Factors affecting the relative abundances of forest tree species
Reviews a conceptual model of the forest as a dynamic mosaic, and considers the demographic mechanisms that underlie forest dynamics tree establishment, growth and mortality (viewed as qualitatively different phenomena that operate on disparate scales of space and time). In integrating demographic mechanisms at a common scale, one can use hierarchically structured forest simulation models based on the fates of individual trees; or (in an approach viewed as providing a powerful framework) one can consider a functional classification of tree species in which species roles are defined according to the coupling of mortality and regeneration. Two kinds of process influence the relative abundances of forest trees: environmental filtering (the sorting of trees by environmental constraints, eg light, temperature, soil moisture and mineral nutrients), and inter-tree competition. -P.J.Jarvis
