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Effects of altitude and livestock on the regeneration of two tree line forming Polylepis species in Ecuador

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Abstract

Regeneration is known to be limited at many temperate tree lines, but very little data is available on the impacts of altitude and anthropogenic disturbance on regeneration patterns along tropical tree lines. The study focused on the reproductive traits of two Polylepis species in the Páramo de Papallacta in Ecuador along an altitudinal gradient, and involved different intensities of cattle trampling within subsequent altitudinal ranges. We analyzed flowering, fruit set, seed viability, germination, and seedling establishment as well as stand structure of Polylepis incana and P. pauta. The numbers of P. incana inflorescences and seedlings per m² showed a marginally significant decrease with increasing altitude. Mean tree height was significantly lower at higher altitudes, while stem number increased. The number of P. pauta inflorescences also decreased significantly upslope. In both forest types, trampling was found to have a positive impact on seedling abundance, presumably due to the removal of the litter layer. Thus, there was no evidence of negative effects of moderate cattle grazing on both tree line species. However, sapling establishment was minimal inside the forest stands at all altitudes and grazing levels, and we consequently observed a low proportion of narrow stems within all investigated forests. Our results show that, along with vegetative growth limitations of adult trees, important regeneration traits such as seedling and inflorescence numbers are also influenced by altitude, which might contribute to the formation of the upper tree line. Nevertheless, recruitment in the forest interior was low overall indicating that further factors, such as light conditions, affect regeneration of the studied species.

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Acknowledgments

This study was carried out as part of the project “Regeneration Ecology of Tropical Tree Lines” by the Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg and financed by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG). We would like to thank Alfonso Gortaire and Pablo Ochoa for their help during fieldwork. We also gratefully acknowledge the support given by Hugo Navarrete and Susana León Yánez (Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador, Quito) as well as by Gustavo Mosquera (Fundación Antisana). The manuscript benefited from comments by two anonymous reviewers, and Danny McCluskey kindly checked our English.

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  1. Institute of Biology/Geobotany and Botanical Garden, Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg, Am Kirchtor 1, 06108, Halle, Germany

    Arne Cierjacks, Nadine Katrin Rühr, Karsten Wesche & Isabell Hensen

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  1. Arne Cierjacks
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Correspondence to Arne Cierjacks.

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Cierjacks, A., Rühr, N.K., Wesche, K. et al. Effects of altitude and livestock on the regeneration of two tree line forming Polylepis species in Ecuador. Plant Ecol 194, 207–221 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11258-007-9285-x

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