LiDAR-derived tree architecture data of geo-located tropical trees in Luquillo experimental forest, Puerto Rico

Tree architecture is an important component of forest community dynamics – taller trees with larger crowns often outcompete their neighbors, but they are generally at higher risk of wind-induced damage. Yet we know little about wind impacts on tree architecture in natural forest settings, especially in complex tropical forests. Here we use airborne LiDAR from NASA’s Goddard’s LiDAR, Hyperspectral and Thermal  (G-LiHT) Airborne Image March 2017 flights over Puerto Rico and 30 years of forest inventory data in Puerto Rico to ask whether and how chronic winds alter tree architecture. 

We randomly sampled 124 geo-located canopy individuals of four dominant tree species. For each individual, we measured slenderness (height/stem diameter) and crown area (m2) and evaluated whether exposure to chronic winds impacted architecture after accounting for topography (curvature, elevation, slope, soil wetness) and neighborhood variables (crowding and previous hurricane damage). We then estimated the mechanical wind-vulnerability of trees.