Latin America and Caribbean
Crecimiento Comparativo de Especies Nativas y Teca plantadas en parcelas puras y mixEspañolantecedentesEl interés por la reforestación como una alternativa a la deforestación se ha incrementado en los últimos años en Panamá. Sin embargo, en las iniciativas de reforestación las exigencias de las plantas no son usualmente consideradas y las mas utilizadas son especies introducidas. Open access copy available |
Genetic Consequences of Tropical Second-Growth Forest RegenerationBackgroundThis article is an examination of the genetic impacts of old-growth deforestation among 24 year-old second-growth Iriartea deltoidea, a canopy palm, in a lowland Costa Rican forest. Iriartea is widely distributed throughout neotropical rainforests and displays a diverse range of size classes in mature forests. This species recolonizes second-growth forests with newly generated seeds, which are dispersed by birds and mammals. Open access copy available |
Screening Trial of 14 Tropical Hardwoods with an Emphasis on Species Native to Costa Rica: Fourth Year ResultsBackgroundA lack of silvicultural information on native timber species in the tropics has contributed to the propogation of fast-growing exotic tree species in reforestation efforts. The plantations evaluated at the La Selva Biological Station in Costa Rica were considered marginal lands with low input of forest maintenance, reflecting the conditions of many lands that farmers would use for reforestation. Available with subscription or purchase |
A tree-based approach to biomass estimation from remote sensing data in a tropical agricultural landscapebackgroundDue to increased global dominance of agricultural lands in the tropics, methods to establish biomass and carbon in agricultural areas are necessary for monitoring and modeling global C stocks. Since tropical agriculture often includes some tree cover, the study seeks to develop above ground biomass estimates using landscape-scale surveys with LiDAR in comparison to plot-level data. Available with subscription or purchase |
Carbon Sequestration in Pastures, Silvo-Pastoral Systems and Forests in Four Regions of the Latin American Tropicsbackground77% of agricultural land in the tropical Americas is used for pasture (including silvo-pasture and Argo-silvo-pasture), making carbon stocks in this land type an important consideration. This paper presents three-year research results on the evaluation of soil carbon stocks (SCS) in long-established pasture and silvo-pastoral systems (10-16 years under commercial production), native forests and degraded land in four regions of tropical Americas. Available with subscription or purchase |
Carbon stocks in biomass and soils of woody species fodder banks in the dry tropics of MexicobackgroundFodder banks are a common feature of tropical silvopasture. This study evaluates the C concentration and storage in above- and belowground tree biomass and soils of fodder banks of Leucaena leucocephala, Guazuma ulmifolia, and a combination of the both species. Available with subscription or purchase |
Cartographier le carbone stocké dans la végétation: perspectives pour la spatialisation d’un service écosystémique (Mapping carbon stocks in vegetation)The authors discuss a project to map ecosystem functioning in the Brazilian Amazon. They point out the limitations of ecosystem-service mapping and the importance of methodological decisionmaking while mapping functional processes.
Open access copy available |
Restauration des paysages forestiers: Exemples concrets dans 5 écorégions (Forest Landscapre Restoration: Concrete examples from 5 ecoregions)This publication gives an overview of five ecosystems in which WWF is currently working on forest landscape restoration projects. The cases are in China, Bulgaria, Brazil, Malaysia, and New Caledonia.
Open access copy available |
Stakeholders and Tropical Reforestation: Challenges, Trade-Offs, and Strategies in Dynamic EnvironmentsBackgroundThe authors recognize that reforestation efforts require trade-offs, yet they claim that successful efforts requires stakeholder engagement beyond the planning stages and the acknowledgement that stakeholder dynamics, interests, and roles change over time. To support this claim, the authors first do a relevant literature review and then the examine a single case study of a multi-stakeholder workshop in Mexico. Open access copy available |
Targeted reforestation could reverse declines in connectivity for understory birds in a tropical habitat corridorbackgroundThis study looks at how conservation efforts over the last 25 years have impacted functional connectivity of forest habitat in northeastern Costa Rica’s San Juan-La Selva Biological Corridor. The study focuses on insectivorous understory forest birds. Open access copy available |
