Forest Recovery from Hurricane Disturbances

Hurricanes are a major disturbance to tropical forests. We used census observations at Bisley Experimental Watersheds (BEW) in Puerto Rico to study the mortality after hurricane Hugo in 1989 and after hurricane Maria in 2017 and the subsequent recovery of the forest after hurricane Hugo between 1989 and 2014 (the last census before hurricane Maria). We found that hurricane-induced mortality varied with species/plant functional types (PFTs) and stem sizes. Specifically, palms had the lowest mortality, followed by mid and late successional trees. Early successional trees had the highest mortality. In the succession recovery of the forest after hurricane Hugo, palms had the lowest background mortality and the highest recruitment rate, which make them superior competitors in the forest.

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