LUQ LTER DATA SETS DOCUMENTATION FORM

ON-LINE VERSION

A DATA SET is a series of observations collected by the same methodology. Each data set should have documentation sufficient for someone unfamiliar with the research to replicate the study. Data sets may be broken into subsets (data files) that are discrete in space and time, in that order. The documentation for a data set should include all spatial and temporal subdivisions of the data.

(Data, Abstract, Methods, Variables)

NOTES:

PERSON(S) COMPLETING THIS FORM: E-MAIL ADDRESS:

Neal H. Sullivan

neal.sullivan@gmail.com

DATA SET IDENTIFIER: Short-term disappearance of foliar litter of three tree species native to rain forest of Puerto Rico

PROJECT TITLE: Litterfall and Decomposition

PROJECT DESCRIPTION: Understanding the long-term impact of deforestation on ecosystem structure and function of tropical forests may aid in designing future conservation programs to preserve biodiversity and sustain ecosystem productivity. We examine forest structure, tree species composition, litterfall (fine and coarse) due to Hurricane Hugo and subsequent fine annual litterfall inputs, litterfall rate, and leaf litter decomposition.

The decomposition experiment was originally designed to examine short-term disappearance of folliage from three important mantane species: Prestoea montana (R. Grah.) Nichols, Dacryodes excelsa (Vahl.), and Cyrilla racemiflora. Hurricane Hugo (August, 1989) provided a unique opportunity to study effects of this type of natural disturbance on decomposition. With some modifications study was repeated in 1990 with some changes in the design which allowed for comparisons of short -term foliar litter biomass and nitrogen dynamics: (1) among the three species, (between the colorado and tabonuco forest types, (3) between riparian and upland sites, and (4) between pre- and post-hurricane environments.

History of litterfall and decomposition studies (MRCE experiment) at the Luquillo Experimental Forest (LEF)

The Minority Research Centers of Excellence (MRCE) experiment was designed originally to determine whether forest productivity was limited by nutrient availability, genetic constraints or climatic variables along a steep environmental gradient in the Luquillo Mountains of Puerto Rico. Comparisons were made between dwarf forest at 500 m elev. and tabonuco forest from 300-400 m elev. There were two main experiments in the original design: 1) forest fertilization (complete versus none); 2) transplant experiments using common gardens at high and low elevation, with and without wind protection at high elevation. In addition, phenology of leaves was studied in the dwarf forest to determine the longevity of leaves in the canopy. The occurrence of Hurricane Hugo in September 1989, just as the forest plot fertilization experiments were to begin, neccesitated the addition of a hurricane debris-removal treatment as a second type of control in the lower elevation tabonuco forest. The hurricane also changed the nature of the study into one of looking at changes in forest composition and the recovery of forest productivity in response to fertilization and hurricane debris-removal. Seedling, sapling, herbaceous plant, and fern responses, as well as measurements of light availability and canopy closure were added to the originally planned measurements of tree diameter growth, leaf litter production, and fine root production and turnover. Another hurricane in 1998 (Hurricane Georges) presented an opportunity to look at the effects of removing only the woody debris (in new plots) versus removing all hurricane debris.

Funding for continued studies of the MRCE plots ended in 1998, but they were of such great value as a long-term experiment that they were incorporated into the LTER program.

LTER CORE AREAS: (Annotate all that apply)

Inorganic Inputs and Nutrient Movement

LEF LTER 1 RESEARCH TOPIC: (Annotate all that apply)

Recovery after disturbance: Litter breakdown

We define a data file as a component of a data set. A data set can have only one data file or more. Basically, different data files have different data structures or format.
DATA SET FILES (SUBSETS):

Data File No.

