Resumen

RIVERA VAZQUEZ, Ricardo et al. Production and litter decomposition rate in acahuales of deciduous tropical forest in Chiapas. Rev. mex. de cienc. forestales [online]. 2013, vol.4, n.20, pp.20-30. ISSN 2007-1132.

Forests and other terrestrial ecosystems act as carbon sources or sinks from their conservation status; a substantial fraction of this element that each year is fixed to the ground is derived from the decomposition of litter, which is altered by the change of land use. Therefore, it is then necessary to know these dynamics involved in this process and in the production and accumulation of this material. For this reason a study was designed in which four permanent sampling plots were established in deciduous forest fallows ("acahual") of different ages in Chiapas, Mexico, in each one of them were placed 15 traps (1.0 m2 area ) and 36 decomposition bags with 10 g of leaves (dry weight). The sampling period was from October 2009 to September 2010. The greatest litterfall occurred from March to May, when leaves were the predominant component with more than 64 % of the total; the youngest acahual registered the highest production (5.05 t ha -1 yr -1). In contrast, the decomposition rate (k) was faster for the more mature acahual; estimated within 75.9 days to act on 50% of the material and 504.3 days for 99 % thereof. Results show that the age of acahual is critical for the production and the rate of litter decomposition, which is important for estimating carbon accumulation in these systems

Palabras llave : Acahuales; Chiapas; litter decomposition; litter production; El Ocote Rain Forest Biosphere Reserve; deciduous tropical forest.

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