Skip to main content
Log in

Deciduousness in a seasonal tropical forest in western Thailand: interannual and intraspecific variation in timing, duration and environmental cues

  • Ecosystem Ecology - Original Paper
  • Published:
Oecologia Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Seasonal tropical forests exhibit a great diversity of leaf exchange patterns. Within these forests variation in the timing and intensity of leaf exchange may occur within and among individual trees and species, as well as from year to year. Understanding what generates this diversity of phenological behaviour requires a mechanistic model that incorporates rate-limiting physiological conditions, environmental cues, and their interactions. In this study we examined long-term patterns of leaf flushing for a large proportion of the hundreds of tree species that co-occur in a seasonal tropical forest community in western Thailand. We used the data to examine community-wide variation in deciduousness and tested competing hypotheses regarding the timing and triggers of leaf flushing in seasonal tropical forests. We developed metrics to quantify the nature of deciduousness (its magnitude, timing and duration) and its variability among survey years and across a range of taxonomic levels. Tree species varied widely in the magnitude, duration, and variability of leaf loss within species and across years. The magnitude of deciduousness ranged from complete crown loss to no crown loss. Among species that lost most of their crown, the duration of deciduousness ranged from 2 to 21 weeks. The duration of deciduousness in the majority of species was considerably shorter than in neotropical forests with similar rainfall periodicity. While the timing of leaf flushing varied among species, most (∼70%) flushed during the dry season. Leaf flushing was associated with changes in photoperiod in some species and the timing of rainfall in other species. However, more than a third of species showed no clear association with either photoperiod or rainfall, despite the considerable length and depth of the dataset. Further progress in resolving the underlying internal and external mechanisms controlling leaf exchange will require targeting these species for detailed physiological and microclimatic studies.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5a–f

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Aide TM (1992) Dry season leaf production: an escape from herbivory. Biotropica 24:532–537

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baker PJ, Bunyavejchewin S, Oliver CD, Ashton PS (2005) Disturbance history and historical stand dynamics of a seasonal tropical forest in western Thailand. Ecol Monogr 75:317–343

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Batchelet E (1981) Circular statistics in biology. Academic Press, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Borchert R (1994a) Soil and stem water storage determine phenology and distribution of tropical dry forest trees. Ecology 75:1437–1449

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Borchert R (1994b) Induction of rehydration and bud break by irrigation or rain in deciduous trees of a tropical dry forest in Costa Rica. Trees 8:198–204

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Borchert R (1994c) Water status and development of tropical trees during seasonal drought. Trees 8:115–125

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Borchert R, Rivera G (2001) Photoperiodic control of seasonal development and dormancy in tropical stem succulent trees. Tree Physiol 21:221–231

    Google Scholar 

  • Borchert R, Rivera G, Hagnauer W (2002) Modification of vegetative phenology in a tropical semi-deciduous forest by abnormal drought and rain. Biotropica 34:27–39

    Google Scholar 

  • Borchert R, Renner SS, Calle Z, Navarrete D, Tye A, Gautler L, Spichiger R, von Hildebrand P (2005) Photoperiodic induction of synchronous flowering near the equator. Nature 433:627–629

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Brodribb TJ, Holbrook NM, Gutierrez MV (2002) Hydraulic and photosynthetic co-ordination in seasonally dry tropical forest trees. Plant Cell Environ 25:1435–1444

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bullock SH, Solis-Magallanes JA (1990) Phenology of canopy trees of a tropical deciduous forest in Mexico. Biotropica 22:22–35

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chabot BF, Hicks DJ (1982) The ecology of leaf life spans. Annu Rev Ecol Syst 13:229–259

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Choat B, Ball MC, Luly JG, Holtum JAM (2005) Hydraulic architecture of deciduous and evergreen dry rainforest tree species from north-eastern Australia. Trees 19:305–311

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Choat B, Ball MC, Luly JG, Donnelly CF, Holtum JAM (2006) Seasonal patterns of leaf gas exchange and water relations in dry rain forest trees of contrasting leaf phenology. Tree Physiol 26:657–664

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Chapotin SM, Razanameharizaka JH, Holbrook NM (2006) Baobab trees (Adansonia) in Madagascar use stored water to flush new leaves but not to support stomatal opening before the rainy season. New Phytologist 169:549–559

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Daubenmire R (1972) Phenology and other characteristics of tropical semi-deciduous forest in north-western Costa Rica. J Ecol 60:147–170

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Davies SJ, Ashton PS (1999) Phenology and fecundity in 11 sympatric pioneer species of Macaranga (Euphorbiaceae) in Borneo. Am J Bot 86:1786–1795

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Duff GA, Myers BA, Williams RJ, Eamus D, O’Grady A, Fordyce IR (1997) Seasonal patterns in soil moisture, vapour pressure deficit, tree canopy cover and pre-dawn water potential in a northern Australian savanna. Aust J Bot 45:211–224

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Elliott S, Baker PJ, Borchert R (2006) Leaf flushing during the dry season: the paradox of Asian monsoon forests. Glob Ecol Biogeogr 15:248–257

    Google Scholar 

  • Frankie GW, Baker HG, Opler PA (1974) Comparative phenological studies of trees in tropical wet and dry forests in the lowlands of Costa Rica. J Ecol 62:881–919

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Graham EA, Mulkey SS, Kitajima K, Phillips NG, Wright SJ (2003) Cloud cover limits net CO2 uptake and growth of a rainforest tree during tropical rainy seasons. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 100:572–576

