DOI: 10.5061/dryad.cfxpnvx5h
title: Return of forest structure and diversity in tropical restoration plantings

description: Stepping-stone restoration plantings can reconcile conservation goals and
 local land use needs in highly fragmented ecosystems. We explored how
 initial planting composition influences recruiting plant species density,
 diversity, abundance, and forest structure in a 13-year-old restoration
 experiment in Los Tuxtlas, Veracruz, Mexico. Treatments included 8 fenced
 plantings with animal-dispersed species, 8 plantings with wind-dispersed
 species, 8 unplanted plots to favor natural succession, and 8 plots in the
 primary forest as reference sites. We predicted that that by attracting
 more seed dispersers, animal-dispersed plantings would most closely
 resemble the primary forest. A census of trees taller than 2 m showed that
 while wind-dispersed plantings had more recruits, the animal-dispersed
 plantings most closely resembled the primary forest in pioneer abundance,
 species density and abundance of biotically-dispersed and
 abiotically-dispersed plants, individual tree basal area (m2/ha), and
 vertical structure. The wind-dispersed plantings more closely approximated
 the forest in non-pioneer abundance and community composition. However,
 restoration treatments were more similar to each other than to the primary
 forest and did not differ in plant diversity. Animal-dispersed and
 wind-dispersed plantings did not differ in non-pioneer species density and
 matched the primary forest in total plot basal area. Higher abundance of
 trees in wind-plantings is explained by lower establishment limitations,
 seed legacy effects, and rapid reproduction of a few planted species. As
 the experiment continues, we expect treatment effects on seed dispersers
 will more strongly influence the recruiting plant community, leading the
 animal-dispersed plantings to more closely resemble the primary forest in
 diversity and forest structure.
description: This study was conducted in Los Tuxtlas, Veracruz, Mexico. The
 restoration experiment was established in June 2006 in 12 ha of actively
 grazed pasture adjacent to a privately owned patch of late secondary
 forest continuous with the biosphere reserve. The experiment consists of
 24 30 x 30 m fenced plots set on an 8 x 3 grid, each separated by 35 m of
 pasture (central GPS point 18° 35' 43.64" N, 95° 06'
 06.29" W). We recorded the circumference, identity, and origin
 (non-planted plants are from hereafter referred to as “recruits”) of every
 woody plant and palm (&gt;2m tall) in all 24 plots in June and July
 2019. Eight additional plots were randomly established in the primary
 undisturbed forest of Los Tuxtlas (from here referred to as “forest”) by
 the Los Tuxtlas Biological Station to compare with the restoration
 treatments; forest plots were divided into subplots in the same way as the
 restoration plots. Recorded species were classified by dispersal mode and
 life history using the available literature (Appendix S1: Table S1).
 Diameter and basal area values were calculated from recorded circumference
 values. 
description: Dataset includes data for 7,210 trees. <br><br>Column
 "x": ID number for individual tree. <br>Column
 "Treatment": Restoration treatment/habitat that tree belongs
 to.<br>Column "Plot": Restoration plot within treatment
 that tree belongs to.<br>Column "Subplot": Subplot within
 restoration plot within treatment that tree belongs to.<br>Column
 "Code": A four letter code for the species. First two letters
 are first letters of genus. Last two letters are first letters
 of species. <br>Column "Origin": Indicates whether tree
 was planted or recruited. <br>Column "Dispersal.Mode":
 Indicates whether tree is biotically- or
 abiotically-dispersed.<br>Column "Life.History": Indicates
 whether tree is pioneer or non-pioneer.<br>Column
 "Family": Indicates which plant family tree belongs
 to. <br><br>Several columns are for diameter and area.
 Diameter was calculated from recorded circumference. When trees had
 multiple trunks, each trunk was measured separately. Total Diameter is
 simply the sum of the multiple stem diameters. Virtual diameter is used in
 the manuscript and corresponds to the square root of the sum of each
 squared stem's diameter. Several additional columns are for the area
 of each stem. Total Area and Total Area in meters are the summed diameters
 then calculated into area. AreaHa is basal area divided by a
 hectare.  ​Dataset "LateCensus.csv​" contains
 data from a 2018 census that included all plants taller than 10cm of six
 non-pioneer species. This data is used for Appendix S2 Figure
 S4.   Column "Treatment": Restoration
 treatment/habitat that tree belongs to.<br>Column "Plot":
 Restoration plot within treatment that tree belongs to.<br>Column
 "Subplot": Subplot within restoration plot within treatment that
 tree belongs to.<br>Column
 "Ocotea.uxpanapana"​:​ ​Abundance of Ocotea
 uxpanapana​<br>Column "Trophis.mexicana"​:​ ​Abundance of
 Trophis mexicana​<br>Column​ ​"Virola.guatemalensis"​:​
  ​Abundance of Virola guatemalensis​<br>Column​
 ​"Psychotria.limonensis"​:​ Abundance of Psychotria
 limonensis<br>Column​ ​"Faramea.occidentalis"​:​ Abundance
 of Faramea occidentalis<br>Column​
 ​"Nectandra.ambigens"​:​ ​ Abundance of Nectandra
 ambigens​<br>Column​ ​"Total"​: ​Abundance of all
 together​<br>Column "SuperPlot​: ​Combination of Treatment +
 Plot