This Article Full Text (PDF) References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Speer, J. H. Articles by Horn, S. P. Search for Related Content GeoRef GeoRef Citation Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

Assessing the dendrochronological potential of Pinus occidentalis Swartz in the Cordillera Central of the Dominican Republic

Department of Geography, Geology, and Anthropology, Indiana State University, Terre Haute, IN 47809, USA

Kenneth H. Orvis

Department of Geography, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA orvis{at}utk.edu

Henri D. Grissino-Mayer

Department of Geography, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA

Lisa M. Kennedy

Department of Geography, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA

Sally P. Horn

Department of Geography, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA

Opportunities for dendrochronology in the tropics are rare because few locations experience sesonality strong enough to induce annual (or even dependably cyclic) ring formation in trees. Consequently, any such opportunities that exist are valuable and identifying them is worth investing time and effort. West Indian pine (Pinus occidentalis Swartz) is endemic to the island of Hispaniola (l9°N, 71°W). It has prviously been shown not to produce useful rings in low-elevation (<2000 m) stands. We investigated its potential in small (4-11 tree) sample sets from four sites between 2000m and 3000m where seasonality of temperature and precipitation is more pronounced. Primary growth rings were distinct at all sites. False rings, diffuse rings, pinching rings and micro-rings were also present, and their number varied considerably by site. Quality of ring formation appeared to increase with both moisture stress (elevation, exposure, edaphic factors) and cold stress (elevation, exposure, cold-air drainage). We were able to cross-date saples (average interseries correlation= 0.44; average mean sensitivity= 0.44) from nine trees at the higheselevation site, and that chronology correlated significantly (r=–0.45, P<0.001) with monthly and sesonal maximum temperatures from a nearby meteorological station. This finding suggests a centuries-long reconstruction of temperature may be possible for this subtropical location. We conclude that, with careful site and tree selection, oversampling to allow exclusion of problematic specimens and greater use of coplete cross-sections rather than cores, P. occidentalis may allow dendrochronological reconstruction of climate, fire history and other environmental processes that operate on the island of Hispaniola.

Key Words: Tree rings • tropical dendrochronology • West Indian pine • Pinus occidentalis • dendroclimatology • Dominican Republic

The Holocene, Vol. 14, No. 4, 563-569 (2004)
DOI: 10.1191/0959683604hl732rp


CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?