The photosynthetic light response of Amazonian semi-deciduous forest trees of the rain forest–savanna transition near Sinop Mato Grosso, Brazil was measured between July 2000 and September 2003 to test the hypothesis that the photosynthetic capacity of trees acclimated to different growth light environments will decline during the dry season. Maximum photosynthesis (Amax) and stomatal conductance (gmax) were significantly higher during the wet season; however, the physiological response to drought was not a clear function of growth light environment. For some species, such as Psychotria sp. growing in the mid-canopy, internal leaf CO2 concentration (Ci) was >30% lower during the dry season suggesting that declines in Amax were caused in part by stomatal limitations to CO2 diffusion. For other species, such as Brosimum lactescens growing at the top of the canopy, Tovomita schomburgkii growing in the mid-canopy, and Dinizia excelsa growing in the understorey, dry season Ci declined by <20% suggesting that factors independent of CO2 diffusion were more important in limiting Amax. Dry-season declines in gmax appeared to be important for maintaining a more consistent leaf water potential for some species (T. schomburgkii and D. excelsa) but not others (Psychotria sp.). These results indicate that while seasonal drought exerts an important limitation on the physiological capacity of semi-deciduous Amazonian forest trees, the mechanism of this limitation may differ between species.

Most of the forests of the Amazon basin grow on nutrient-poor soils (Jordan 1982). Despite this, these forests remain productive through a variety of nutrient conservation mechanisms and a very effective system of organic matter decomposition and nutrient cycling (Jordan 1982). When an area of forest is fragmented however, the remaining patches experience modified microclimatic conditions (Camargo & Kapos 1995, Didham & Lawton 1999), and changes in floristic composition (Laurance et al. 1998), which can affect the decomposer community (Didham et al. 1996, Souza & Brown 1994) and consequently the decomposition process.

Many types of primate, particularly species of the genus Alouatta (howler monkey) defecate as a social group and tend to defecate repeatedly in specific locations (sometimes referred to as latrines; Andresen 2001, 2002; Gilbert 1997). The importance of these clumped defecations in the dispersal of seeds has been well investigated (Andresen 2001, 2002; Estrada & Coates-Estrada 1984, 1991; Julliot 1996). In contrast, no study has yet looked at the role of clumped defecation in the spatial distribution of soil nutrients and the availability of nutrients for plant uptake.

Lianas are woody climbing plants that begin their life cycles as seedlings rooted in the ground, but eventually rely on other plants for physical support in order to reach the top of the forest canopy (Holbrook & Putz 1996, Putz & Holbrook 1991). Lianas can negatively affect plants they climb by competing with them for common resources such as light, water and nutrients, and by causing them direct physical damage (Dillenburg et al. 1995, Pérez-Salicrup & Barker 2000, Stevens 1987, Whigham 1984). Yet, there is little documentation about the size at which liana individuals of different species begin to climb on other plants in nature. This information is important because the size at which a liana begins to climb on other plants will determine when lianas potentially start physically affecting their supporting plants. Furthermore, although the growth of liana seedlings might be determined by light (Sanches & Válio 2002), the availability of support will also largely influence the rate of growth of liana stems (Peñalosa 1982, 1983, 1985). Thus, information about the size at which liana species find support in the forest understorey will be useful in understanding future growth of liana individuals.

In general, amphibian larvae dispose of nitrogenous wastes as ammonia and change to urea excretion during metamorphosis (Balinsky 1970). Ammonia excretion, however, poses a problem for tadpoles and embryos that live in a limited volume of fluid because it is toxic in higher concentrations. One solution is urea excretion or ureotelism. In amphibians it occurs in species with terrestrial modes of reproduction when larvae develop within the uterus as in the ovoviviparous Salamandra salamandra (Schindelmeiser & Greven 1981), when embryos develop in foam nests as in Leptodactylus bufonius (Shoemaker & McClanahan 1973), or when offspring develop in brood pouches as in Gastrotheca riobambae (Alcocer et al. 1992).

