Diameter growth patterns in 12 tree species from the tropical dry forest of Tolima
Supplementary Files
Keywords
diversidad de especies
distribución de tamaño
evaluación de los recursos forestales
gestión sostenible de los bosques
restauración del paisaje forestal
sucesión ecológica (AGROVOC) Ecological succession
forest growth
forest landscape restoration
forest monitoring and assessment
size distribution
species diversity
sustainable forestry (AGROVOC)
How to Cite
Abstract
Introduction. The tropical dry forest (TDF) of Colombia harbors remarkable biological diversity and performs essential ecological functions; however, it is severely degraded, and significant gaps persist in the understanding of diameter growth rates of its native tree species. Objective. This study evaluated the diameter growth of twelve TDF species in the department of Tolima. Materials and methods. Through continuous monitoring of 107 trees with diameter at breast height (DBH) ≥ 10 cm over eight years (2008–2016) in four permanent plots. The current annual increment (CAI) was calculated for each individual and each species. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Tukey’s test were applied to detect significant differences among species. Subsequently, species were functionally classified into three growth categories using the percentile method. Results. The results revealed statistically significant differences (p < 0.001), with CAI values ranging from 0.15 to 1.98 cm yr-1. Ceiba pentandra exhibited the highest growth rate, while Cedrela odorata showed the lowest. Species classified in the slow-growth category were: C. odorata, Machaerium capote, Aspidosperma polyneuron, and Astronium graveolens; in the medium-growth category: Guarea guidonia, Ladenbergia oblongifolia, Nectandra reticulata., and Pseudobombax septenatum; and in the fast-growth category: Bulnesia carrapo, Jacaranda copaia, Anacardium excelsum, and C. pentandra. Conclusions. This classification provides a valuable tool for adjusting harvesting cycles, selecting species for ecological restoration programs, and designing forest management strategies adapted to the growth dynamics of each species.
References
Melo O, Fernández-Méndez F, Villanueva B. (2017). Hábitat lumínico, estructura, diversidad y dinámica de los bosques secos tropicales del Alto Magdalena. Colomb For 20(1):19-30.
https://doi.org/10.14483/udistrital.jour.colomb.for.2017.1.a02
García H, Corzo G, Isaacs-Cubides PJ, Etter A. (2014). Distribución y estado actual de los remanentes del bioma de bosque seco tropical en Colombia: insumos para su gestión. En: García H, editor. El bosque seco tropical en Colombia. Bogotá: Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Biológicos Alexander von Humboldt. p. 229-51.
Toledo M, Poorter L, Peña-Claros M, Alarcón A, Balcázar J, Leaño C, et al. (2011). Climate is a stronger driver of tree and forest growth rates than soil and disturbance. J Ecol 99(1):254-64.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2745.2010.01741.x
López L, Villalba R, Peña-Claros M. (2012). Ritmos de crecimiento diamétrico en los bosques secos tropicales: aportes al manejo sostenible de los bosques de la provincia biogeográfica del Cerrado boliviano. Bosque 33(2):211-19.
https://doi.org/10.4067/S0717-92002012000200011
Lozano-Botache L, Cruz O. (2023). Crecimiento diamétrico de Guarea guidonia (L.) estimado con modelos no lineales. Bosque seco tropical en el norte de Tolima, Colombia. Rev Asoc Colomb Cienc Biol 1:10-9.
https://doi.org/10.47499/revistaaccb.v1i35.282
Lozano-Botache LA, Franco ON, Bonilla JL. (2012). Estimación del crecimiento diamétrico de Anacardium excelsum (Kunth) Skeels por medio de modelos no lineales, en bosques naturales del departamento del Tolima. Bol Cient Mus Hist Nat 16(1):19-32.
Francis EJ, Muller-Landau HC, Wright SJ, Visser MD, Iida Y, Fletcher C, et al. (2017). Quantifying the role of wood density in explaining interspecific variation in growth of tropical trees. Glob Ecol Biogeogr 26(10):1078-87.
https://doi.org/10.1111/geb.12604
Mesa-Sierra N, Peña-Domene M, Campo J, Giardina CP. (2025). Restoration of tropical dry forest: an analysis of constraints and successes across a highly threatened biome. Front Environ Sci 12:1458613.
https://doi.org/10.3389/fenvs.2024.1458613
Universidad del Tolima, Corporación Autónoma Regional del Tolima. (2007). Plan general de ordenación forestal del Tolima. Ibagué: Cortolima. Consultado el 30 de julio de 2025, disponible en: https://datosabiertos.cortolima.gov.co/datasets/f1d68ea1ffb2428bb9c26720cc3c2c79
Melo-Cruz OA, Vargas-Ríos R. (2003). Evaluación ecológica y silvicultural de ecosistemas boscosos. Ibagué: Universidad del Tolima. Pp 190.
