increasing shares of pine benefitted herbivorous true bugs and understory plants but negatively affected other true bugs, bats, and litter-decomposing fungi. Spruce admixture resulted in higher saproxylic beetle and bird diversity. At the landscape level, admixture significantly increased gamma diversity in plants, mycorrhizal and litter decomposing fungi and herbivorous and saproxylic beetles. Only springtail gamma diversity decreased in the presence of admixture. Admixture also significantly altered community composition for six out of 13 taxa. Indicator species were found for all forest types, and seven species groups included species significantly associated with pure beech stands. Our results indicate that forestry decisions determine forest biodiversity across trophic levels via tree species composition, combining habitat heterogeneity effects and tree species-specific associations. Even low shares of admixed species affect local abundances and diversity. By displacing some species while benefitting others, admixing also alters community composition. This study provides a basis for estimating how altering tree species composition in Central European forests changes the diversity and composition of forest communities.

Both in Germany and in China, there is strong expertise regarding the different aspects of forest management, as well as forest products management. Nevertheless, forestry in both countries is facing challenges, some of which are regional, but many of which are shared. Therefore, experts from both countries (Technical University of Munich Germany; Northwest A&F University Yangling, China; Forestry Academy of Shaanxi, China; Thünen Institut, Germany; FEDRC GIZ Forest Policy Facility (Forestry Economics Development and Research Center of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH), Germany; and Center for Natural Forest Protection in Shaanxi, China) met to share their knowledge and deduce recommendations for future multifunctional forest management for the temperate zone. The workshop, held at the Northwest A&F University in September 2018, included presentations and intensive discussions, as well as a field tour. The results of the workshop that are summarized in this white paper are meant to provide an overview of the multi-faceted nature of the topic for interested scientists and forest practitioners, describe tools that can be used to analyze various aspects of multifunctionality and, in an exemplary fashion, highlight gathered experience from long- and short-term experiments. Included are social demands, economic goals, and scientific baselines. The topics reach from economic evaluations of forest ecosystem services over forest management practices, including afforestation, restoration, and preparations to face climate change, to wood/forest products utilization and participation of local people for poverty reduction. Overall, an optimistic picture emerges, showing that by using adapted forest management practices, which try to embrace the concept of multifunctionality, various use schemes and demands can be integrated at single sites, allowing us to achieve both environmental protection and productive forests, including societal demands, as well as aspects of tradition and national identity.

In Central Europe, the predominant conservation strategy in forests is integrative management, seeking to balance economic interests with conservation goals. This is complemented by unmanaged strict forest reserves, most often small and with a history of forest management. Whether and how such reserves contribute to conservation when the surrounding forest is under progressive integrative management remains unclear. We compared forest structure and biodiversity of several taxa between formerly managed forest reserves and stands under progressive integrative management in beech and beech-oak forests. Alpha diversity was higher in reserves for birds and bats and higher in managed stands for plants and beetles, with no significant differences for fungi. Community composition differed between reserves and managed stands for plants, wood-decomposing fungi, beetles and birds. Reserves had 17 indicator species, including three red-listed species, and managed stands had 34, including one red-listed species. Diversity metrics differed between reserves and managed stands for both beech and beech-oak forests. Our results indicate that progressive integrative management and reserves, even when located in formerly managed stands, are complementary approaches benefitting different taxa and hosting partly different communities. Higher numbers of plants and beetles in managed stands were associated with higher light availability, as reserves in our study were undisturbed mature stands characterized by low light availability and low deadwood volumes. To benefit light and deadwood demanding species, new reserves should include early or late successional stands. If this is not feasible, restoration measures prior to designation or where possible under current protection status should be discussed.

Few studies have analysed the effect of silvicultural treatments on tree growth in tropical montane forests (TMF). These forests have strong topographic gradients, which influence growth rates and can potentially interact with silvicultural treatments. The present study investigated the relative effects of silvicultural treatments and topography on growth rates at the tree level in a TMF. For this, we combined two distinct data sources: (1) field data from a silvicultural experiment in the Andes of southern Ecuador where liberation thinnings, i.e. the removal of the strongest crown competitors, were applied to potential crop trees (PCT) in 2004; and (2) topographic variables obtained from a high-resolution digital terrain model created from an airborne LIDAR survey. We fitted all data in a single linear mixed-effect model. Based on monitoring data from 174 released and 200 reference PCTs of 8 timber species, we calculated periodic annual increment (PAI) in DBH 6 years after the silvicultural treatment as our outcome variable. As topographic predictors, we used elevation and a topographic position index. To control for the by-species growth variability we included random intercepts for species and random slopes for the effect of treatment on species in our model. PAI was significantly influenced by the topographic predictors. Over the elevational gradient, growth rates declined on average by 0.73 mm a−1 per 100 m increase in elevation. For the topographic position, PCTs in valleys had an average PAI of 2.02 mm a−1 compared to 1.04 mm a−1 on ridges. The effect of the silvicultural treatment across all species was only marginally significant, but its effect size was nevertheless within the range, but at the lower end of values reported for other tropical forest ecosystems (reference trees: 1.35 mm a−1; released trees: 1.60 mm a−1). Between species, baseline growth rates as well as the treatment effect varied considerably. Best linear unbiased predictions of species effects suggested that 5 species responded positively to the silvicultural treatment, whereas 3 species showed no treatment effect. Overall, tree growth varied substantially as indicated by the large residual variance that remained unaccounted for in the model. Our findings indicate that positive effects of silvicultural treatments in TMF are likely to exist, but that they are possibly obfuscated by strong topographical gradients and large between-tree growth variability. Overall, our results suggest that “broad-brush” management prescriptions are not suited for sustainable forest management of TMF. Instead, granular and spatially explicit prescriptions that take the strong impact of topography on diameter growth as well as species-specific responses to silvicultural treatments into account should be favoured.