Competition and predation have often been referred to as key forces regulating community structure. However, in the last decade great attention has been paid to the structuring role of positive interactions between plants, which occur when the presence of one species enhances fitness, survival or growth of another (Bruno et al. 2003, Callaway et al. 2002). Positive and negative interactions are unlikely to occur separately in nature (Brooker & Callaghan 1998, Holmgren et al. 1997), and the overall importance of positive interactions on community structure tends to be higher in resource-poor environments (Callaway et al. 2002). Moreover, this balance can be subjected to spatial and temporal shifts (Callaway 1998, Morris & Wood 1989, Tielbörger & Kadmon 1997) linked with plant ontogenetic development and/or changes on resource availability (see Callaway & Walker 1997).

In tropical rain forest, the interface between leaf surfaces and the atmosphere is a fundamental pathway for nutrient cycling (particulary nitrogen), possibly even more important than the soil–plant interface (Parker 1994, Silver et al. 1996). Most important nutrient exchanges in the phyllosphere–atmosphere interface are mediated by microbial populations. For example, some authors have considered that nitrogen fixation in the phyllosphere is the main mechanism for nitrogen gain in humid tropical ecosystems, because of the substantial nutrient demand resulting from a high plant productivity and the constraint imposed by the generally low nitrogen availability in soil (Ruinen 1974, Salati et al. 1982, Silver et al. 1996).

The establishment and growth of a young tree requires a microsite that falls within a range of specific environmental conditions. Microsites will to some degree be modified by such neighbouring plants as are already established, a circumstance that will in turn lead to either a positive or negative spatial association among the individuals. Such patterns of spatial interactions are amenable to statistical inference. Positive associations may result when one species ameliorates overall hostile conditions, such as the shade and moisture provided the seedlings of long-leaf pine by the canopy of the saw palmetto (Allen 1956). Indeed, positive associations appear widespread in arid and cold habitats (reviewed in Tirado & Pugnaire 2003). However, on the forest floor of the humid tropics, negative associations are presumably more likely (Montgomery 2004). Harms et al. (2004) recently found a correlation between high density of small palms and a low density of tree saplings across four Neotropical sites, while Wang & Augspurger (2004) demonstrated that dwarf palms and cyclanths reduce seedling recruitment on the forest floor in Costa Rica.

This study addresses patterns of nutrient dynamics on a precipitation gradient (1800–3500 mm y−1) in lowland tropical forest with heterogeneous soil parent material, high plant species diversity and large changes in species composition. Mean foliar concentrations of phosphorus, potassium, calcium and magnesium decreased with increasing precipitation, whereas foliar carbon:nitrogen increased with increasing precipitation. Mean foliar nitrogen:phosphorus varied from 16.4–23.8 suggesting that plant productivity at these sites is limited by phosphorus. Total soil nitrogen increased as a function of foliar litter lignin:nitrogen, whereas net nitrogen mineralization rates decreased with increasing lignin:N indicating that as litter quality decreases, more soil nitrogen is held in soil organic matter and the mineralization of that nitrogen is slower. Extractable phosphorus in soil was negatively correlated with foliar litter lignin:phosphorus, illustrating effects of litter quality on soil phosphorus availability. Overall, the results suggest that variation in plant community composition along this precipitation gradient is tightly coupled with soil nutrient cycling. Much of our understanding of effects of precipitation on nutrient cycling in tropical forest is based on precipitation gradients across montane forest in Hawaii, where species composition and soil parent material are constant. Our results suggest that variation in parent material or species composition may confound predictions developed in model island systems.

