understanding colombian amazonian white sand forests

168 Pages·2014·2.63 MB·English

UNDERSTANDING COLOMBIAN AMAZONIAN
WHITE SAND FORESTS
Maria Cristina Peñuela Mora
The research presented in this thesis was carried out within the framework
of the Plant Ecology and Biodiversity Group, Institute of Environmental
Biology, Utrecht University and Ecology of Terrestrial Ecosystems Group,
National University of Colombia.
Maria Cristina Peñuela Mora
Understanding Colombian Amazonian White Sand Forests
Copyright © 2014, Maria Cristina Peñuela Mora
All rights reserved
ISBN: 978-90-393-6196-2
Keywords: Western Amazon, Terra firme forests, Forest dynamics, Drought,
Seedling performance, Amazon caatinga
Printed by: Panamericana Formas e Impresos S.A.
Cover design: Camila Olarte
Cover pictures: Mauritiella armata, Hevea nitida, marked trees and
seedlings in the White sand forests, photos by Maria Cristina Peñuela.
The tiny Dycimbe uaiparuensis seedling and Zafire Biological Station by
Guillermo Santos.
UNDERSTANDING COLOMBIAN AMAZONIAN
WHITE SAND FORESTS
ECOLOGIE VAN WITZANDBOSSEN IN COLOMBIA
(met een samenvatting in het Nederlands)
ENTENDIENDO LOS BOSQUES DE ARENAS BLANCAS
DE LA AMAZONIA COLOMBIANA
(con resumen en Español)
Proefschrift
ter verkrijging van de graad van doctor
aan de Universiteit Utrecht
op gezag van de rector magnificus, Prof. Dr. G.J. van der Zwaan,
ingevolge het besluit van het college voor promoties
in het openbaar te verdedigen
op woensdag 1 oktober 2014 des middags te 12.45 uur
door
Maria Cristina Peñuela Mora
geboren op 6 Juli te Bogotá, Colombia
Promotor: Prof. Dr. R.G.A. Boot
Co-promotor: Dr. H. ter Steege
This thesis was written with financial support from the Netherlands Organization
for International Higher Education (NUFFIC) and the Department of Science,
Technology and Innovation, Colciencias, Colombia.
To my son Luciano
and my mother Elvira
…and to my friends, women whose
hearts and minds battle between their
children, family and their studies.

CONTENTS
Chapter 1
General introduction 9
Chapter 2
Species composition of white sand forests in western 17
amazon
Chapter 3
Eight years of forest dynamics in a white sand forest in 39
the Colombian Amazon – with reference to white sands
and terra firme clay forests in the Amazon
Chapter 4
Effects of soil conditions on the performance of tree seedlings 63
from terra firme and white sand forests – results of an in situ
experiment transplanting soils and seedlings
Chapter 5
Drought resistance of rainforest tree seedlings from white 85
sand and terra firme forests
Chapter 6
Discussion 107
References 117
Resumen en español 140
English summary 146
Nederlandse samenvatting 151
Acknowledgements 156
Curriculum vitae 159
Publications 161
introduccion
8
– chapter 1 –
9
introduction
GenerAl introdUCtion
The Amazon region covers an area of nearly six million square kilometres
(Ramos da Silva et al. 2008) and harbours the richest assemblage of plant
species on Earth (Gentry 1988, de Oliveira & Mori 1999, ter Steege et al. 2000a,
Hoorn & Wesselingh 2010, ter Steege et al. 2013). The diversity of plant species
is partly due to the fact that the different species are restricted to a subset
of environmental conditions (Fine et al. 2006). In particular, the species
are restricted by physical soil characteristics such as: the soil water holding
capacity, drainage, soil structure and nutrients, factors that affect tree growth,
mortality and the floristic composition of tropical forests worldwide (Ferry et
al. 2010, Quesada et al. 2009b). Amazonian forests have long been grouped in
three broad categories: flooded forests, non-flooded or terra firme forests and
white sand forests.
White sand forests grow in large extensions in the Eastern Amazon and in
Western Amazon they are located in small patches surrounded by terra firme
forests that grow in different soils. Terra firme forests are found in clay soils
and white sand forests grow in white sands or Podzols, which are also known
as Spodozols or Arenosols (Quesada et al. 2011). Both types of soils are highly
acidic, but terra firme soils have a higher cation exchange capacity and a
higher amount of available total phosphorus. In general, white sand forests
have extremely nutrient-poor soils that are strongly leached, and that are
usually drained by black waters (Coomes & Grubb 1996, 1998a, Luizão et al.
2007, Quesada et al. 2009b, Quesada et al. 2011). In Podzols, complexes of
aluminium, iron and organic compounds form a hardpan that impedes root
penetration into deeper soil horizons (Schoenholtz et al. 2000) and causes
waterlogging in the rainy season (Bongers et al. 1985, Medina et al. 1990,
Quesada et al. 2011). In the dry season, the upper soil dries out due to the low
water retention capacity (Duivenvoorden & Lips 1995, Williams et al. 2002),
which increases mortality and decreases growth rates in tropical plants (Turner
1990, Condit et al. 1995, Veenendaal et al. 1995). Short periods of water stress
are sufficient to cause important changes in the vegetation, not only in the
floristic composition but also in the morphology and physiology of the plants
(Franco & Dezzeo 1994, Hutyra et al. 2005, Walker et al. 2009).
10