Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- Foreword
- Preface
- Acknowledgements
- Part I General perspectives
- Part II Regional floristic and animal diversity
- Part III Hydrometeorology of tropical montane cloud forest
- 20 Hydrometeorological patterns in relation to montane forest types along an elevational gradient in the Yungas of Bolivia
- 21 Structure and dynamics of tropical montane cloud forests under contrasting biophysical conditions in north-western Costa Rica
- 22 Quantitative measures of immersion in cloud and the biogeography of cloud forests
- 23 Understanding the role of fog in forest hydrology: stable isotopes as tools for determining input and partitioning of cloud water in montane forests
- 24 Using stable isotopes to identify orographic precipitation events at Monteverde, Costa Rica
- 25 Using “biosensors” to elucidate rates and mechanisms of cloud water interception by epiphytes, leaves, and branches in a sheltered Colombian cloud forest
- 26 Water dynamics of epiphytic vegetation in a lower montane cloud forest: fog interception, storage, and evaporation
- 27 Epiphyte biomass in Costa Rican old-growth and secondary montane rain forests and its hydrological significance
- 28 Comparison of passive fog gages for determining fog duration and fog interception by a Puerto Rican elfin cloud forest
- 29 Fog interception in a Puerto Rican elfin cloud forest: a wet-canopy water budget approach
- 30 Fog gage performance under conditions of fog and wind-driven rain
- 31 The wet-canopy water balance of a Costa Rican cloud forest during the dry season
- 32 Measured and modeled rainfall interception in a lower montane forest, Ecuador
- 33 Measuring cloud water interception in the Tambito forests of southern Colombia
- 34 Relationships between rainfall, fog, and throughfall at a hill evergreen forest site in northern Thailand
- 35 History of fog and cloud water interception research in Hawai'i
- 36 Interpreting canopy water balance and fog screen observations: separating cloud water from wind-blown rainfall at two contrasting forest sites in Hawai'i
- 37 Historical background of fog water collection studies in the Canary Islands
- 38 Effects of fog on climatic conditions at a sub-tropical montane cloud forest site in northern Tenerife (Canary Islands, Spain)
- Part IV Nutrient dynamics in tropical montane cloud forests
- Part V Cloud forest water use, photosynthesis, and effects of forest conversion
- Part VI Effects of climate variability and climate change
- Part VII Cloud forest conservation, restoration, and management issues
- References
21 - Structure and dynamics of tropical montane cloud forests under contrasting biophysical conditions in north-western Costa Rica
from Part III - Hydrometeorology of tropical montane cloud forest
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 03 May 2011
Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- Foreword
- Preface
- Acknowledgements
- Part I General perspectives
- Part II Regional floristic and animal diversity
- Part III Hydrometeorology of tropical montane cloud forest
- 20 Hydrometeorological patterns in relation to montane forest types along an elevational gradient in the Yungas of Bolivia
- 21 Structure and dynamics of tropical montane cloud forests under contrasting biophysical conditions in north-western Costa Rica
- 22 Quantitative measures of immersion in cloud and the biogeography of cloud forests
- 23 Understanding the role of fog in forest hydrology: stable isotopes as tools for determining input and partitioning of cloud water in montane forests
- 24 Using stable isotopes to identify orographic precipitation events at Monteverde, Costa Rica
- 25 Using “biosensors” to elucidate rates and mechanisms of cloud water interception by epiphytes, leaves, and branches in a sheltered Colombian cloud forest
- 26 Water dynamics of epiphytic vegetation in a lower montane cloud forest: fog interception, storage, and evaporation
- 27 Epiphyte biomass in Costa Rican old-growth and secondary montane rain forests and its hydrological significance
- 28 Comparison of passive fog gages for determining fog duration and fog interception by a Puerto Rican elfin cloud forest
- 29 Fog interception in a Puerto Rican elfin cloud forest: a wet-canopy water budget approach
- 30 Fog gage performance under conditions of fog and wind-driven rain
- 31 The wet-canopy water balance of a Costa Rican cloud forest during the dry season
- 32 Measured and modeled rainfall interception in a lower montane forest, Ecuador
- 33 Measuring cloud water interception in the Tambito forests of southern Colombia
- 34 Relationships between rainfall, fog, and throughfall at a hill evergreen forest site in northern Thailand
- 35 History of fog and cloud water interception research in Hawai'i
- 36 Interpreting canopy water balance and fog screen observations: separating cloud water from wind-blown rainfall at two contrasting forest sites in Hawai'i
- 37 Historical background of fog water collection studies in the Canary Islands
- 38 Effects of fog on climatic conditions at a sub-tropical montane cloud forest site in northern Tenerife (Canary Islands, Spain)
- Part IV Nutrient dynamics in tropical montane cloud forests
- Part V Cloud forest water use, photosynthesis, and effects of forest conversion
- Part VI Effects of climate variability and climate change
- Part VII Cloud forest conservation, restoration, and management issues
- References
Summary
ABSTRACT
Forest structure and composition were investigated in seven 10 × 50 m plots along a 2.5-km transect crossing the Continental Divide between 1200 and 1500 m.a.s.l. on the windward and leeward slopes of the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, Costa Rica. Seven climate stations (measuring rainfall, horizontal precipitation, throughfall, temperature, and soil water content) were installed along the transect. Epiphytic vegetation was compared between leeward forests at 1450 m.a.s.l. (near the ridge top) and at 1200 m.a.s.l. Fallen trees were recorded over one year in a 50-m wide strip along the entire transect. The highest basal areas (up to nearly 100 m−2 ha−1) and the greatest canopy heights were found on the leeward slope between 1200 and 1450 m.a.s.l., and in the lowermost windward plot. The forest formations on the ridge and on the steep upper windward slope had basal areas of 30–40 m−2 ha−1 and tree heights of less than 15 m. Epiphytic biomass was very high at both investigated sites (32–39 t ha−1). Close to the wet ridge top, epiphyte abundance and vascular species richness were greatest. The monitoring of forest dynamics resulted in a total of 5.2 recorded tree-falls ha−1 year−1. Annual rainfall (March 2003–February 2004) ranged from 3690 mm on the leeward slope to 6390 mm on the windward side. Horizontal precipitation was estimated at 3560 mm at the ridge, compared to 330 mm at the lowest windward plot and 28 mm at 1200 m.a.s.l. on the leeward slope. […]
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- Tropical Montane Cloud ForestsScience for Conservation and Management, pp. 208 - 216Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2011
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