Resumen: Este estudio trata sobre los patrones de dinámica de nutrientes en un gradiente de precipitación (1800–3500 mm y−1) en un bosque tropical de tierras bajas con material parental heterogéneo, alta diversidad de especies de plantas, y un gran cambio en la composición de especies. Las concentraciones promedio de fósforo, potasio, calcio y magnesio disminuyen con un aumento en la precipitación, mientras que la proporción carbono:nitrógeno aumenta con un aumento en la precipitación. La proporción promedio de nitrógeno foliar:fósforo varía de 16.4 a 23.8, lo cual sugiere que estos sitios tienen limitaciones de fósforo. El nitrógeno total del suelo aumenta como una función de la proporción de lignina foliar de la hojarasca:nitrógeno, mientras que la tasa de mineralización del nitrógeno neto disminuye con un aumento de la proporción de lignina:nitrógeno, lo cual indica que mientras la calidad de la hojarasca disminuye, más nitrógeno del suelo es retenido en la materia orgánica y la mineralización de ese nitrógeno es más lenta. El fósforo extraíble está correlacionado negativamente con la proporción de lignina foliar de la hojarasca:fósforo, lo cual ilustra el efecto de la calidad de hojarasca en la disponibilidad de fósforo del suelo. En resumen, estos resultados sugieren que la variación en la composición de plantas de una comunidad a lo largo de este gradiente de precipitación tiene un efecto considerable en la retroalimentación de los ciclos nutricionales del suelo. Gran parte de nuestros conocimientos sobre el efecto de los gradientes de lluvia en ciclos nutricionales del suelo han sido basados en estudios de gradientes de precipitación de bosques de montaña en Hawaii, en donde tanto la composición de especies y el material parental del suelo son constantes. Nuestros resultados sugieren que la variación del material parental del suelo y la composición de especies pueden confundir las predicciones desarrolladas en sistemas modelos de islas.

All fig wasps are confined to figs as larvae, and their specialized diets are restricted to fig embryos, galled fig ovaries or other fig wasp larvae (Boucek 1988). Almost all of the ∼800 Ficus species (Moraceae) are involved in species-specific obligate mutualism with a pollinating fig wasp (Hymenoptera: Agaonidae), which also strictly depends on its host fig for reproduction (Berg 2003, Ramirez 1970, Wiebes 1979). More than half of all fig species are functionally dioecious, with male and female functions relegated to separate plants, called gall and seed figs (Kjellberg et al. 1987). Gall figs are functionally male because they foster the pollinator larvae that disperse the fig's pollen as adults. Seed figs are functionally female and produce only seeds. The styles are too long for pollinator ovipositors to reach the ovules, and hence they cannot lay eggs. Gall fig styles are short (Ganeshaiah et al. 1995, Weiblen et al. 1995).

In comparison with the Neotropical big cats, jaguar (Panthera onca L.) and puma (Felis concolor L.), medium and small felids are poorly studied. Furthermore, studying wild felids in forest habitats is extremely difficult using direct methods given that most species are principally nocturnal and secretive (Gittleman 1996). Indirect methods are therefore particularly important, e.g. radio-telemetry (Emmons 1987, 1988; Konecny 1989, Ludlow & Sunquist 1987) or camera trapping (Maffei et al. 2002, Trolle & Kéry 2003). Using systematic camera trap surveys, we compare the population density of ocelots (Felis pardalis L.) across five Bolivian dry-forest sites with different habitat types and/or annual rainfall regimes (Table 1). We hypothesize that ocelot densities will decline as rainfall declines. In addition, we estimate the population of ocelots in the 34 400-km2 Kaa-Iya del Gran Chaco National Park. Finally, we describe and evaluate additional ecological information provided by camera trapping: activity patterns relative to seasonality and moon phase, sex ratios, ranging patterns and relative abundance compared with sympatric felids.

Many tropical pioneer species depend on the presence of high seed densities in the soil for successful recruitment following canopy disturbance (Cheke et al. 1979, Dalling & Hubbell 2002, Guevara Sada & Gómez Pompa 1972, Whitmore 1983). However determinants of variation in the composition and abundance of soil seed banks remain poorly understood. Seed bank densities can be affected by rates of seed predation and pathogen infection on the surface and in the soil, by intrinsic rates of loss in viability following dispersal, and by variation in the timing and duration of fruit production (Dalling et al. 1997, Garwood 1983, Murray & Garcia 2002). Here we compare seasonal fluctuations in seed bank density in five Panamanian forests varying in elevation and seasonality of precipitation (Table 1). We predict that lowland forests should show stronger intra-annual fluctuation in seed bank densities than montane forests because seed production and loss rates should be higher under conditions of greater resource availability, and where consistent high temperatures support greater abundance or activity of seed predators and pathogens (Brühl et al. 1999). Secondly, among lowland sites, we predict greater fluctuations in seed bank densities at drier, more seasonal sites where seasonally favourable conditions for seedling recruitment may select for interspecific synchrony in fruit production (Daubenmire 1972, Garwood 1983).