Research Highlights: The study determined that selective thinning causes different responses, the initial size of the tree released is an influential factor in the growth of species. The temporality of climate and physiological conditions of each species are influential in the growth. It is evident that the defoliation of certain species is an important factor that limits the growth of the species causing thinning to have a negative response. Background and Objectives: The objective is to analyze the behavior of nine timber species, respective to diametric growth after their liberation. This research aims to answer the following questions: (i) How do the selected tree species react to the liberation? (ii) Can the productivity of the trees (diametric growth) be enhanced by liberation? (iii) Are there other factors that influence the diametric growth of the released trees? Materials and Methods: The study was executed in the “Reserva Biológica San Francisco” were 488 trees were monitored, including nine timber species. Therefore, 197 trees were released (removal of competitors) and 251 trees served as reference. To check whether the initial DBH or other factors, like the selective thinning or climate conditions, determine the diameter growth a linear mixed model GLMM was applied. To adjust the linear mixed model a one-way Anova test was executed. Results: Timber species responded differently to the thinning in comparing to reference trees. Therefore, the species analyzed were separated into three groups (positive, negative, and no response to liberation). Conclusions: Liberation potentiates the growth of certain timber species that do not defoliate and considered semi-tolerant to shade. Precipitation and temperature affect all species, but in the defoliate species, it would not be convenient to release them or at least the evidence of these first three years does not show clear differences with control trees. Increase in trees released are higher in trees of the first two diametric classes in all species, this means that larger trees (i.e., older) release does not affect them in a positive way so release should occur in the youngest trees.

Tropical forests contain many tree species that have supplied edible fruits for centuries. These fruits have contributed to human diets due to their richness in nutrients, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and their low anti-nutrients content. We investigated the antioxidant, nutritional and anti-nutritional composition of Garcinia kola and Chrysophyllum albidum fruit parts. The nutritional, anti-nutritional and antioxidant compositions differed depending on the fruit part. Irrespective of fruit part, moisture content was high (72–93 %). While the edible part (fruit pulp) of C. albidum proved a better source of protein (4), fibre (17 %) and fat (2 %), the seed kernel was a better source of ash (2 %) and carbohydrate (15 %). Carbohydrate (22 %), protein (2 %), fat (1 %) and fibre (3 %) were higher in G. kola seed kernel (edible part) than in the pulp and pod. Anti-nutrient content in G. kola and C. albidum fruits was low, indicating that their consumption would not pose nutritional or health problems. The antioxidant compositions (especially phenolic content (10–21 mg·g−1) and DPPH (1,1-diphenyl–2 picrylhydrazyl) (26–55 %)) of C. albidum fruit pulp and G. kola seed kernel were high, implying that they could be good sources of natural antioxidants and could be used as supplements in food manufacturing.

With the implementation of collective forest tenure reform in China in the 1980s, increasing the area under household forest has great importance in terms of forest production, environmental protection and farmers’ income growth. The scale and usage of household forests is a critical issue that concerns the methods and efficiency of forest management. By conducting a socio-economic survey of 175 households, this paper examines the status of household forestry as well as its utilization in Shangnan County, northern China, and the way in which farmers and their local forest authority interact. Approximately 80 % of households were found to have forest land. Among households which had forestry, nearly half had a forest area of 1 μ (0.07 ha) or less. Fuelwood for household use was the main product of household forests. About 70 % of households regarded fuelwood as their main energy source. Socio-economic factors including financial situation, household size, occupation and educational level of householder were not significantly correlated with the energy choice or the amount of fuelwood consumed. In order to improve the development of household forests, it is necessary to promote better communication between households and forest authorities. The coppice system appears to be a useful forest management strategy because it not only maintains continuous forest cover but also satisfies the high demand for fuelwood in this county.

Tropical forests contain many nutritionally and socio-economically important fruit tree species. Farm-level tree growth characteristics, fruit phenotype and market potentials of Chrysophyllum albidum, Irvingia gabonensis and Garcinia kola in rainforest and derived savanna ecosystems of Nigeria were assessed. Growth measurements were made on 100 trees of each species from 10 villages. Questionnaires were used to obtain information from farmers and marketers of the species at farm-gate, urban and rural markets. Mean tree age varied from 19.5 to 43.5 years, with trees in rainforest being older than those in derived savanna. Between 40% and 80% of the species in derived savanna were planted by farmers, whereas only 2–6% of the species were planted in rainforest. C. albidum and I. gabonensis trees in rainforest were significantly older, taller and larger with deeper crowns than those in derived savanna. Although farming of fruit trees is male dominated (76.2–92.3%), marketing of their products is female domina...

As conservationists develop strategies for managing coarse woody debris in natural areas information on the volume and distribution of deadwood in relatively undisturbed forests provides a valuable baseline for management goals. Hyrcanian mixed hardwood forests, within middle elevations of the Alborz Mountains bordering the Caspian Sea in northern Iran, experience few human disturbances and provide an ideal study site to examine woody debris in a mature forest. This study had three object tives: (1) measure volume of coarse and fine woody debris in Hyrcanian mixed hardwood forests; (2) compare density of forms of coarse woody debris (stumps, logs, and snags); and (3) correlate volume of living trees with volume of coarse woody debris. To sample the density and volume of dead wood, 15 plots of 1 ha (coarse woody debris) and 15 plots of 4 m2 (fine woody debris) were established. Coarse woody debris had an average volume of 15 m3 ha-1 and fine woody debris had an average of 10 m3 ha-1. The most comm...

