Tree Diversity, Floristic Composition, and Forest Structure in Three Permanent Montane Forest Plots in Northern Peru.
4 affiliations
- 1Programa Doctoral en Ciencias para el Desarrollo Sustentable, Escuela de Posgrado, Facultad de Ingeniería Zootecnista, Agronegocios, Biotecnología y Ciencia de Datos, Universidad Nacional Toribio Rodríguez de Mendoza de Amazonas, Chachapoyas 01001, Peru.
- 2Instituto de Investigación para el Desarrollo Sustentable de Ceja de Selva (INDES-CES), Universidad Nacional Toribio Rodríguez de Mendoza de Amazonas, Chachapoyas 01001, Peru.
- 3Herbario Forestal MOL-F, Facultad de Ciencias Forestales, Universidad Nacional Agraria La Molina (UNALM), Av. La Molina s/n, La Molina, Lima 15024, Peru.
- 4Faculty of Resource Management, HAWK University of Applied Sciences and Arts, 37075 Göttingen, Germany.
Abstract
Tropical montane forests provide essential ecosystem services and are of considerable ecological importance. However, knowledge gaps remain regarding how tree diversity, floristic composition, and forest structure vary among permanent plots across the sampled elevational range (2169-2519 m a.s.l.). We established three independent 1 ha permanent forest plots, with a single plot representing each sampled elevation (2169, 2347, and 2519 m a.s.l.). Because each sampled elevation was represented by a single plot, this design does not provide replication for formal statistical testing of elevational trends; therefore, differences among the three plots were interpreted descriptively. All trees with DBH ≥ 10 cm were inventoried to characterize tree diversity, floristic composition, and forest structure. Diversity was estimated using Hill numbers, and floristic differentiation was assessed using non-metric multidimensional scaling (NMDS). A total of 2336 individuals belonging to 46 families, 75 genera, and 147 species were recorded. Alpha diversity differed among plots, with values ranging from 49 to 67 species (q = 0), 17.2 to 24.6 (q = 1), and 10.7 to 13.6 (q = 2). P-OC1 showed the highest observed species richness and floristic diversity among the three plots. Lauraceae was the most diverse family, while the ecological importance of dominant families, as indicated by FIVI, varied among plots. Comparison with nine additional permanent plots from montane forests of northern, central, and southern Peru revealed floristic differentiation among plots in the NMDS ordination (stress = 0.068). Neither elevation (R² = 0.280, p = 0.223) nor species richness (R² = 0.044, p = 0.826) was significantly associated with the ordination. This study establishes an ecological baseline for the three permanent plots evaluated and expands the available information on the diversity, composition, and structure of montane forests in northern Peru.
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BibTeX
@article{lopez2026tree,
title = {{Tree Diversity, Floristic Composition, and Forest Structure in Three Permanent Montane Forest Plots in Northern Peru.}},
author = {Rosalynn Yohanna Rivera López and Carlos Reynel Rodriguez and Jürgen Homeier and Helge Walentowski and Jaris Veneros},
journal = {Biology},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.3390/biology15191679},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42883353},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Tree Diversity, Floristic Composition, and Forest Structure in Three Permanent Montane Forest Plots in Northern Peru.
AU - Rosalynn Yohanna Rivera López
AU - Carlos Reynel Rodriguez
AU - Jürgen Homeier
AU - Helge Walentowski
AU - Jaris Veneros
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/22
JO - Biology
DO - 10.3390/biology15191679
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42883353
AB - Tropical montane forests provide essential ecosystem services and are of considerable ecological importance. However, knowledge gaps remain regarding how tree diversity, floristic composition, and forest structure vary among permanent plots across the sampled elevational range (2169-2519 m a.s.l.). We established three independent 1 ha permanent forest plots, with a single plot representing each sampled elevation (2169, 2347, and 2519 m a.s.l.). Because each sampled elevation was represented by a single plot, this design does not provide replication for formal statistical testing of elevational trends; therefore, differences among the three plots were interpreted descriptively. All trees with DBH ≥ 10 cm were inventoried to characterize tree diversity, floristic composition, and forest structure. Diversity was estimated using Hill numbers, and floristic differentiation was assessed using non-metric multidimensional scaling (NMDS). A total of 2336 individuals belonging to 46 families, 75 genera, and 147 species were recorded. Alpha diversity differed among plots, with values ranging from 49 to 67 species (q = 0), 17.2 to 24.6 (q = 1), and 10.7 to 13.6 (q = 2). P-OC1 showed the highest observed species richness and floristic diversity among the three plots. Lauraceae was the most diverse family, while the ecological importance of dominant families, as indicated by FIVI, varied among plots. Comparison with nine additional permanent plots from montane forests of northern, central, and southern Peru revealed floristic differentiation among plots in the NMDS ordination (stress = 0.068). Neither elevation (R² = 0.280, p = 0.223) nor species richness (R² = 0.044, p = 0.826) was significantly associated with the ordination. This study establishes an ecological baseline for the three permanent plots evaluated and expands the available information on the diversity, composition, and structure of montane forests in northern Peru.
SN - 2079-7737
ER -