    Google Scholar 

  • Kramer PJ, Kozlowski TT (1979) Physiology of woody plants. Academic, New York

  • Kushwaha CP, Singh KP (2005) Diversity of leaf phenology in a tropical deciduous forest in India. J Trop Ecol 21:47–56

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lechowicz MJ (1984) Why do temperate deciduous trees leaf out at different times? Adaptation and ecology of forest communities. Am Nat 124:821–842

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lieberman D (1982) Seasonality and phenology in a dry tropical forest in Ghana. J Ecol 70:791–806

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lieberman D, Lieberman M (1984) The causes and consequences of synchronous flushing in a dry tropical forest. Biotropica 16:193–201

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Milton K (1991) Leaf change and fruit production in six neotropical Moraceae species. J Ecol 79:1–26

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Morellato LPC, Talora DC, Takahasi A, Bencke CC, Romera EC, Zipparro VB (2000) Phenology of Atlantic rainforest trees: a comparative study. Biotropica 32:811–823

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Murphy PG, Lugo AE (1986) Ecology of tropical dry forest. Annu Rev Ecol Syst 17:67–88

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Myers BA, Williams RJ, Fordyce I, Duff GA, Eamus D (1998) Does irrigation affect leaf phenology in deciduous and evergreen trees of the savannas of northern Australia? Aust J Ecol 23:329–339

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nepstad DC, de Carvalho CR, Davidson EA, Jipp P, Lefebvre PA, Negreiros GH, da Silva ED, Stone TA, Trumbore SE, Vieira S (1994) The role of deep roots in the hydrological and carbon cycles of Amazonian forests and pastures. Nature 372:666–669

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Reich PB (1995) Phenology of tropical trees: patterns, causes, and consequences. Can J Bot 73:164–174

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Reich PB, Borchert R (1984) Water stress and tree phenology in a tropical dry forest in the lowlands of Costa Rica. J Ecol 72:61–74

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Reich PB, Uhl C, Walters MB, Prugh L, Ellsworth DS (2004) Leaf demography and phenology in Amazonian rain forest: a census of 40,000 leaves of 23 tree species. Ecol Monogr 74:3–23

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rivera G, Elliott S, Caldas LS, Nicolossi G, Coradin VTR, Borchert R (2002) Increasing day-length induces spring flushing of tropical dry forest trees in the absence of rain. Trees 16:445–456

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rundel PW, Boonpragob K (1995) Dry forest ecosystems of Thailand. In: Bullock SH, Mooney HA, Medina E (eds) Seasonally dry tropical forests. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, pp 93–123

    Google Scholar 

  • Singh KP, Kushwaha CP (2005) Paradox of leaf phenology: Shorea robusta is a semi-evergreen species in tropical dry deciduous forests in India. Curr Sci 88:1820–1824

    Google Scholar 

  • Valentine HT (1983) Budbreak and leaf growth functions for modeling herbivory in some gypsy-moth hosts. For Sci 29:607–617

    Google Scholar 

  • Walter H (1971) Ecology of tropical and subtropical vegetation. Oliver and Boyd, Edinburgh

    Google Scholar 

  • Williams RJ, Myers BA, Muller WJ, Duff GA, Eamus D (1997) Leaf phenology of woody species in a north Australian tropical savanna. Ecology 78:2542–2558

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Woodward FI (1987) Climate and plant distribution. Cambridge University Press, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Wright I, Reich P, Westoby M, Ackerly D, Baruch Z, Bongers F, Cavender-Bares J, Chapin T, Cornelissen J, Diemer M, Flexas J, Garnier E, Groom P, Gulias J, Niinemets U, Oleksyn J, Osada N, Poorter H, Poot P, Prior L, Pyankov V, Roumet C, Thomas S, Tjoelker M, Venekiaas E, Villar R (2004) The worldwide leaf economics spectrum. Nature 428:821–827

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wright SJ, Cornejo FH (1990) Seasonal drought and leaf fall in a tropical forest. Ecology 71:1165–1175

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wurth MKR, Pelaez-Riedl S, Wright SJ, Korner C (2005) Non-structural carbohydrate pools in a tropical forest. Oecologia 143:11–24

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Zar JH (1999) Biostatistical analysis, 4th edn. Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ

Download references

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank the various staff at the Khlong Phuu Research Station and Kapook Kapiang Ranger Station at Huai Kha Khaeng who have taken the phenology measurements every fortnight over much of the past decade. The management staff at Huai Kha Khaeng have supported the 50-ha plot and the research associated with it since its inception in 1991. This research has been funded by USAID, the National Science Foundation (USA), and the Smithsonian Institution’s Center for Tropical Forest Science Small Grants program. We thank Dan Bebber for his suggestion regarding circular statistics. Comments from Christian Körner, Marilyn Ball, Jenny Read, and two anonymous reviewers improved the quality of the manuscript. The research complies with the current laws governing the conductance of research in Thailand.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Patrick J. Baker.

Additional information

Communicated by Marilyn Ball.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Williams, L.J., Bunyavejchewin, S. & Baker, P.J. Deciduousness in a seasonal tropical forest in western Thailand: interannual and intraspecific variation in timing, duration and environmental cues. Oecologia 155, 571–582 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-007-0938-1

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-007-0938-1

Keywords

Navigation