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Leaf litter decomposition rates in degraded and fragmented tropical rain forests of Borneo

Previously extensive tracts of primary rain forest have been degraded by human activities, and we examined how the effects of forest disturbance arising from habitat fragmentation and commercial selective logging affected ecosystem functioning in these habitats by studying leaf litter decomposition...

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Main Authors: Yeong, Kokloong, Glen Reynolds, Hill Jane K.
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Blackwell Publishing Ltd 2016
Subjects:
SD Forestry
Online Access:https://eprints.ums.edu.my/id/eprint/13863/1/Leaf_litter_decomposition_rates_in_degraded_and_fragmented_tropical_rain_forests_of_Borneo.pdf
https://eprints.ums.edu.my/id/eprint/13863/
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/btp.12319
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spelling my.ums.eprints.138632017-10-23T05:50:15Z https://eprints.ums.edu.my/id/eprint/13863/ Leaf litter decomposition rates in degraded and fragmented tropical rain forests of Borneo Yeong, Kokloong Glen Reynolds Hill Jane K. SD Forestry Previously extensive tracts of primary rain forest have been degraded by human activities, and we examined how the effects of forest disturbance arising from habitat fragmentation and commercial selective logging affected ecosystem functioning in these habitats by studying leaf litter decomposition rates in litter bags placed on the forest floor. The rain forests of Borneo are dominated by trees from the family Dipterocarpaceae, and we compared leaf litter decomposition rates of three dipterocarp species at eight forest fragment sites (area 3-3529 ha) that had different histories of disturbance pre-fragmentation: four fragments had been selectively logged prior to fragmentation and four had been formed from previously undisturbed forest. We compared these logged and unlogged forest fragments with sites in continuous forest that had been selectively logged (two sites) and fully protected and undisturbed (two sites). After 120 d, undisturbed continuous forest sites had the fastest rates of decomposition (52% mass loss). Forest fragments formed from unlogged forest (32% mass loss) had faster decomposition rates than logged forest fragments (28% mass loss), but slower rates than continuous logged forest (39% mass loss). Leaves of a light-demanding species (Parashorea malaanonan) decomposed faster than those of a shade-tolerant species (Hopea nervosa), but decomposition of all three dipterocarp species that we studied responded similarly to logging and fragmentation effects. Reduced decomposition rates in logged and fragmented forest sites may affect nutrient cycling and thus have detrimental consequences for forest regeneration. Conservation management to improve forest quality should be a priority, particularly in logged forest fragments. Blackwell Publishing Ltd 2016 Article PeerReviewed text en https://eprints.ums.edu.my/id/eprint/13863/1/Leaf_litter_decomposition_rates_in_degraded_and_fragmented_tropical_rain_forests_of_Borneo.pdf Yeong, Kokloong and Glen Reynolds and Hill Jane K. (2016) Leaf litter decomposition rates in degraded and fragmented tropical rain forests of Borneo. Biotropica. ISSN 1744-7429 http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/btp.12319
institution Universiti Malaysia Sabah
building UMS Library
collection Institutional Repository
continent Asia
country Malaysia
content_provider Universiti Malaysia Sabah
content_source UMS Institutional Repository
url_provider http://eprints.ums.edu.my/
language English
topic SD Forestry
spellingShingle SD Forestry
Yeong, Kokloong
Glen Reynolds
Hill Jane K.
Leaf litter decomposition rates in degraded and fragmented tropical rain forests of Borneo
description Previously extensive tracts of primary rain forest have been degraded by human activities, and we examined how the effects of forest disturbance arising from habitat fragmentation and commercial selective logging affected ecosystem functioning in these habitats by studying leaf litter decomposition rates in litter bags placed on the forest floor. The rain forests of Borneo are dominated by trees from the family Dipterocarpaceae, and we compared leaf litter decomposition rates of three dipterocarp species at eight forest fragment sites (area 3-3529 ha) that had different histories of disturbance pre-fragmentation: four fragments had been selectively logged prior to fragmentation and four had been formed from previously undisturbed forest. We compared these logged and unlogged forest fragments with sites in continuous forest that had been selectively logged (two sites) and fully protected and undisturbed (two sites). After 120 d, undisturbed continuous forest sites had the fastest rates of decomposition (52% mass loss). Forest fragments formed from unlogged forest (32% mass loss) had faster decomposition rates than logged forest fragments (28% mass loss), but slower rates than continuous logged forest (39% mass loss). Leaves of a light-demanding species (Parashorea malaanonan) decomposed faster than those of a shade-tolerant species (Hopea nervosa), but decomposition of all three dipterocarp species that we studied responded similarly to logging and fragmentation effects. Reduced decomposition rates in logged and fragmented forest sites may affect nutrient cycling and thus have detrimental consequences for forest regeneration. Conservation management to improve forest quality should be a priority, particularly in logged forest fragments.
format Article
author Yeong, Kokloong
Glen Reynolds
Hill Jane K.
author_facet Yeong, Kokloong
Glen Reynolds
Hill Jane K.
author_sort Yeong, Kokloong
title Leaf litter decomposition rates in degraded and fragmented tropical rain forests of Borneo
title_short Leaf litter decomposition rates in degraded and fragmented tropical rain forests of Borneo
title_full Leaf litter decomposition rates in degraded and fragmented tropical rain forests of Borneo
title_fullStr Leaf litter decomposition rates in degraded and fragmented tropical rain forests of Borneo
title_full_unstemmed Leaf litter decomposition rates in degraded and fragmented tropical rain forests of Borneo
title_sort leaf litter decomposition rates in degraded and fragmented tropical rain forests of borneo
publisher Blackwell Publishing Ltd
publishDate 2016
url https://eprints.ums.edu.my/id/eprint/13863/1/Leaf_litter_decomposition_rates_in_degraded_and_fragmented_tropical_rain_forests_of_Borneo.pdf
https://eprints.ums.edu.my/id/eprint/13863/
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/btp.12319
_version_ 1760229268721238016
score 13.211869

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