Data File Identifier

On-Line Filename

Starting Date

Periodicity of sample

End Period

1
Short-term Leaf Litter Disappearance 89-90 lit_dis_89_90.txt 02/06/1989 variable 10/20/1990

RESEARCH LOCATION: Two sites: Icacos Watershed and Bisley watershed: Both locations estimated from USGS topographic maps

INVESTIGATORS:

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATORS E-MAIL address

William H. McDowell

Bill.McDowell@unh.edu

OTHER RESEARCHERS E-MAIL address
Neal Sullivan sullivann@missouri.edu

William H. McDowell

bill.mcdowell@unh.edu

CONTACT PERSONS E-MAIL address Phone Number (Include area code)
Neal Sullivan sullivann@missouri.edu (573)875-5341 Ext. 235

William H. McDowell

bill.mcdowell@unh.edu

(603)862-1020

SOURCE OF FUNDING (SPONSOR): National Science Foundation (Grants BSR-8718395, BSR-8718396, and BSR-9007498 to the University of New Hampshire, NSF Grant BSR-8811902 to the University of Puerto Rico, U.S. Forest Service, UNH-Department of Natural Resources, and the UNH-Agricultural Experiment Station.

DATA SET ABSTRACT: Litter disappearance was examined before (1989) and after (1990) Hurricane Hugo in the Luquillo Experimental Forest, Puerto Rico using mesh litterbags containing abscised Cyrilla racemiflora or Dacryodes excelsa leaves or fresh Prestoea montana leaves. Biomass and nitrogen dynamics were compared among: i) species; ii) mid- and high-elevation forest types; iii) riparian and upland sites; and iv) among pre- and post-hurricane disturbed environments. Biomass disappearance was compared using multiple regression and negative exponential models in which the slopes were estimates of the decomposition rates subsequent to apparent leaching losses and the y-intercepts were indices of initial mass losses (leaching). C. racemiflora leaves with low nitrogen (0.39 %) and high lignin (22.1 %) content decayed at a low rate and immobilized available nitrogen. D. excelsa leaves had moderate nitrogen (0.67 %) and lignin (16.6 %) content, decayed at moderate rates, and maintained the initial nitrogen mass. P. montana foliage had high nitrogen (1.76 %) and moderate lignin (16.7 %) content and rapidly lost both mass and nitrogen. There were not significant differences in litter disappearance and nitrogen dynamics among forest types and slope positions. Initial mass loss of C. racemiflora leaves was lower in 1990 but the subsequent decomposition rate did not change. Initial mass losses and the overall decomposition rates were lower in 1990 than in 1989 for D. excelsa. D. excelsa and C. racemiflora litter immobilized nitrogen in 1990 but released 10-15% of their initial N in 1989, whereas P. montana released nitrogen in both years (25-40 %). Observed differences in litter disappearance rates between years may have been due to differences in the timing of precipitation. Foliar litter inputs during post-hurricane recovery of vegetation in Puerto Rico may serve to immobilize and conserve site nitrogen.

DATA SET METHODS:
Leaf Litter Samples:
Recently abscised D. excelsa leaflets for each year were collected immediately prior to each study period from the forest floor near the El Verde field station (350 m elev.). Recently abscised C. racemiflora leaves were collected at or near the Icacos site for each year and also about 1.5 km south of the El Verde field station in 1990 (575 m elevation). Fresh (green) P. montana foliage was used due to the inconsistent and gradual way the species replaces fronds. Fronds were collected near the Icacos site, leaflets were stripped from the fronds and cut into 15-20 cm segments. The rhachi of the fronds were discarded. Foliage for the 1989 study was stored as collected for two days before being weighed. To improve our estimates of initial dry mass, the foliage collected for the 1990 study was air-dried for three days before being weighed. An unknown amount of moisture was lost from litter during storage in 1990. Foliage of a single species was weighed and placed in 20 cm by 30 cm litterbags (~1 mm fiberglass mesh). A sample of about one per six litterbags (randomly stratified across the processing interval) was retained and dried to later estimate the initial moisture, nitrogen, lignin, cellulose, and ash content of treatment samples. Between 8 and 14 g (oven-dry equivalent, Table 1) of foliage were placed in each litterbag, although the dry-mass per litterbag varied by less than one g for a given species and study year.