The southern of the Shaanxi Province in central China is a region of great magnitude for water conservation. Long term anthropogenic interference in terms of deforestation and inappropriate land use has dramatically accelerated soil erosion in this region. A field experiment in the Shangnan County using 33 small erosion plots of 7 m2 in size was carried out to determine and compare the soil loss and surface runoff from five vegetation covers and three levels of slope gradient (> 10°–≤ 20°, > 20°–≤ 30°, and > 30°). The five vegetation covers embraced the most frequent rural land-use forms in the study area: farmlands including horticulture (tea plantation with peanut as an intercrop) and agriculture (maize in a winter-wheat–summer-maize rotation) activities, grasslands that have developed on abandoned farmlands, and forestlands including low and high forests (Chinese cork-oak coppices and pine plantations, respectively). The change in the runoff among the vegetation covers and slope gradients was high but not as significantly pronounced as for the change in the soil loss. Results showed that the slope gradient has an impact on the runoff and soil loss: the greater the slope gradient the higher the potential for runoff and soil loss. In addition, results exhibited that the rate of erosion is substantially affected by changes in vegetation cover. Farmlands generated the highest runoff and soil loss, whereas the tea plantations at slopes > 30° were most susceptible to erosion. Grasslands had less runoff and soil loss than farmlands. Forestlands provided evidence for their suitability for soil and water conservation in the study area, as negligible soil-losses in comparison to the other vegetation covers were generated.

High landscape diversity is assumed to increase the number and level of ecosystem services. However, the interactions between ecosystem service provision, disturbance and landscape composition are poorly understood. Here we present a novel approach to include uncertainty in the optimization of land allocation for improving the provision of multiple ecosystem services. We refer to the rehabilitation of abandoned agricultural lands in Ecuador including two types of both afforestation and pasture rehabilitation, together with a succession option. Our results show that high compositional landscape diversity supports multiple ecosystem services (multifunction effect). This implicitly provides a buffer against uncertainty. Our work shows that active integration of uncertainty is only important when optimizing single or highly correlated ecosystem services and that the multifunction effect on landscape diversity is stronger than the uncertainty effect. This is an important insight to support a land-use planning based on ecosystem services., Land use becomes more diverse when it considers uncertain interactions of multiple ecosystem services. Here, Knoke and colleagues show that uncertainty plays a larger role if ecosystem services are optimized only for a single service, or if services correlate.

© 2016, Erdkunde. All rights reserved. Availability and improved access to high-resolution digital terrain models (DTM) enables new approaches for the analysis of spatially explicit biological data. In this study, the spatial distribution of 16 tree species in a tropical mountain rain forest in South Ecuador and its relationship with topographic variables was evaluated at a fine-scale ecological level using two presence-only species distribution modelling techniques: The maximum entropy model (Maxent) and the ecological niche factor analysis (ENFA). Spatially explicit tree data stem from long-term forest monitoring plots in three microcatchments with a total area of 11.1 ha. Topographic variables were derived from a high-resolution DTM. Model performance was assessed by the true skill statistic (TSS) and area under curve (AUC) of the receiver operator characteristic (ROC), using both a k-fold approach and null-models. Performance varied among species and techniques, but generally Maxent models showed better performance than ENFA models. Furthermore, the ecological plausibility of the models was confirmed by comparing them with a previously established forest type classification. Among the explanatory topographic variables, elevation and a Topographic Position Index (TPI) appear as the main determinants for the distribution of most of the tree species. This study demonstrates that even on a small scale, the use of presence-only species distribution modelling techniques is a viable option for modelling suitable habitat for tree species in tropical mountain rain forests, indicating suitability for supporting stand-level planning and site-species matching techniques for natural forest management.

Fire in tropical montane cloud forests (TMCFs) is not as rare as once believed. Andean TMCFs sit immediately below highly flammable, high-altitude grasslands (Puna/Paramo) that suffer from recurrent anthropogenic fire. This treeline is a zone of climatic tension where substantial future warming is likely to force upward tree migrations, while increased fire presence and fire impacts are likely to force it downwards. TMCFs contain large carbon stocks in their peat soils and their loss through fire is a currently unaccounted for regional source of CO2. This study, conducted in the southern Peruvian Andes (>2800 m), documents differences in live tree biomass, fine root biomass, fallen and standing dead wood, and soil organic carbon in 4 paired-sample plots (burned versus control) following the severe ground fires that occurred during the 2005 Andean drought. Peat soils contributed the most to biomass burning emissions, with lower values corresponding to an 89% mean stock difference compared to the controls (mean ± SE) (54.1 ± 22.3 vs. 5.8 ± 5.3 MgC ha−1). Contrastingly, carbon stocks from live standing trees differed by a non-significant 37% lower value in the burned plots compared to the controls, largely compensated by vigorous resprouting (45.5 ± 17.4 vs. 69.2 ± 13.4 MgC ha−1). Both standing dead trees and fallen dead wood were significantly higher in the burned plots with a three-fold difference from the controls: dead Trees 45.2 ± 9.4 vs. 16.4 ± 4.4 MgC ha−1, and ca. a 2 fold difference for the fallen dead wood: 11.2 ± 5 vs. 6.7 ± 3.2 MgC ha−1 for the burned plots versus their controls. A preliminary estimate of the regional contribution of biomass burning emissions from Andean TMCFs for the period 2000–2008, resulted in mean carbon emission rates of 1.3 TgC yr−1 (max-min: 1.8–0.8 TgC yr−1). This value is in the same order of magnitude than South American annual fire emissions (300 TgC yr−1) suggesting the need for further research on Andean forest fires. On-going projects on the region are working on the promotion of landowner participation in TMCFs conservation through REDD+ mechanism. The heart of the proposed initiative is reforestation of degraded lands with green fire breaks enriched with economically valuable Andean plant species. The cultivation of these species may contribute to reduce deforestation pressure on the Amazonian cloud forest by providing an alternative income to local communities, at the same time that they prevent the spread of fire into Manu National Park and adjacent community-held forests, protecting forest and reducing CO2 emissions.

