Treesearch

The Puerto Rican karst region covers 27 percent of the surface of the Island and contains valuable natural resources that are needed to sustain the island’s life quality. We discuss the characteristics and values of the Puerto Rican karst, review the laws, regulations, and mechanisms available to conserve this region, and analyze its vulnerability to urbanization and incompatible uses. We found that Puerto Rico has an adequate body of laws and regulations, and mechanisms to protect its natural resources, including the karst. However, the island government appears to lack the will to...

The synergy between an insect colony and a curious entomologist is described. Together they determine the relative preference of insects to over 80 woody species. The relationship between wood resistance and insect attacks and wood density and chemical composition of wood is also determined. Finally, a series of chemicals is tested to increase wood resistance to attack.

Soil microbiota –usually quantified as microbial biomass –is a key component of terrestrial ecosystems, regulating nutrient cycling and organic matter turnover. Among the several methods developed for estimating soil microbial biomass, Substrate-Induced Respiration (SIR) is considered reliable and easy to implement; once the maximum respiratory response is determined for a particular substrate amendment and study area. We determined the minimum glucose amendment of three forest types in Puerto Rico: dry, moist, and wet subtropical forests. The minimum glucose concentration was 3 mg C-glu/g...

Data on macrofungal diversity and distribution patterns were compiled for major geographical regions of the world. Macrofungi are defined here to include ascomycetes and basidiomycetes with large, easily observed spore-bearing structures that form above or below ground. Each coauthor either provided data on a particular taxonomic group of macrofungi or information on the macrofungi of a specificData on macrofungal diversity and distribution patterns were compiled for major geographical regions of the world. Macrofungi are defined here to include ascomycetes and basidiomycetes with large,...

Mapping persistently cloudy tropical landscapes with optical satellite imagenery usually requires assembling the clear imagery from several dates. this study compares methods for normalizing image data when filling cloud gaps in Landsat imagery with imagery from other dates.