Sampling Design: Plots, Sub-plots, and Litter Distribution:
Two plots (each 8 x 16 m) were established at each of the Icacos and Bisley study sites in 1989 allowing us to make comparisons of decomposition among riparian and upland plots within watersheds and between watersheds. Similar plots were established in 1990 (riparian and upland, Bisley and Icacos). Since the Icacos upland plot (North side of stream) was only minimally disturbed (defoliated), a fifth plot, hereafter referred to as 1990 Icacos Upland Blowdown plot (data variable designated as South side), was established in an adjacent area that was severely disturbed. To summarize:

1989: (2 watersheds x 2 slope positions) = 4 plots
1990: (2 watersheds x 2 slope positions) + 1 blowdown plot = 5 plots
Each 8 x 16 m plot was divided into a grid of 2 m by 2 m sub-plots. With three species and five replicates per species to distribute, fifteen sub-plots were randomly selected from the thirty-two total sub-plots. Assignment of species per sub-plot was also randomly selected. Litterbags were placed on the forest floor within the sub-plots and tethered to an anchor. The 1989 samples were distributed on 2 June and the 1990 samples were distributed on 7 July (Bisley) and 10 July (Icacos). A single litterbag was collected from each sub-plot after: i) 14, 35, 52 (Bisley), 55 (Icacos), and 78 days in 1989, ii) 12, 23, 45, 73, and 102 days at Icacos plots in 1990, and iii) 11, 22, 42, 69, and 99 days at Bisley plots in 1990. Samples were collected more frequently at the beginning of each study period to try and account for the rapid changes that occur in litter during this period. To summarize: 1989: (3 sp) x (4 plots) x (5 replicates) x (4 collections) = 240 litterbags
1990: (3 sp) x (5 plots) x (5 replicates.) x (5 collections) = 375 litterbags
Mass and Quality Analyses:
Foliage samples were oven-dried on the day of collection (~50°C) , shipped to Durham, New Hampshire, redried (65°C), removed from the litterbag, separated from loose soil, weighed, and milled to pass a 1 mm sieve. The ash content of each sample was estimated by combustion of a ~1 g sub-sample (500°C for 6 hours). Estimates of ash content were used to adjust the biomass and nitrogen values for soil contamination, therefore disappearance rates were calculated on an ash-free basis. Total nitrogen was estimated using a micro-Kjeldahl digestion method and Technicon Autoanalyzer (Bremner and Mulvaney 1973, Technicon 1983).

Data Analysis:
The fraction of the initial biomass remaining (FBMR) and the fraction of initial nitrogen remaining (FNR) were examined using several approaches. The decomposition rate is often described by the model: y = e-kt, where y = FBMR, t is elapsed time in years, and k is a litter-specific constant. We used simple least-squares regression [ln(FBMR) = -kt] to fit a model to our data for comparison of results of this study to other studies. However, application of this general model across all litter types and species has often been found to underestimate initial mass loss. Models that factor the variable mobility of litter constituents and the multi-stage nature of decomposition better describe mass loss. Forcing the y-intercept to zero as in the y= e-kt model can assert an undesirable leverage when modeling and other statistical procedures are applied. This artificial affect is particularly influential when applied to a study focusing on short-term decomposition dynamics. For example, immigration and incorporation of decomposer organisms may increase litter mass or biomass loss through leaching may not occur immediately upon placement on the forest floor.

The single exponent model described above was modified to test for differences among species, site, and year categories. The rate component of the modified model was renamed k¢ and the model included a y-intercept term: ln(FBMR) = -k¢t + yint The y-intercept in this model may be viewed as an index of the initial leaching losses or delay in mass loss that may occur. The slope (k¢) may be viewed as the second stage in the multi-stage process of decomposition. We used regression techniques to fit this model with category indicator variables to simultaneously and efficiently test for differences in biomass loss among categories. Binary indicator variables (1 or 0) were factored for each category (e.g. year, watershed, slope position) along with elapsed time such that the influence of the category was reflected in a deviation in the rate and a deviation in the y-intercept. The pattern of the fraction of nitrogen remaining over time was curvilinear and the degree and shape of curvilinearity varied among sample groups. No single transformation technique would linearize the data for analyses using regression. Consequently, non-parametric Kruskal-Wallis rank-sum tests were used to compare nitrogen response over time and among sites for each study year. Statistical comparisons between study years were complicated by unequal sampling intervals. To address this, the data were divided into groups with year, species, and treatment interval in common. The fraction of nitrogen remaining at a given sampling time in 1989 was compared to the closest two sampling times (before and after) in 1990. For example, the 35 day samples from 1989 were compared to both 23 and 44 day samples from 1990.

