1983-2012
S.P. Hubbell, L. Comita, S. Lao, R. Condit
A precise census of canopy density was carried out across the Barro Colorado 50 ha tree census, recording vegetation density in several vertical layers at a horizontal scale of 5 m. The census was done annually in 23 years between 1983 and 2012. The full dataset, including details on the methods, is available at http://dx.doi.org/10.5479/data.bci20140711. The canopy data can be used to produce maps of vegetation density, showing where there are gaps in the canopy at any depth, or predict tree growth based on canopy openness (and see publications listed below). The three-dimensional map of canopy density was intended to help understand how tree growth and recruitment responds to canopy openness. Detailed descriptions of the 50-ha plot methods and data are provided by Condit (Tropical Forest Census Plots, Springer-Verlag 1998, ) and Condit et al. (CTFS Data Model Documentation).
Rüger, N., Berger, U., Hubbell, S. P., Vieilledent, G., and Condit, R. 2011. Growth strategies of tropical tree species: Disentangling light and size effects. PLoS ONE 6:e25330. URLRuegerConditEtAl.PlosONE2011.pdf.
Rüger, N., Huth, A., Hubbell, S. P., and Condit, R. 2011. Determinants of mortality across a tropical lowland rainforest community. Oikos 120:1047–1056. URL RugerConditEtAl.Oikos2011.pdf.
Rüger, N. and Condit, R. 2012. Testing metabolic theory with models of tree growth that include light competition. Functional Ecology 26:759–765. URL 2012_Ruger_MetabolicScaling_withSM.pdf.
Rüger, N., Wirth, C., Wright, S. J., and Condit, R. 2012. Functional traits explain light and size response of growth rates in tropical tree species. Ecology 93:2626–2636. URLRugerConditEtAl.Ecol2012.pdf.
Welden, C., Hewett, S., Hubbell, S. P., and Foster, R. B. 1991. Sapling Survival, Growth, and Recruitment: Relationship to Canopy Height in a Neotropical Forest. Ecology, 72:35-50.