Data from: Phenology and wood density of plants growing in the semi-arid region of northeastern Brazil

The current knowledge about the influence of plant traits and climatic
seasonality on the phenology of tropical rain forest plants is
insufficient to understand how functional traits can explain mechanisms
associated with phenological responses. We hypothesized that the density
of the wood and the water stored in stem and root determine presence of
phenological groups of trees. Leaf shedding, flushing, and flowering of
high wood density species are related to rainfall, due to their low
water-storage capacity. In contrast, leaf unfolding and flowering of low
wood density species depend on photoperiod, due to their high
water-storage capacity. For 12 months, we monitored
vegetative and reproductive phases of 281 individuals of 46 tree
species in a coastal rain forest in Northeastern Brazil. Data on rainfall,
photoperiod, wood density and quantity of water stored in stem and roots
were also recorded. Corroborating our hypothesis, wood density and the
amount of water stored formed functional phenological groups: Species of
high wood density and low water-storing capacity and low wood density and
high water-storing capacity. Abiotic variables did not demonstrate
relationships with the phenological events and revealed that the
phenophases of leaf unfolding, flowering and fructification occurred
previously in the low wood density and high water-storing capacity
species. Thereby, species of high wood density and low water-storing
capacity had these phenophases later. Although the hypotheses have not
been fully confirmed, we observed that in species of low wood density,
leaf unfolding, flowering and fruiting phenotypes occurred shortly before
it did in high wood density.