Inventory data on tree weights of 104 individual trees representing 10 mangrove species were collected from mangrove forests in South-East Asia to establish common allometric equations for the trunk, leaf, above-ground and root weight. We used the measurable tree dimensions, such as dbh (trunk diameter at breast height), DR0.3 (trunk diameter at 30 cm above the highest prop root of Rhizophora species), DB (trunk diameter at lowest living branch), and H (tree height) for the independent variable of equations. Among the mangrove species studied, the trunk shape was statistically identical regardless of site and species. However, ρ (wood density of tree trunk) differed significantly among the species. A common allometric equation for trunk weight was derived, when dbh2H or DR0.32H was selected as the independent variable and wood density was taken into account. The common allometric equations for the leaf and the above-ground weight were also derived according to Shinozaki's pipe model and its extended theory. The common allometric relationships for these weights were attained with given ρ of each species, when DB2 or dbh2 or DR0.32 was selected as the independent variable. For the root weight, the common equation was derived from the allometric relationship between root weight and above-ground weight, since these two partial weights significantly correlated with each other. Based on these physical and biological parameters, we have proposed four common allometric equations for estimating the mangrove tree weight of trunk, leaf, above-ground part and root.

Our common view on water uptake by terrestrial plants is that it occurs via absorption by roots from the soil substrate. However, it has long been known that plants exhibit alternative water-absorption strategies, particularly in drought-prone environments. Examples include many tropical epiphytic orchids which use a specialized structure called velamen radicum around their aerial roots for moisture absorption directly from the air (Capesius & Barthlott 1975), specialized trichomes in bromeliads (Andrade 2003, Benzing 1990), uptake by hydathodes into leaves of species inhabiting dry desert ecosystems of Namibia (Martin & von Willert 2000) and foliar absorption by coastal California redwoods during the summer fog season (Burgess & Dawson 2004). One of the most intriguing and yet, least-studied examples of adaptations to severe water limitation is found with desiccation-tolerant plants (also called resurrection plants). During drought periods, the water content of these plants can equilibrate with the low relative humidity of the air to the point that the plants appear dead. However, when water is supplied, these plants fully rehydrate (Alpert 2000, Bewley & Krochko 1982) and become physiologically active. Desiccation-tolerant vascular plants are rare in most ecosystems but diverse in tropical inselbergs (granitic outcrops; Porembski & Barthlott 2000). Relatively little is known about inselberg species particularly from an ecophysiological perspective (see Lüttge 1997 and Klüge & Brulfert 2000 for reviews).

Rodents are the most diverse group of terrestrial mammals in neotropical forests (Emmons & Feer 1997). The interaction of rodents with plants is often pivotal for seed survival (Peres & Baider 1997, Vander Wall 1990). Many rodent species are seed predators (Brewer 2001, Galetti et al. 1992, Hoch & Adler 1997). However, some neotropical rodents, especially dasyproctids (such as Dasyprocta and Myoprocta) and echimyids (Proechimys), are important secondary seed dispersers for large-seeded plants (Forget 1993, 1994; Hoch & Adler 1997, Wenny 1999).

