Tropical forests differ widely in floristic composition, stand structure, standing volume, and carbon storage, yet comparative evidence across contrasting tropical forest types remains limited. This study examined whether variation in standing volume and carbon stocks among contrasting tropical forests was more closely associated with structural attributes or with diversity-related patterns. Two tropical wet forests in Colombia and one tropical semi-deciduous forest in Mexico were evaluated using 40 circular plots of 500 m² established within a 100 ha reference area in each forest, where all trees with DBH > 10 cm were measured. Floristic composition, ecological dominance, diversity, dendrometric attributes, standing volume, biomass, and carbon stocks were estimated using a common analytical framework. The two wet forests showed higher effective diversity, broader taxonomic dominance, greater basal area, mean height, standing volume, biomass, and carbon stocks than the tropical semi-deciduous forest. In contrast, the semi-deciduous forest showed stronger dominance concentrated in fewer taxa, especially Euphorbiaceae, a pattern that may reflect the ecological suitability of this family under more seasonal and water-limited conditions. At the family level, standing volume, biomass, and carbon were distributed more evenly among dominant families in the wet forests, whereas they were more concentrated in fewer lineages in the semi-deciduous forest. Basal area showed the strongest association with standing volume, total biomass, and total carbon, followed by mean height and mean DBH. Overall, the results indicate that, under the conditions evaluated, structural organization was more closely associated with standing volume and carbon storage than diversity alone, while diversity acted as a complementary correlate.

Forest restoration depends on producing seedlings able to convert nursery inputs into functional traits that persist after outplanting. This study evaluated whether contrasting nursery resource-management profiles, derived from container volume, fertilization, and irrigation, shaped seedling quality and field establishment of Pinus devoniana. Seedlings were conditioned for six months under eight profiles and validated during one year under field conditions. Nursery evaluation included morphology, biomass allocation, Dickson Quality Index (DQI), nutrient status, and proline; field validation included survival, growth, ectomycorrhization, stomatal density, and lignification. Profiles differed significantly in root collar diameter, height, root biomass, total biomass, root–shoot ratio, and DQI. The 5 L fertilized and irrigated profile produced the highest integrated quality, with 140.9% more root biomass than the weakest root profile and 144.3% higher DQI than the lowest-quality profile. Nitrogen- and proline-separated nutrient and stress responses showed that higher nutrient status did not always imply lower stress. Field survival reached its highest value under the 5 L fertilized and irrigated profile, exceeding several 1 L profiles by 74.8%. DQI was positively associated with field survival (r = 0.71, p = 0.048), supporting a nursery-to-field carry-over effect. The findings highlight rooting space as a leverage point for improving reforestation outcomes.

En la cuenca del río Inambari, Madre de Dios, se llevó a cabo un análisis exhaustivo de la concesión minera EDMILOT I, con el objetivo de determinar el valor tanto ecológico como económico de las diversas especies arbóreas presentes en la zona. En la introducción, se destacó la rica biodiversidad de la Amazonía peruana y los impactos de la minería de oro. Su propósito fue analizar el índice de valor de importancia (IVI) de las especies forestales inventariadas para orientar la gestión forestal. La metodología empleada consistió en el muestreo de especies en parcelas de 100 m², registrándose la abundancia, dominancia y frecuencia de cada una. Los resultados indicaron que Iriartea deltoidea y Otoba parviflora fueron las especies de mayor relevancia, con un IVI conjunto de 103.20%. En la discusión, se señaló que, a pesar de la alta diversidad, pocas especies predominaban en la estructura del bosque. La investigación concluyó que es indispensable combinar la protección del medio ambiente con la explotación minera para asegurar un futuro sostenible. Los datos obtenidos son fundamentales para la planificación y manejo de los bosques en áreas mineras.

Tropical mining landscapes require plot-based structural and carbon baselines to support restoration planning and environmental monitoring. This study estimated aboveground, root, and total tree carbon stocks across six mining concessions located in the Inambari River basin, Madre de Dios, southeastern Peruvian Amazon. Field inventories were conducted in 39 plots of 0.1 ha, where all trees with DBH ≥ 10 cm were measured. Aboveground biomass was estimated using a pantropical allometric equation based on wood density, diameter, and height; root biomass was estimated using a baseline root-to-shoot ratio of 0.24; and biomass was converted to carbon using a baseline carbon fraction of 0.47. Structural attributes, biomass stocks, carbon stocks, diameter-size profiles, basal-area contribution by diameter class, and multivariate structural-carbon patterns were evaluated among concessions. The concessions differed significantly in measured structural attributes, and these differences translated into contrasting derived biomass and tree carbon estimates. Edmilot I showed the highest basal area per hectare, total biomass, and total tree carbon, reaching 118.34 Mg C ha⁻¹, while Yesica recorded the lowest total tree carbon, with 58.54 Mg C ha⁻¹. Most trees were concentrated in the 10–20 cm and 20–30 cm DBH classes, but intermediate and larger trees contributed disproportionately to basal area. Principal component analysis summarized the concessions according to a reduced set of non-redundant structural and carbon variables, with the first two components explaining 99.21% of the total variation. These findings show that mining concessions retain contrasting forest conditions and should not be treated as homogeneous units. Structural and carbon baselines can help identify internal differences among concessions, prioritize restoration actions, and improve environmental monitoring in tropical mining landscapes.

Urban green spaces play a key role in supporting biodiversity, climate regulation, and carbon storage in rapidly expanding cities. Urban and peri-urban parks can differ markedly in tree-community structure, floristic diversity, and carbon-storage capacity. The aim of the study was to compare these attributes between an urban and a peri-urban park. The study compared these attributes between an urban park and a peri-urban park in western Mexico using data collected in 500 m² circular plots. Tree structure was assessed through diameter at breast height, height, crown diameter, basal area, and crown projection area, while floristic composition and diversity were evaluated using richness, Shannon, Simpson, Pielou, and Menhinick indices. Aboveground biomass, belowground biomass, and carbon stocks were estimated using generalized allometric equations. A total of 1675 trees belonging to 19 families, 33 genera, and 49 species were recorded. The peri-urban park showed greater structural development, with significantly higher DBH, height, crown diameter, basal area, biomass, and carbon stocks, whereas the urban park supported greater species richness and higher Shannon diversity. Species composition also differed strongly between parks, and carbon storage was concentrated in a reduced number of dominant taxa in each site. DBH was the structural variable most strongly associated with total carbon per tree. These findings show that floristic diversity and carbon-storage capacity do not necessarily increase in parallel and that urban and peri-urban parks can provide contrasting but complementary ecological functions.