Amazonian Floodplain Forests: Ecophysiology, Biodiversity and Sustainable Management (Ecological Studies, 210)

Central Amazonian floodplain forests are an unique and endangered ecosystem. The forests grow in areas that are annually flooded by large rivers during mean periods of up to 8 months and at depths of up to 10 m. Despite this severe stress, these forests consist of over 1,000 species and are by far the most species-rich floodplain forests worldwide. The trees show a broad range of morphological, anatomical, physiological, and phenological adaptations that enable them not only to survive the adverse environmental conditions, but also to produce large amounts of biomass when the nutrient levels in water and soils are sufficiently high. This is the case in the floodplains of white-water rivers, which are used for fisheries, agriculture, and cattle-ranching but which also have a high potential for the production of timber and non-timber products, when adequately managed. Latest research on ecophysiology gives insight how tree species adapt to the oscillating flood-pulse focusing on their photosynthesis, respiration, sap flow, biochemistry, phenology, wood and leave anatomy, root morphology and functioning, fruit chemistry, seed germination, seedling establishment, nitrogen fixation and genetic variability. Based on tree ages, lifetime growth rates and net primary production, new concepts are developed to improve the sustainability of traditional forest managements in the background of an integrated natural resource management. This is the first integrative book on the functioning and ecologically oriented use of floodplain forests in the tropics and sub-tropics.It provides fundamental knowledge for scientist, students, foresters and other professionals on their distribution, evolution and phytogeography. “This book is an excellent testimony to the interdisciplinary collaboration of a group of very dedicated scientists to unravel the functioning of the Amazonian Floodplain forests. They have brought together a highly valuable contribution on the distribution, ecology, primary production, ecophysiology, typology, biodiversity, and human use of these forests offering recommendations for sustainable management and future projects in science and development of these unique wetland ecosystems. It lays a solid scientific foundation for wetland ecologists, foresters, environmentalists, wetland managers, and all those interested in sustainable management in the tropics and subtropics.” Brij Gopal, Executive Vice President International Society for Limnology (SIL). Front Matter....Pages i-xvii Front Matter....Pages 1-1 An Introduction to South American Wetland Forests: Distribution, Definitions and General Characterization....Pages 3-25 Development of the Amazon Valley During the Middle to Late Quaternary: Sedimentological and Climatological Observations....Pages 27-42 Remote Sensing of the Distribution and Extent of Wetlands in the Amazon Basin....Pages 43-59 Phytogeography, Species Diversity, Community Structure and Dynamics of Central Amazonian Floodplain Forests....Pages 61-102 Front Matter....Pages 103-103 Tree Phenology in Amazonian Floodplain Forests....Pages 105-126 Biochemistry of Amazonian Floodplain Trees....Pages 127-139 The Morphology and Anatomy of Tree Roots and Their Aeration Strategies....Pages 141-161 Fine Root Systems and Mycorrhizal Associations in Two Central Amazonian Inundation Forests: Igapó and Várzea....Pages 163-178 Morphology and Anatomy of Leaves....Pages 179-202 Gas Exchange and Photosynthesis....Pages 203-222 Sap Flow and Stem Respiration....Pages 223-241 Fruit and Seed Chemistry, Biomass and Dispersal....Pages 243-258 Seed Germination and Seedling Establishment of Amazonian Floodplain Trees....Pages 259-280 Nitrogen Balance of a Floodplain Forest of the Amazon River: The Role of Nitrogen Fixation....Pages 281-299 Genetic Variability, Divergence and Speciation in Trees of Periodically Flooded Forests of the Amazon: A Case Study of Himatanthus sucuuba (Spruce) Woodson....Pages 301-312 The Importance of Amazonian Floodplain Forests for Animal Biodiversity: Beetles in Canopies of Floodplain and Upland Forests....Pages 313-325 Front Matter....Pages 327-327 Wood Anatomy and Tree-Ring Structure and Their Importance for Tropical Dendrochronology....Pages 329-346 Biomass and Net Primary Production of Central Amazonian Floodplain Forests....Pages 347-388 Use of Amazonian Floodplain Trees....Pages 389-418 Traditional Timber Harvesting in the Central Amazonian Floodplains....Pages 419-436 Front Matter....Pages 327-327 Growth-Oriented Logging (GOL): The Use of Species-Specific Growth Information for Forest Management in Central Amazonian Floodplains....Pages 437-462 Front Matter....Pages 463-463 Protected Areas in the Amazonian Várzea and their Role in its Conservation: The Case of Mamirauá Sustainable Development Reserve (MSDR)....Pages 465-483 The Role of Floodplain Forests in an Integrated Sustainable Management Concept of the Natural Resources of the Central Amazonian Várzea....Pages 485-509 Ecophysiology, Biodiversity and Sustainable Management of Central Amazonian Floodplain Forests: A Synthesis....Pages 511-540 Back Matter....Pages 541-615 Central Amazonian floodplain forests are an unique and endangered ecosystem. The forests grow in areas that are annually flooded by large rivers during mean periods of up to 8 months and at depths of up to 10 m. Despite this severe stress, these forests consist of over 1,000 species and are by far the most species-rich floodplain forests worldwide. The trees show a broad range of morphological, anatomical, physiological, and phenological adaptations that enable them not only to survive the adverse environmental conditions, but also to produce large amounts of biomass when the nutrient levels in water and soils are sufficiently high. This is the case in the floodplains of white-water rivers, which are used for fisheries, agriculture, and cattle-ranching but which also have a high potential for the production of timber and non-timber products, when adequately managed. Latest research on ecophysiology gives insight how tree species adapt to the oscillating flood-pulse focusing on their photosynthesis, respiration, sap flow, biochemistry, phenology, wood and leave anatomy, root morphology and functioning, fruit chemistry, seed germination, seedling establishment, nitrogen fixation and genetic variability. Based on tree ages, lifetime growth rates and net primary production, new concepts are developed to improve the sustainability of traditional forest managements in the background of an integrated natural resource management. This is the first integrative book on the functioning and ecologically oriented use of floodplain forests in the tropics and sub-tropics. It provides fundamental knowledge for scientist, students, foresters and other professionals on their distribution, evolution and phytogeography. "This book is an excellent testimony to the interdisciplinary collaboration of a group of very dedicated scientists to unravel the functioning of the Amazonian Floodplain forests. They have brought together a highly valuable contribution on the distribution, ecology, primary production, ecophysiology, typology, biodiversity, and human use of these forests offering recommendations for sustainable management and future projects in science and development of these unique wetland ecosystems. It lays a solid scientific foundation for wetland ecologists, foresters, environmentalists, wetland managers, and all those interested in sustainable management in the tropics and subtropics." Brij Gopal, Executive Vice President International Society for Limnology (SIL)