Levels of leaf damage due to insect folivory have been investigated in forests of different latitudes all over the world, but most research has concentrated on a few common forest types. Most studies of insect herbivory were conducted in (sub)tropical rain forests (Barone 1998, Basset 1996, Coley 1983, Lowman 1985), or in temperate forests (Landsberg & Ohmart 1989, Lowman & Heatwole 1992). In contrast, little is known about insect folivory of woody plants in tropical savannas (Fowler & Duarte 1991, Marquis et al. 2001, Ribeiro 2003, Stanton 1975), and no such data are available for the West African savanna ecosystem (Andersen & Lonsdale 1990). Savannas cover about 40% of the land surface of Africa and 20% of the world (Scholes & Walker 1993), and savanna trees may host considerable numbers of insects, including many herbivores (Grant & Moran 1986, Mody et al. 2003). Therefore, insect herbivory can be considered a potentially important aspect of plant–animal interactions for vast areas of tropical ecosystems, where it has been studied remarkably rarely so far.

The question as to whether predators preferentially kill sick or disabled individuals has been addressed by many ecologists working with different predator–prey systems. Rau & Caron (1979) showed that heavily infected moose were more susceptible to hunting. Kruuk (1972) observed that hyenas appeared to select sick animals in the Serengeti. Vorisek et al. (1998) demonstrated that voles infected with a species of Frenkelia were taken more frequently by buzzards. As a broad generalization, wherever prey capture is difficult and involves large energy expenditure a greater proportion of sick animals seems to be captured (Fitzgibbon & Fanshawe 1989, Holmes & Bethel 1972, Temple 1987). In a host–parasite association where the prey species is an intermediate host and the predator is the definitive host, the capture of the prey is often an essential part of the life cycle. Therefore any mechanism which makes the prey susceptible to predation would enhance the parasite's fitness. In such relationships the susceptibility induced by the parasite can be very specific to the predator host (Levri 1998). Freedman (1990) suggested that a mutualistic association between the predator and parasite might exist. A mutualistic relationship can be said to exist between a predator and a parasite if the cost of harbouring the parasite is less than the benefit of greater success in catching the prey. There is perhaps no demonstrated example of such a mutualism in natural populations since it is difficult to weigh the parasite cost against the predation benefit.

Forest fragmentation results in the creation of edge habitats, which can be responsible for large modifications in community dynamics (Murcia 1995, Saunders et al. 1991). Plant recruitment along edges is favoured for early successional species but is limited for core forest species (Fox et al. 1997, Williams-Linera 1990). Because the former generally produce large quantities of small seeds while the latter produce fewer large seeds (Hammond & Brown 1995), seed resource availability along the edge is biased in favour of smaller seeds. Such seeds are more likely to attract small rodents than large scatterhoarding species (Adler 1998, Forget et al. 1998). Moreover, the density and activity of forest animals in edge habitats can also be altered as a consequence of their specific responses to habitat changes, varying from edge avoidance to edge preference (Bowers & Dooley 1993, Goosem 2000). These changes in seed resource availability and rodent communities can have cascading effects on plant–rodent interactions in edge habitats and post-dispersal seed predation processes (Holl & Lulow 1997).

Beetles of the family Cerambycidae can girdle stems and larvae bore live or dead stems of their host plants (Linsley 1961), and when they use active tissues (e.g. xylem), can affect the development and survivorship of their hosts (Nowak et al. 2001). Moreover, borer attack can rapidly stress host plants (Matter 2001), often killing them (Nowak et al. 2001). Consequently, they can cause changes in size structure of the plant population, depending on the intensity of attack and plant survival rates (Caraglio et al. 2001). Cerambycids of the genus Oncideres (Lamiinae) present the most specialized behaviour in host-plant use, in which the female cuts stems with its mandibles and prepares the oviposition site above the cut portion by perforating the bark and then inserting eggs (Caraglio et al. 2001, Rice 1989, 1995).

Trophic relationships among animals, plants and microflora are the basis for the construction of terrestrial and aquatic food webs, but both the structure and dynamics of food webs remain contentious. Examples of issues include how the overall nutrient status of a system affects the number of trophic levels, whether trophic-level omnivory and intraguild predation are rare or important, if different animal species can be aggregated into functional groups according to their taxonomic affiliation, how large numbers of decomposer animal species can coexist and why there are so many parthenogenetic taxa in soil.