Biotic Interactions in the Tropics Their Role in the Maintenance of Species Diversity

About this book

Tropical ecosystems house a significant proportion of global biodiversity. To understand how these ecosystems function we need to appreciate not only what plants, animals and microbes they contain, but also how they interact with each other. Biotic Interactions in the Tropics synthesises the current state of knowledge in this area, with chapters providing reviews or case studies drawn from research conducted in both Old and New World tropics and including biotic interactions among taxa at all trophic levels. In most chapters plants (typically trees) are the starting point, but, taken together, the chapters consider interactions of plants with other plants, with micro-organisms and with animals, and the inter-relationships of human-induced disturbance with interactions among species. An underlying theme of Biotic Interactions in the Tropics is the attempt to understand the maintenance of high diversity in tropical regions, which remains one of the most significant unexplained observations in ecological studies.

Contents

Preface

Part I. Plant-Plant Interactions
1. Plant-plant interactions in tropical rainforests John J. Ewel and Ankila Hiremath
2. Resource capture and use by tropical forest tree seedlings and its consequences for competition Lourens Poorter
3. Role of life-history trade-offs in the equalisation and differentiation of tropical tree species Jim Dalling and David Burslem
4. Neighbourhood effects on sapling growth and survival in a neotropical forest and the ecological equivalence hypothesis Maria Uriarte, Stephen P. Hubbell, Robert John, Roger Condit and Charles D. Canham
5. Ecological drift in niche-structured communities: neutral pattern does not imply neutral process Drew Purves and Steve Pacala

Part II. Plant-Microbe Interactions
6. Dimensions of disease in tropical forests Greg Gilbert
7. Mycorrhizas and ecosystem processes in tropical rain forests: implications for diversity Ian Alexander and Lee Su See
8. An overview of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal composition, distribution, and host effects from a tropical moist forest Edward Allen Herre, Damond Kyllo, Scott Mangan, Rebecca Husband, Luis C. Mejia and Ahn-Heum Eom
9. Tropical plants as chimera: some implications of foliar endophytic fungi for the study of host plants defense, physiology, and genetics Edward Allen Herre, S. A. Van Bael, Z. Maynard, N. Robbins, J. Bischoff, A. E. Arnold, E. Rojas, L. C. Mejia, R. A. Cordero, C. Woodward and D. A. Kyllo

Part III. Plant-Animal Interactions
10. Implications of spatial distribution on pollination and seed production and dispersal Jaboury Ghazoul
11. Seed dispersal of woody plants in tropical forests: concepts, examples and future directions Helene Muller-Landau and Denise Hardesty
12. The role of trophic interactions in community initiation, maintenance and degradation Joe Fragoso
13. Impacts of herbivores on tropical plant diversity Bob Marquis
14. Have the impacts of insect herbivores on the growth of tropical tree seedlings been underestimated? Fergus Massey, Malcolm Press and Sue Hartley
15. Multi-trophic interactions and biodiversity: beetles, ants, caterpillars and plants Deborah Letourneau and Lee Dyer
16. The trophic structure of tropical ant-plant-herbivore interactions: community consequences and coevolutionary dynamics Doyle McKey, Laurence Gaume, Carine Brouat, Bruno Di Gusto, Laurence Pascal, Gabriel Debout, Ambroise Dalecky and Martin Heil
17. Multitrophic interactions in a neotropical savanna: ant-hemipteran systems, associated insect herbivores, and a host plant Paulo S. Oliveira and Kleber Del-Claro

Part IV. Biotic Interactions in Human-Sominated Landscapes
18. The disruption of biotic interactions in fragmented tropical landscapes William F. Laurence
19. Effects of natural enemies on tropical plant invasions Saara DeWalt
20. A new mix of alien and native species coexist in Puerto Rico's landscapes Ariel Lugo and Thomas Brandeis
21. The dynamics of a tropical dry forest in India: climate, fire, elephants and the evolution of life history strategies R. Sukumar, H. S. Suresh, H. S. Dattaraja, A. Srinidhi and C. Nath
22. Changes in plant communities associated with timber management in natural forests in the moist tropics Michelle Pinard

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Biography

David Burslem is Senior Lecturer in Tropical Plant Science at the University of Aberdeen. His current research focuses on tropical forest sites in Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Ecuador.

Michelle Pinard is Lecturer in Tropical Forestry at the University of Aberdeen. Her research focuses on sites in Ghana, Ethiopia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Brazil and Bolivia.

Sue Hartley is Reader in Ecology at the University of Sussex, specialising in the study of plant-animal interactions.


Contributors:
- John J. Ewel
- Ankila Hiremath
- Lourens Poorter
- Jim Dalling
- David Burslem
- Maria Uriarte
- Stephen P. Hubbell
- Robert John
- Roger Condit
- Charles D. Canham
- Drew Purves
- Steve Pacala
- Greg Gilbert
- Ian Alexander
- Lee Su See
- Edward Allen Herre
- Damond Kyllo
- Scott Mangan
- Rebecca Husband
- Luis C. Mejia
- Ahn-Heum Eom
- S. A. Van Bael
- Z. Maynard
- N. Robbins
- J. Bischoff
- A. E. Arnold
- E. Rojas
- R. A. Cordero
- C. Woodward
- Jaboury Ghazoul
- Helene Muller-Landau
- Denise Hardesty
- Joe Fragoso
- Bob Marquis
- Fergus Massey
- Malcolm Press
- Sue Hartley
- Deborah Letourneau
- Lee Dyer
- Doyle McKey
- Laurence Gaume
- Carine Brouat
- Bruno Di Gusto
- Laurence Pascal
- Gabriel Debout
- Ambroise Dalecky
- Martin Heil
- Paulo S. Oliveira
- Kleber Del-Claro
- William F. Laurance
- Saara DeWalt
- Ariel Lugo
- Thomas Brandeis
- R. Sukumar
- H. S. Suresh
- H. S. Dattaraja
- A. Srinidhi
- C. Nath
- Michelle Pinard