Ethiopia is losing a significant cover of natural forest every day owing to deforestation, yet surprisingly little field-based information exists on the ecological requirements and silvicultural strategies for the majority of the native species, which could be translated into plans for conservation and restoration. Munessa Dry afromontane forest is heavily degraded and characterized by many gaps. It has been disturbed by illegal logging and expansion for subsistence farming. What remains is a fragmented and overlogged forest. A study was conducted in Munessa Dry afromontane forest to evaluate the contribution of silvicultural options for sustainable management and conservation of forest resources in the highlands of Ethiopia. Under the project, the growth and photosynthesis response of four native tree species seedlings under a variable light environment in a gap were analyzed. The different species exhibited different survival strategies in forest understorey and open environment. Planting in th...

If tropical farmers cannot be provided with sustainable land-use systems, which address their subsistence needs and keep them gainfully employed, tropical forests will continue to disappear. We looked at the ability of economic land-use diversification – with reforestation of tropical “wastelands” as a key activity – to halt deforestation at the farm level. Our ecological–economic concept, based on land-use data from the buffer area of the Podocarpus National Park in southern Ecuador, shows that stopping deforestation after 10 years is possible without violating subsistence demands. Tropical, farm-level diversification may not only reduce total deforestation by 45%, but also increase farmers' profits by 65%, because the formerly unproductive wastelands have been returned to productive land use. We therefore conclude that a “win–win” scenario is possible: the subsistence needs of people can be reconciled with conservation objectives. However, inexpensive microcredits (at interest rates below 6%) and experi...

Management of natural forests might be one option to reduce the high deforestation rate in Ecuador. We therefore evaluated the response of water and nutrient cycles in a natural tropical montane forest to improvement fellings with the aim of favoring economically valuable target trees which will later be harvested with additional ecosystem impacts not considered here. The study was conducted at ca. 1900–2200 m above sea level in the south Ecuadorian Andes on the east-exposed slope of the east cordillera. In June 2004, one of two paired ca. 10-ha large catchments was thinned by felling 10.2% of the initial basal area (dbh ≥ 10 cm) on 30% of the catchment. The stems remained in situ. We measured ecosystem fluxes from rainfall via throughfall and stemflow to soil solution (litter leachate, soil solution at 15 and 30 cm depth) and stream flow between May 2004 and May 2005. After the fellings, soil solutions were extracted from the gaps created by the felled trees and the forest next to the gaps. We determined aboveground water fluxes by direct measurement and soil water fluxes with a budget approach. In the solutions, we measured concentrations of NH4+-N, NO3−-N, total dissolved N, PO43−-P, total dissolved P, Ca, Mg, K, Na, and Cl−. Fluxes were calculated as volume-weighted mean (vwm) concentrations times water fluxes. Dry deposition was estimated using Cl− as inert tracer. The fellings increased concentrations of N, K, Ca, and Mg in the organic layer of the resulting gaps compared with the forest next to the gaps (vwm concentrations of N: 6.4 mg l−1 in the forest next to the gap/8.7 mg l−1 in the gaps, K: 9.8/11, Mg: 1.8/3.0, Ca: 3.4/5.8). Lower nutrient concentrations and fluxes in the mineral soil of the gaps than in forest next to the gaps suggested that these nutrients were taken up by ground vegetation and target trees. The paired modified and undisturbed catchments had similar water and nutrient budgets. The fellings did not have a significant impact on the water and nutrient budget at the catchment scale.

