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The mechanism of general flowering in Dipterocarpaceae in theMalay Peninsula

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 July 1999

Masatoshi Yasuda
Affiliation:
Wildlife Ecology Laboratory, Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute, PO Box 16, Tsukuba Norin, Ibaraki 305-8687 Japan (myasuda@ffpri.affrc.go.jp)
Jun Matsumoto
Affiliation:
Faculty of Science, University Tokyo, Japan
Noriyuki Osada
Affiliation:
Faculty of Agriculture, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
San'ei Ichikawa
Affiliation:
Japan Science and Technology Corporation, Tokyo, Japan
Naoki Kachi
Affiliation:
Faculty of Science, Tokyo Metropolitan University, Tokyo, Japan
Makoto Tani
Affiliation:
Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute, Ibaraki, Japan
Toshinori Okuda
Affiliation:
National Institute for Environmental Studies, Ibaraki, Japan
Akio Furukawa
Affiliation:
Faculty of Science, Nara Women University, Nara, Japan
Abdul Rahim Nik
Affiliation:
Forest Research Institute Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
N. Manokaran
Affiliation:
Forest Research Institute Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Abstract

Themechanism of general flowering in Dipterocarpaceae in the MalayPeninsula is revealed through field survey and meteorological dataanalyses. The regions of general flowering coincide with those whichexperienced a low night-time temperature (LNT) c. 2 mo beforeflowering. This supports the hypothesis that low air temperature inducesthe development of floral buds of dipterocarps. LNT was found to becaused by radiative cooling during dry spells in winter when thenorthern subtropical ridge (STR) occasionally migrates southwards with adry air mass into the equatorial region. LNT events usually occur in LaNiña episodes, not in El Niño episodes as believedpreviously. This is because the southward migration of the STR isassociated with the intensification of local meridional HadleyCirculation in the western Pacific, which is strengthened in a LaNiña episode. Results suggest that El Niño-like climatechange in increased atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations may becritical for the tropical rain forest biome in south-east Asia.

Information

Type
Research Article
Copyright
© 1999 Cambridge University Press

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