SITES DESCRIPTIONS:

Geographical positional system (GPS) Coordinates for each location:

location

latitude

longitude

Icacos Watershed

18.271o N

65.783o W

Bisley Watershed

18.312o N

65.750o W


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------------- 1992b. Effect of topography on the pattern of trees in Tabonuco (Dacryodes excelsa) dominated rain forest of Puerto Rico. Biotropica. 24(1): 31-42.

Bloomfield, J., K. A. Vogt, and D. J. Vogt. 1993. Decay rate and substrate quality of fine roots and foliage of two tropical tree species in the Luquillo Experimental Forest, Puerto Rico. Plant and Soil. 150: 233-245.

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Bosatta, E. and H. Staaf. 1982. The control of nitrogen turn-over in forest litter. Oikos. 39: 143-151.

Bowden, W. B., W. H. McDowell, C. E. Asbury, and A. M. Finley. 1992. Riparian nitrogen dynamics in two geomorphologically distinct tropical rain forest watersheds: nitrous oxide fluxes. Biogeochemistry. 18: 77-99.

Bremner, J. M. and C. S. Mulvaney. 1982. Nitrogen-Total. In. Methods of soil analysis, Part 2. Chemical and microbiological properties. Agronomy Society. 595-622.

Briscoe, C. B. 1966. Weather in the Luquillo Mountains of Puerto Rico. U.S.D.A. Forest Service Rep. ITF-3. Institute of Tropical Forestry, Rio Piedras, PR. 250 p.

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Brown, S., A. E. Lugo, S. Silander, and L. Liegel. 1983. Research history and opportunities in the Luquillo Experimental Forest. U.S.D.A. Forest Service. Southern Forest Expt. Sta., Gen.Tech. Rep. SO-44.

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Cornejo, F. H., A. Varela, and S. J. Wright. 1994. Tropical forest litter decomposition under seasonal drought: nutrient release, fungi, a and bacteria. Oikos. 70: 83-190.

Covington, W. W. 1981. Changes in forest floor organic matter and nutrient content following clear cutting in northern hardwoods. Ecology. 62(1): 41-48.

Crow, T. R. 1980. A rainforest chronicle: A 30 year record of change in structure and composition at El Verde, Puerto Rico. Biotropica. 12(1): 42-45.

Curtis, R. E., Z. Aquino, P. L. Diaz, and R. J. Vachier. 1990. Water resources data, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands: Water Year 1989. U.S. Geological Survey-Report PR-89-1.

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Day, F. P. 1983. Effects of flooding on leaf litter decomposition in microcosms. Oecologia. 56: 180-184.

Dwyer, L. M. and G. Merriam. 1981. Influence of topographic heterogeneity on deciduous litter decomposition. Oikos. 37: 228-237.

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Maheswaran, J. and I. A. U. N. Gunatilleke. 1988. Litter decomposition in a lowland rain forest and a deforested area in Sri Lanka. Biotropica. 20(2): 90-99.

McClaugherty, C. and B. Berg. 1987. Cellulose lignin and nitrogen concentrations as rate regulating factors in late stages of forest litter decomposition. Pedobiologia. 30: 01-112.

McDowell, W. H., W. B. Bowden, and C. E. Asbury. 1992. Riparian nitrogen dynamics in two geomorphologically distinct tropical rain forest watersheds: subsurface solute patterns. Biogeochemistry. 18: 53-79.