Summary: This paper analyses the effectiveness and distributional effects of payments to avoid tropical deforestation. As a first aspect, we investigated whether or not expected payments for avoided deforestation would be acceptable for tropical farmers in Southern Ecuador, with the study area located directly adjacent to the Podocarpus National Park. Second, we explored possible distributional effects resulting from voluntary or mandatory remuneration schemes to avoid deforestation. Finally, a productive sustainable land use was conceptualised to be combined with payments for avoided deforestation to avoid leakage (i.e. deforestation processes elsewhere when avoided at a given farm). Farm level land use scenarios with (“business as usual”) and without deforestation (“conservation strategy”) were compared. Compensation per Mg Carbon (C) that is not emitted into the atmosphere under the “conservation strategy” was derived to achieve a monetary land net present value (NPV, sum of discounted future net revenues) equal to the NPV obtained under “business as usual”. Avoided carbon emissions were computed from above ground C in tropical forests of the project area and supplemented by information on soil carbon from another study. Economic data for cattle pasturing were obtained from a farm survey (130 households) to investigate distributional effects. To derive sustainable land use concepts, a risk sensitive bioeconomic farm model was used that considered effects of risk compensation when combining pasture with reforestation of abandoned farm lands and selective logging of natural forests. The results showed that only a few farmers (20 out of 130) would possibly accept a compensation price of US$ 10 per Mg avoided C emission, a C-compensation that is believed by other authors to reduce deforestation by 65%. Rather a compensation of around US$ 25 per Mg C was necessary to address compensation requirements of farmers who hold 50% of the tropical forest area in our study. The implementation of a voluntary remuneration scheme for avoided deforestation would not introduce systematic distributional effects (such as that only the biggest farmers would benefit from compensation) , while a mandatory and enforced ban on deforestation coupled with a “fair” compensation payment equal to mean compensation requirements may lead to undesirable effects for many farmers. Finally, we demonstrate a mixed sustainable land use concept that depended on cheap credits for reforestation of abandoned pasture lands. This concept was able to stop farm level deforestation and to enlarge the economic value of farms through various combined land use options (agricultural and forestry options). The combination of land uses led to risk compensatory effects and a more efficient land use by reintegrating unproductive abandoned areas back into the economical process. In our conclusion a combination of payments for avoided deforestation along with productive land use concepts provided a viable solution for tropical forest conservation. Zusammenfassung: Wir analysieren Effektivitat und Verteilungseffekte von Kompensationszahlungen zur Vermeidung von Entwaldungsprozessen. Als ein erster Aspekt wurde untersucht, ob die zu erwartenden Zahlungen zur Vermeidung der Umwandlung von Tropenwald fur Farmer in Sudecuador akzeptabel waren; unser Untersuchungsgebiet liegt in direkter Nachbarschaft zum Podocarpus Nationalpark. In einem zweiten Schritt wurde getestet, welche Effekte aus einer auf freiwilliger Basis funktionierenden Kompensation bzw. aus einer Entschadigung in Kombination mit einem Entwaldungsverbot fur die Einkommensverteilung entstehen konnten. Schlieslich richtet sich der Blick auf ein nachhaltiges Konzept zur Landnutzung, welches mit Kompensationszahlungen kombiniert werden konnte, um so die Attraktivitat der Farm fur ihre Besitzer zu erhalten und eine Verlagerung der Entwaldung auf andere Gebiete zu vermeiden. Zunachst wurden zwei Landnutzungsszenarien auf der Farmebene, eines mit Entwaldung („Herkommliche Landnutzung“) und eines ohne Entwaldung („Schutzvariante“), miteinander verglichen. Auf dieser Basis wurde die notwendige Kompensationszahlung pro nicht emittiertem Mg Kohlenstoff (C) abgeleitet, um denselben Barwert an zukunftigen finanziellen Uberschussen wie im Rahmen der Strategie „Herkommliche Landnutzung“ zu erzielen. Die vermeidbaren C-Emissionen wurden anhand der in den Naturwaldern des Untersuchungsgebietes vorhandenen oberirdischen Kohlenstoffvorrate und von Angaben zum Bodenkohlenstoff aus einer anderen Studie kalkuliert. Die okonomischen Daten zur Weidewirtschaft stammen aus Erhebungen in 130 Farmhaushalten des Untersuchungsgebietes. Basierend auf einem das Risiko der Landnutzung berucksichtigenden biookonomischen Modell wurde ein nachhaltiges Landnutzungskonzept abgeleitet, welches die Effekte einer Risikomin

For several reasons the conversion of mono-species into mixed-species forests is presently a major concern of forest management and policy in Central Europe. Although it is possible to show a clear trend in favour of mixed-species forests, private forest owners and some forest economists have often not favoured mixed forests, assuming that they are less profitable. The trend towards mixed forests seems mainly for ecological reasons, while sound economic analysis of mixed forests is still rare. Based on this background the objective of the study is to answer the following four questions: (1) Does the yield of mixed-species forests differ from that of pure forests? (2) Does the mixing of tree species influence the ecological stability of forests? (3) Is the economic value of a mixed forest less than that of a monoculture? (4) How do forest economic models integrate the findings on yield and ecological stability of mixed forests? To answer these questions a literature review was conducted on the possible impacts of mixed-species forests. In comparison to pure stands a greater yield is not necessarily given in mixed stands. Yet, mixed-species stands are better able to compensate disturbances than monocultures. Moreover, there is substantial evidence that mixed-species stands are more resistant against biotic and abiotic disturbances. Applying an extended forest economic model, it was possible to demonstrate that mixing large blocks of native broadleaf species into pure conifer forests may lead to a significant reduction of financial risk. From a risk-averse perspective the economic value of a mixed-species forest may thus be greater than that of a mono-species forest. Yet, it became clear that forest economists do not often integrate the research findings on yield and ecological stability of mixed stands in modelling, but rather apply simple bioeconomic modelling. Moreover, in the context of mixed forests economists also largely ignore even classical financial approaches, which consider risk and risk preferences. We concluded that forest economics has to close substantial research gaps. Firstly, the knowledge of how to integrate biophysical properties of mixed forests in bioeconomic modelling is still an open question. Secondly, forest economists have to adopt the modern approaches of financial theory and management science to value mixed forests.

