Height-diameter allometry for tropical forest in northern Amazonia

• Published in: PloS one Vol. 16; no. 12; p. e0255197
• Main Authors: Lima, Robson Borges de, Görgens, Eric Bastos, Elias, Fernando, de Abreu, Jadson Coelho, Baia, Aldine Luiza, de Oliveira, Cinthia Pereira, Silva da Silva, Diego Armando, Batista, Anderson Pedro Bernardina, Lima, Robson Carmo, Sotta, Eleneide Doff, Caraciolo Ferreira, Rinaldo Luiz, Aleixo da Silva, José Antônio, Carneiro Guedes, Marcelino
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 16-12-2021; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Allometry; Biology and Life Sciences; Biomass; Brazil; Diameters; Earth Sciences; Ecological effects; Ecology and Environmental Sciences; Forest biomass; Forest ecology; Forestry research; Forests; Growth (Plants); Height; Heterogeneity; Hypsometers; Measurement; Methods; Modelling; Models, Biological; Natural history; New technology; People and places; Rain forests; Regions; Soils; Trees; Trees - growth & development; Tropical Climate; Tropical forests; Vegetation; Vegetation dynamics; Brazil; Amazon Basin
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0255197

Height measurements are essential to manage and monitor forest biomass and carbon stocks. However, accurate estimation of this variable in tropical ecosystems is still difficult due to species heterogeneity and environmental variability. In this article, we compare and discuss six nonlinear allometric models parameterized at different scales (local, regional and pantropical). We also evaluate the height measurements obtained in the field by the hypsometer when compared with the true tree height. We used a dataset composed of 180 harvested trees in two distinct areas located in the Amapá State. The functional form of the Weibull model was the best local model, showing similar performance to the pantropical model. The inaccuracy detected in the hypsometer estimates reinforces the importance of incorporating new technologies in measuring individual tree heights. Establishing accurate allometric models requires knowledge of ecophysiological and environmental processes that govern vegetation dynamics and tree height growth. It is essential to investigate the influence of different species and ecological gradients on the diameter/height ratio.