García-Cervigón A, Camarero JJ, Cueva-Ortiz E, Espinosa C, Escudero A. (2019). Climate seasonality and tree growth strategies in a tropical dry forest. J Veg Sci 31:1043-54.
https://doi.org/10.1111/jvs.12840
Valverde JC, Arias D, Castillo M, Torres D. (2021). Relación de la variabilidad climática con el crecimiento diamétrico de ocho especies arbóreas de bosque seco en Costa Rica. Ecosistemas 30(1):2092.
https://doi.org/10.7818/ECOS.2092
Gawali A, Puri S, Swamy SL. (2014). Growth, biomass, carbon sequestration and nutrient storage in Ceiba pentandra (L.) Gaertn. stands in sub-humid tropics of Eastern India. Ecol Environ Conserv 20(Suppl):S71-81.
Bocanegra-González KT, Thomas E, Guillemin ML, Carvalho D, Gutiérrez JP, Alcázar-Caicedo C, et al. (2018). Genetic diversity of Ceiba pentandra in Colombian seasonally dry tropical forest: implications for conservation and management. Biol Conserv 227:29-37.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2018.08.021
Bocanegra-González KT, Guillemin ML. (2018). Guidelines for the restoration of the tropical timber tree Anacardium excelsum: first input from genetic data. Tree Genet Genomes 14(4):59.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11295-018-1271-z
Briceño AM, Rangel-Ch JO. (2021). Series de clima en anillos de Aspidosperma polyneuron Müll.Arg. y Anacardium excelsum (Bertero ex Kunth) Skeels. Colomb For 24(2):52-64.
https://doi.org/10.14483/2256201X.16285
Machado MR, Camara R, Sampaio PTB, Ferraz JBS, Pereira MG. (2018). Silvicultural performance of five forest species in the central Brazilian Amazon. Acta Amaz 48(1):10-17.
https://doi.org/10.1590/1809-4392201700602
Oliveira RT, Santos JAR, Oliveira MA, Tavares JV, Miranda PN, Silveira M. (2023). Hydraulic traits of Jacaranda copaia (Aubl.) D. Don (Bignoniaceae) in the southwest Amazon. Rev Árvore 47:e4715.
https://doi.org/10.1590/1806-908820230000015
Lozano-Botache LA, Bonilla-Vargas JL. (2022). Factor de forma para árboles del bosque seco tropical (bs-T) en el norte del departamento del Tolima - Colombia. Temas Agrarios 27(2):344-53.
https://doi.org/10.21897/rta.v27i2.3136
Albuquerque RP, Brandes AFN, Lisi CS, Moraes LFD, Barros CF. (2019). Tree-ring formation, radial increment and climate-growth relationship: assessing two potential tree species used in Brazilian Atlantic forest restoration projects. Trees 33(3):877-92.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s00468-019-01825-6
Hernández-Benalcázar H, Gagnon D, Davidson R. (2015). Crecimiento y producción inicial de 15 especies de árboles tropicales de la Amazonía ecuatoriana de estados sucesionales diferentes. Siembra 2(1):69-75.
https://doi.org/10.29166/siembra.v2i1.1439
Corredor-Londoño GA, Beltrán JW, Torres-González AM, Sardi A. (2020). Phenological synchrony and seasonality of tree species in a fragmented landscape in the Colombian Andes. Rev Biol Trop 68(3):987-1000.
https://doi.org/10.15517/rbt.v68i3.39277
Vargas W. (2015). Una breve descripción de la vegetación, con especial énfasis en las pioneras intermedias de los bosques secos de La Jagua, en la cuenca alta del río Magdalena en el Huila. Colomb For 18(1):47-70.
https://doi.org/10.14483/udistrital.jour.colomb.for.2015.1.a03
Griscom HP. (2020). The long-term effects of active management and landscape characteristics on carbon accumulation and diversity within a seasonal dry tropical ecosystem. For Ecol Manag 473:118296.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2020.118296
Salazar-Villegas MH, Wiegand T, González-M R, Rodríguez-Buritica S, Qasim M, Csaplovics E. (2023). Spatial facilitation and competition regulate tree species assembly in a tropical dry forest. Front For Glob Change 6:1278410.
https://doi.org/10.3389/ffgc.2023.1028515
Godoy-Veiga M, Ceccantini G, Pitsch P, Krottenthaler S, Anhuf D, Locosselli GM. (2018). Shadows of the edge effects for tropical emergent trees: the impact of lianas on the growth of Aspidosperma polyneuron. Trees 32(4):1073-82.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Copyright (c) 2025 REVISTA DE LA ASOCIACION COLOMBIANA DE CIENCIAS BIOLOGICAS