Regeneration of a North Queensland Rainforest and Patterns of Tropical Succession

A survey of secondary regrowth tropical rainforest was conducted 13 years after its destruction. The 100 x 100 m plot was felled and burned in 1974 and its regeneration was analyzed by Stocker in 1976. The present census involved identification and measurement of all individuals 1 meter in height and over, in an area of 5,200m2. Species composition and diversity of the current plot are compared with the 1976 census by Stocker (1981 ). Shannon-Weiner diversity indices are calculated for both surveys and results indicate that the plot has significantly diversified in 13 years. Several hypotheses of tropical succession are considered in light of these data, and results support Eggeling\u27s (1947) intermediate disturbance hypothesis of diversity with respect to.time since disturbance. Species dissimilarity measures are calculated providing information of spatial dissimilarity, which support successional trends, and indicate an overall heterogeneity of the assemblage