[Reproductive phenology of tree species in the Tenosique tropical forest, Tabasco, Mexico].
Between August 2003 and August 2005 we registered the flowering and fruiting of 75 tree species (341 individual trees) in a tropical rain forest at Tenosique, Tabasco, Mexico. Monthly we checked five transects (500 m long; 5 m wide). To test the homogeneity of flowering and fruiting during the year, and between adjacent months, we applied a chi2 test. The flowering was bimodal, with a highest peak in March and April, coinciding with the dry season, and a second lower peak in July when precipitation is relatively low. The highest number of fruiting tree species occur between May and July, with its peak in May. Each of the most common botanical families showed a particular phenological pattern. Monthly rainfall and the number of species flowering or fruiting were not significantly correlated. This means that trees are flowering and fruiting all year long, with seasonal increases of both phenological phenomena in the dryer periods. We conclude that phenological patterns vary between individuals and between years and are not seasonally correlated. The data we generated are relevant to program the best periods of seed collections according to individual or groups of species, as part of forest management and conservation practices.
Ochoa-Gaona
Susana
S
El Colegio de la Frontera Sur, Departamento de Agroecologia, Apdo. Postal 1042, Admón. de Correos de Tabasco 2000. C.P. 86031 Villahermosa, Tabasco, México. sochoa@ecosur.mx
Hernández
Isidro Pérez
IP
de Jong
Bernardus H J
BH
D008800:Mexico; D012098:Reproduction / Q000502:physiology; D012621:Seasons; D014197:Trees / Q000145:classification* / Q000502:physiology; D014329:Tropical Climate