Abstract

MENDEZ GONZALEZ, Jorge; TURLAN MEDINA, Osvaldo Augusto; RIOS SAUCEDO, Julio Cesar  and  NAJERA LUNA, Juan Abel. Allometric equations to estimate aerial biomass of Prosopis laevigata (Humb. & Bonpl. ex Willd.) M.C. Johnst.. Rev. mex. de cienc. forestales [online]. 2012, vol.3, n.13, pp.57-72. ISSN 2007-1132.

The measurement and assessment of aboveground tree biomass plays a key role in the management of forest resources. Many allometric models exist for tropical and subtropical species, but only a few studies for species of semiarid zones. A total of 144 Prosopis laevigata trees from seven native stands (sites) located in northeast Mexico, were destructively sampled to develop total biomass prediction equations. Sampling covered various ranges of basal diameter (5.2 to 41.8 cm) and height (1.4 to 9.7 m). Here, we contrast nonlinear and linear fitting approaches of the allometric equation y = a·x^b + ε, for estimating aboveground biomass of Prosopis laevigata. Although nonlinear procedure had the best fits (R² = 0.95 and P < 0.001) vs linear (R² = 0.84 and P < 0.001), the results highlight that the log-transform and the use of a weighted correction factor in allometry, improves significantly the biomass prediction of this specie. It is concluded that the obtained regression models using basal diameter, can be applied for the estimation of total biomass in Prosopis laevigata trees, but also that the minimum number of observations needed is 40 harvested trees to calculate parameters a y b with the least variance.

Keywords : Allometry; biomass estimates; mesquite; forest management; nonlinear and linear model.

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