--------------------- , C. P. McSwiney, and W. B. Bowden. 1996. Effects of hurricane disturbance on groundwater chemistry and riparian function in a tropical rain forest. Biotropica. 28(4a): 577-584.

McLellan, T., M. Martin, J. Aber, J. Melillo, K. Nadelhoffer, B. Dewey. 1991. Comparison of wet chemical and near infrared reflectance measurements of carbon fraction chemistry and nitrogen concentration of forest foliage. Can J. For. Res. 21(11): 1689-1693.

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Weaver, P. L. 1986a. Growth and age of Cyrilla racemiflora L. in montane forests of Puerto Rico. Interciencia. 11(5): 221-228.

------------------ 1986b. Hurricane damage and recovery in the montane forests of the Luquillo Mountains of Puerto Rico. Caribbean J. Science. 22(1-2): 53-70.

------------------ 1987. Structure and dynamics in the Colorado forest of the Luquillo Mountains of Puerto Rico, PhD. Dissertation. Michigan State University.

Wessman. C. A., J. D. Aber, D. L. Peterson, and J. M. Melillo. 1988. Foliar analysis using near infrared reflectance spectroscopy. Can. J. For. Res. 18: 6-11.

Wieder, R.K. and G.E. Lang. 1982. A critique of the analytical methods used in examining decomposition data obtained from litterbags. Ecology. 63(6): 1636-1642.

Weigert R. 1970. Effect of season, species, and location the disappearance rate of leaf litter in a Puerto Rico rain forest.In H.T. Odum and R.F. Pigeon (eds) A Tropical Rain Forest: A study of Irradiation and Ecology at El Verde, Puerto Rico. National Technical Information Service, Springfield VA.

Witkamp, M. and J. Van der Drift. 1961. Breakdown of forest litter in relation to environmental factors. Plant and Soil. 15(4): 295-311.

Zimmerman, J.K., M.R. Willig, L.R. Walker, and W.L. Silver. 1996. Introduction - Disturbance and Caribbean ecosystems. Biotropica. 28(4a): 414-423.

Zou, X., C.P. Zucca, R.B. Waide, and W.M. McDowell. 1995. Long-term influence of deforestation on tree species composition and litter dynamics of a tropical rain forest in Puerto Rico. Forest Ecology and Management. 78: 147-157.

CROSS-REFERENCES (other data sets related to this one): LTERDBAS #93: Litter decomposition in tabonuco forest before Hugo; LTERDBAS #94: Litterfall of the tabonuco forest before Hurricane Hugo; LTERDBAS #95: Litterfall along topographic gradients at lower Bisley; LTERDBAS #111: Litterfall in tabonuco (subtropical wet) forest in the Luquillo Experimental Forest, Puerto Rico (MRCE Litterfall data);

SAMPLE LOCATION: Foliage samples have been destroyed

STORAGE SITES (of data files): A complete listing of the raw data is included in the thesis listed below (I think the IITF library has a copy of the thesis, UNH certainly does).

INVESTIGATOR'S ASSIGNED KEYWORDS: Decomposition; leaf litter; Hurricane; Bisley; Icacos; Nitrogen; Cyrilla racemiflora; Prestoea montana; Dacryodes excelsa

LEF LTER OFFICIAL KEYWORDS (See table): BISLEY WATERSHEDS, OTHER: ICACOS WATERSHED, RIPARIAN, NITROGEN, DECOMPOSITION, HURRICANE, LITTERFALL, PALMS, TREES, PEER REVIEWED JOURNAL

PUBLICATIONS:
Sullivan, N.H., W.B. Bowden, and W.M. McDowell. 1998. Short-term disappearance of foliar litter of three species before and after a hurricane. Biotropica. 31(3): 382-393

Sullivan, N.H. 1993. Short-term dissapearance of foliar litter of three tree species native to rain forests of Puerto Rico. MS Thesis. University of New Hampshire, Durham. NH.