Direct seeding and planting of European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) are two common techniques for the conversion of pure Norway spruce (Picea abies [L.] Karst.) stands into mixed stands. This study tested whether the growth of sown beech seedlings differs from that of planted seedlings of two stock types. Therefore at two experimental sites repeated measurements were made of height, stem and first order branch diameter on sown and planted seedlings over a period of nine years. The results showed that the growth responses of planted and sown seedlings to the environmental conditions below the canopy of overstorey Norway spruce were rather similar. No differences between planted and sown seedlings were found in their diameter and their estimated aboveground dry weight. For all three batches the ratio between the estimated branch dry weight and the estimated main stem dry weight (branch-shoot-ratio (BSR)) was increased with age. Due to intraspecific competition BSR was lowest for the sown seedlings irrespective of their age. Differences in growth dynamics between planted and sown seedlings were found. For example, differences in the height or the estimated aboveground woody dry weight between sown and planted seedlings at a given age were not constant. Height, diameter and estimated dry mass of the seedlings in relation to age could be modelled precisely by a second-order polynomial function in the hitherto studied period.

The high productivity associated with many tropical forest plantation species has contributed to their importance in meeting the world's growing demand for wood products. However, there is concern that their high growth rate and intensive management system might lead to site nutrients depletion. A total of 20 stands (10–28 years) of Gmelina arborea plantations in Oluwa and Omo forest reserves, Nigeria, was used to investigate the effect of Gmelina plantation development on site nutrients, aboveground productivity and nutrient accumulation. Standing biomass ranged from 81.5 to 392.1 t ha−1 in the youngest and oldest stands. Regardless of stand age, biomass partitioning was about 83.0, 13.5 and 3.5% to stem, branches and foliage, respectively. The size and age of trees did not significantly affect nutrient concentration in tree components. Nitrogen, Ca and Mg contents in tree tissue increased in the order of foliage > stem > branches while that of K and P increased in the order of foliage > branches > stem. Tree tissue nutrients concentration exhibited little change with stand development. Stand nutrient accumulation followed the same trend as standing biomass, with about 80% of each nutrient stored in the stem and 20% in branches and foliage. The accumulation of nutrients in stem, branches and foliage followed the order: Mg > N > Ca > P > K > Na. Though soil nutrients were slightly depleted between 10 and 19 years and re-built up afterwards, the overall effect of stand development on soil nutrients was not statistically significant, implying that the development of Gmelina plantations did not adversely affect the soil nutrient status. Consequently, productivity during the next rotation will most likely be affected by harvesting methods of current stands and management practices of the next rotation. The 20% accumulation of aboveground nutrients in branches and foliage implies that apart from the already replenished site nutrients, there will be an additional 20% nutrient input into the soil if the branches and foliage are left on the site after harvest. For long-term site quality and sustainability of production, successive plantations should be managed on 25 years rotation as lower rotation will most likely lead to steady depletion of site nutrients.

Increasing demands for livelihood resources in tropical rural areas have led to progressive clearing of biodiverse natural forests. Restoration of abandoned farmlands could counter this process. However, as aims and modes of restoration differ in their ecological and socio-economic value, the assessment of achievable ecosystem functions and benefits requires holistic investigation. Here we combine the results from multidisciplinary research for a unique assessment based on a normalization of 23 ecological, economic and social indicators for four restoration options in the tropical Andes of Ecuador. A comparison of the outcomes among afforestation with native alder or exotic pine, pasture restoration with either low-input or intense management and the abandoned status quo shows that both variants of afforestation and intense pasture use improve the ecological value, but low-input pasture does not. Economic indicators favour either afforestation or intense pasturing. Both Mestizo and indigenous Saraguro settlers are more inclined to opt for afforestation., Restoration of abandoned farmlands has the potential to improve ecosystem functions and benefits. Using a multidisciplinary approach, Knoke et al. show that ecological and economic indicators favour either afforestation or intense pasturing of these abandoned areas in the tropical Andes.

IIn three mature Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst.) stands of the Erzgebirge (Ore Mountains) in eastern Germany, the performance of the LAI-2000 plant canopy analyzer (LI-COR instruments) was tested for indirect estimation of leaf area index (LAI). The LAI-2000 calculates effective leaf area index (LAIe, m2/m2) resulting from radiation measurements and subsequent model calculations. LAIe underestimated directly estimated half the total leaf area index (LAI0.5t, m2/m2) by 37-82% as determined from allometric relationships derived from subsample harvesting. The degree of underestimation was dependent upon stand density in two of three spruce stands examined; it was the highest in sparsely stocked plots. The relationship of LAIe to allometrically determined LAI0.5t for one of the three stands differed significantly from the other two spruce stands and the underestimation of LAI0.5t was less distinct. This was explained by stand structure, i.e., higher amounts of nonassimilating surfaces relative to LAI0.5t. These results indicate that the LAI-2000 is not generally applicable for estimation of LAI in mature spruce stands of the Erzgebirge because of effects of stand structure on LAIe-LAI0.5t relationships, which are stand specific.

In East Germany, there are a lot of areas covered by old pine stands. They are growing on soils, on which under natural conditions without anthropogenic impact mixed stands of oak (Quercus petraea (Matt.) Liebl.) and pine (Pinus silvestris L.), would form a natural forest. An important objective of ecological silviculture in these areas is to convert the pure pine stands into mixed oak–pine stands by using natural regeneration methods. A highly appreciated assistant in this connection is the European jay (Garrulus glandarius L.). The remarkable results of its work have been found by analyzing the natural regeneration in a few old pine stands in the forest district of Weiswasser in Saxony. Although mother trees of oak are very scarce there, natural regeneration of oak was found everywhere in the research area. The oak regeneration, undoubtedly created by the jay, amounted to at least 2000 oaks/ha. They were mainly distributed at random, while pine regeneration was aggregated in places where gaps in the pine canopy occurred. Oak regeneration was established much earlier than pine regeneration. Thus, oaks exceeded pines in age, height and diameter. The oaks were also superior to pines concerning height increment for the last three years. Thus, there is a good chance for oak to defend its prevailing role in the regeneration in the future. Probably, the next forest generation will be composed of oak and pine trees. The analysis of the quality of the oak regeneration shows that there is no substantial difference to artificially sown oak stands. This indicates that the European jay creates oak stands sufficiently both in number and quality.

