Through Fall Study

Abstract: The influence of forest canopies profoundly manipulates the hydrologic cycle by changing the amount of rain, the force of impact, and the chemistry of water that reaches the forest floor. These hydrological characteristics are significant to tropical regions due to their impact on soils, erosion, overland water flow, as well as the vegetation communities. I looked at the differences between a primary and secondary forest in relation to an open field control area within the Las Cruces Biological Station, Coto Brus, Costa Rica. Forest structure was described using variables of live canopy height, total canopy height, basal area of tree species, leaf area index and light infiltration. Twenty sites in the primary and twenty in a secondary forest, and two sites in open areas were studied to compare precipitation through fall amounts. My results suggest that the secondary forest allows more through fall than the primary forest. Although the through fall amounts are slightly more in the secondary forest than the primary, my data shows that the replanted secondary forest areas reduce erosion by reducing rain impact and quantity.