DISSEMINATION: UNRESTRICTED

REASONS TO RESTRICT DATA IN THIS DATA SET BEYOND ITS TWO YEAR POLICY PERIOD*:

*WILL HAVE TO BE APPROVED BY LTER PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATORS: J. ZIMMERMAN, A. LUGO , D.J. LODGE

SITES DESCRIPTIONS:

Geographical positional system (GPS) Coordinates for each location:

location

latitude

longitude

Icacos watershed

18.271o

65.783o W

Bisley watershed

18.312oN

65.750o W

VARIABLES (ATTRIBUTES):

FILE NAME OR #ABOVE (all in which the variable appears)

lit_dis_89_90.txt lit_dis_89_90.txt lit_dis_89_90.txt lit_dis_89_90.txt

ABBREVIATION (as it appears on the data file)

       

NAME OF VARIABLE

year sample time tyr

DEFINITION OF VARIABLE

The year during which litter bags were distributed and collected Sample identifying number by year Number of days collection of litterbag occurred after distribution Length of time between distribution and collection in years

UNIT

    day year

PRECISION

      0.0001

RANGE OR LIST OF VALUES

1989, 1990 1 t0 240 for 1989

1 to 375 for 1990

7 to 102 days 0.0301 to 0.2795

DATA TYPE

integer integer integer decimal

MISSING DATA CODES

. .    

VARIABLES:

FILE NAME OR #ABOVE (all in which the variable appears)

lit_dis_89_90.txt lit_dis_89_90.txt lit_dis_89_90.txt lit_dis_89_90.txt

ABBREVIATION (as it appears on the data file)

watershed position side subplot

NAME OF VARIABLE

watershed position side subplot

DEFINITION OF VARIABLE

Name of the watershed in which samples were distributed Slope position Refers to different sets of samples: i.e. due to differences in hurricane damage, additional plots were added at the 1990 Icacos site. N and S refer to the position relative to the stream. N is the the north side of the stream and minimally disturbed, S is the south side and severely disturbed.  Point of sample distribution, unique by watershed position, and side

UNIT

    alphabetic integer

PRECISION

       

RANGE OR LIST OF VALUES

Icacos and Bisley R = riparian

U = Upland

N, S,. 1 to 60

DATA TYPE

Alphanumeric Alphanumeric Alphanumeric integer

MISSING DATA CODES

       

VARIABLES:

FILE NAME OR #ABOVE (all in which the variable appears)

lit_dis_89_90.txt lit_dis_89_90.txt lit_dis_89_90.txt lit_dis_89_90.txt

ABBREVIATION (as it appears on the data file)

sp propwt tkn propn 

NAME OF VARIABLE

species Proportion weight remaining Total kjeldahl nitrogen Proportion nitrogen remaining

DEFINITION OF VARIABLE

Species of foliage in sample Proportion of the initial sample weight remaining after adjusting for moisture and soil contamination Nitrogen concentration The fraction of estimated initial nitrogen remaining at the time of collection

UNIT

  fraction percentage proportion

PRECISION

  0.02 0.02 0.001

RANGE OR LIST OF VALUES

C = Cyrilla racemiflora

D = Dacryodes excelsa

P = Prestoea montana

0.37 to 1.08 0.29 to 3.10 0.0 to 1.782

DATA TYPE

Alphanumeric Decimal decimal decimal

MISSING DATA CODES

  .    

 COMPUTATIONAL METHODS:
Variable Name Formula
   


FOR DATA MANAGER USE ONLY

DATE OF LAST REVIEW: May 4, 2005
DATE OF LAST ENTRY: 1990
STAGE OF DATA SET MANAGEMENT (dates):
RECEIVED May 1, 2001
ENTERED: May 31, 2001
FILED ON-LINE June 1, 2001
REVIEWED BY RESEARCHER
FILING MEDIA:
NAME OF DOCUMENTATION FILE: lterdb115.htm
NAME OF ON - LINE CATALOG: LTERDBAS
RECORD #: 115
DOCUMENT TYPE: magnetic media only
PRIORITY TO BE ENTERED: N/A


Rev. date of this form: 24 January 2001