This chapter investigates the potential of an interdisciplinary research program primarily devoted to basic research for knowledge transfer from basic research to application, related to several ecosystem service levels. It can be shown that the highest engagement of the Research Unit is found for regulating and supporting services which is consistent with the needs emphasized by the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment Report. For academia it could be shown that high efforts in capacity building seem to preclude the scientific success of individual projects measured by citations in peer-reviewed journals. As it can be shown, knowledge transfer requires a transdisciplinary perspective among all stakeholders. In a developing country where most stakeholders complain on lacking financial and human resources and problems with institutional stability, they stress the importance of project planning and implementation with the society, the necessity of process-based management, and transfer projects. Two examples of knowledge transfer projects are presented. The rain radar network development is targeting at researchers, planning authorities, and private companies regarding regulating and supporting water services. The second transfer project is devoted to reforestation with native trees, clearly addressing provisional services in a fully participatory framework involving all societal sectors.

The following chapter shows, for the example of Ecuador, how a combination of conservation payments to protect the existing natural forest, subsidies to re-establish pastures on abandoned lands and forestry measures (reforestation of abandoned lands and sustainable low-impact management of parts of the natural forest) can lead to the sustainable use and conservation of tropical forests. The means toward this goal are provided by an integrative and risk-sensitive land-use model on the landscape scale, in which all available land-use options are considered simultaneously to make use of synergies. Subsidies to encourage the re-establishment of pastures on abandoned lands mitigate land scarcity, as a consequence of which agricultural prices go down and the pressure on natural forests is relieved. The landscape approach described here demonstrates the feasibility of halting the deterioration of tropical mountain rain forests and its ecosystem services. It is, however, based on a somewhat still theoretical and general model, which needs further refinement to be applicable on a more local scale.

Driven by an ever-increasing demand for agricultural provisioning services, large areas of tropical forest have been lost worldwide during recent decades. The conversion of forests into agricultural land results in rarely quantified losses of social and ecological services and triggers soil erosion, sedimentation, and climate change. Conceptual considerations identify a strong need for improved and sustainable agriculture to solve this problem. A combination of intensified agriculture, conservation payments to avoid forest loss, and land-use diversification may provide a solution to land-use conflicts. Improved concepts must lead to the production of enough food to keep food prices at a reasonable level. Future research must thus focus on concepts to intensify agricultural production while ensuring sustainability by avoiding the detrimental consequences of the intensification such as the loss of biodiversity, erosion, subsequent land degradation, and the pollution of water reservoirs.

An interdisciplinary research unit consisting of 30 teams in the natural, economic and social sciences analyzed biodiversity and ecosystem services of a mountain rainforest ecosystem in the hotspot of the tropical Andes, with special reference to past, current and future environmental changes. The group assessed ecosystem services using data from ecological field and scenario-driven model experiments, and with the help of comparative field surveys of the natural forest and its anthropogenic replacement system for agriculture. The book offers insights into the impacts of environmental change on various service categories mentioned in the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (2005): cultural, regulating, supporting and provisioning ecosystem services. Examples focus on biodiversity of plants and animals including trophic networks, and abiotic/biotic parameters such as soils, regional climate, water, nutrient and sediment cycles. The types of threats considered include land use and climate changes, as well as atmospheric fertilization. In terms of regulating and provisioning services, the emphasis is primarily on water regulation and supply as well as climate regulation and carbon sequestration. With regard to provisioning services, the synthesis of the book provides science-based recommendations for a sustainable land use portfolio including several options such as forestry, pasture management and the practices of indigenous peoples. In closing, the authors show how they integrated the local society by pursuing capacity building in compliance with the CBD-ABS (Convention on Biological Diversity - Access and Benefit Sharing), in the form of education and knowledge transfer for application.

Many natural forests in the highlands of Ethiopia are heavily degraded due to unsustainable forest management. Therefore, a study was conducted in the Munessa-Shashemene forest to design sustainable forest management strategies. The present study investigates the survival, growth, and photosynthetic performance of enrichment planting of four species (Cordia africana, Juniperus procera, Prunus africana, and Podocarpus falcatus ). Planting was undertaken in gaps in the degraded natural forest. Results indicated that survival was different among species. Two years after planting, only 23% of the C. africana and P. africana seedlings had survived, while J. procera and P. falcatus showed higher survival rates of 76 and 47%, respectively. The development of the height over the first 2-year observation period was reasonable for J. procera and P. falcatus. Inadequate height development was registered for P. africana, which was strongly affected by browsing and for C. Africana, which suffered from drought. P. falcatus exhibited the lowest photosynthesis and transpiration rates, which were associated with the highest water use efficiency of all the four species. Enrichment planting especially with J. procera and P. falcatus can be recommended to restore the degraded natural forests in Ethiopian highlands.

Ecological, technological, and socioeconomic aspects are the main pillars for sustainable forest management (SFM). Based on the suggestions of the authors of this book, and in accordance with these pillars and the main thematic elements of SFM, we identified five fields of actions to improve silviculture in the tropics. There is an increasing demand on timber and other forest products. As forest expansion is in strong competition with other aims of land use, intensification (1) aiming at higher output per area is a promising approach for overcoming this major problem, for example, by short-term rotation forestry, domestication, site improvement, and other measures. Diversification (2) as complementary strategy aims at providing additional products and services, reducing risks and contributing to sustainable management at the landscape level. Therefore, temporal and spatial scales for management (3) have to be adapted to both, needs of individual land owner (usually timber) and to collective needs of societies (protection, water, biodiversity, etc.). Better matching of operational units and ecological spatial scales (e.g., plant–site matching) is an important prerequisite for improving efficiency of silvicultural measures. SFM depends strongly on acceptance of all stakeholders involved. It is a common agreement in science and practice that participatory approaches (4) can contribute significantly to sustainability in this context. However, on the global scale participatory approaches are still in the stage of development. Finally, we illustrate how integration of silviculture and forest management (5) including all mentioned aspects can overcome frequently applied timber mining methods, and leads to a modern approach of silviculture in terms of adaptive ecosystem management.

Planting trees for protective purposes is an increasingly important aspect in tropical forestry. Protective forest plantations are not only key elements in the protection of water resources, of soils from erosion, etc., but also they are elements in the mitigation of carbon emissions and minimizing loss of forest biodiversity. The area of tropical forest plantations for protection is 30.1 million ha (2005), with about two-thirds of the area in Asia. This chapter reviews various aspects of protective forest plantations in the tropics, including rehabilitation and restoration.

Part I Introduction 1 The Ecosystem (Reserva Biologica San Francisco) E. Beck, F. Makeschin, F. Haubrich, M. Richter, J. Bendix, C. Valerezo 2 Mountain rain forests in southern Ecuador as a hotspot of biodiversity - Limited knowledge and diverging patterns G. Brehm, J. Homeier, K. Fiedler, I. Kottke, J. Illig, N.M. Noske, F. Werner, S-W. Breckle 3 The people settled around Podocarpus National Park P. Pohle 4 Ecuador suffers the highest deforestation rate in South America R. Mosandl, S. Gunter, B. Stimm, M. Weber 5 Methodological challenges of a megadiverse ecosystem G. Brehm, K. Fiedler, Ch. Hauser, H. Dalitz Part II Gradients in ecosystem analysis 6 Why investigating gradients in ecosystem analysis K. Fiedler, E. Beck 7 The investigated gradients E. Beck, R. Mosandl, M. Richter, I. Kottke Part III The altitudinal gradient Part III.1 Gradual changes along the altitudinal gradient 8 Climate J. Bendix, R. Rollenbeck, M. Richter, P. Fabian, P. Emck 9 Soils along the altitudinal transect and in catchments W. Wilcke, S. Yasin, A Schmitt, C. Valarezo, W. Zech 10 Flora: Composition and function 10.1 Potential vegetation and floristic composition of Andean forests in South Ecuador, with a focus on the RBSF J. Homeier, F. A. Werner, S. R. Gradstein, S -W. Breckle, M. Richter 10.2 Past vegetation and fire dynamics H. Niemann & H. Behling 10.3 Forest structure along an altitudinal gradient in southern Ecuador A. Paulsch, D. Piechowski, K. Muller-Hohenstein 10.4 Vegetation structures and ecological features of the upper timberline ecotone M. Richter, K.-H. Diertl, Th. Peters, R. W. Bussman 10.5 Mycorrhizal state and new and special features of mycorrhizae of trees, ericads, orchids, ferns andliverworts I. Kottke, A. Beck, I. Haug, S. Setaro, V. Jeske, J.P. Suarez, L. Paxmino, M. Preussing, M, Nebel, F. Oberwinkler 11 Fauna: Composition and function 11.1 Bird species distribution along an altitudinal gradient in southern Ecuador and its functional relationships with vegetation structure D. Paulsch and K. Muller-Hohenstein 11.2 Seed dispersal by birds, bats and wind F. Matt, K. Almeida, A. Arguero, C. Reudenbach 11.3 Variation of diversity patterns across moth families along a tropical elevational gradient K. Fiedler, G. Brehm, N. Hilt, D. Sussenbach, and C.L. Hauser 11.4 Soil fauna M. Maraun, J. Illig , D. Sandman,V. Krashevskaya, R.A. Norton, S. Scheu Part III.2 Processes along and within the gradient 12 Water relations W. Wilcke, S. Yasin, K. Fleischbein, R. Goller, J. Boy, J. Knuth, C. Valarezo, W. Zech 13 Nutrient status and fluxes at the field and catchment scale W. Wilcke, S.Yasin, K. Fleischbein, R. Goller, J. Boy, J. Knuth, C. Valarezo, W. Zech 14 Biotic soil activities S. Iost, F. Makeschin, M. Abiy, F. Haubrich 15 Elevational changes in stand structure and biomass allocation of tropical mountain forests in relation to microclimate and soil chemistry G. Moser, M. Roderstein, N. Soethe, D. Hertel, C. Leuschner 16 Stand structure, transpiration responses in trees and vines and stand transpiration of different forest types within the mountain rainforest M. Kuppers, T. Motzer,D. Schmitt., C. Ohlemacher, R. Zimmermann, V. Horna, B.I.L. Kuppers, T. Mette 17 Plant growth along the altitudinal gradient-role of plant nutritional status, fine root activity, and soil properties N. Soethe, W. Wilcke, J. Homeier, J. Lehmann, C. Engels Part III.3 Gradient heterogeneities Part III.3.A Spatial heterogeneities 18 Spatial