Tropical forest vegetation is shaped by climate and by soil, but understanding how the
distributions of individual tree species respond to specific resources has been hindered by …

We present an analysis of local species richness in neotropical forests, based on a number
of 0.1 ha samples of woody plants collected by the late Alwyn Gentry. For each of 69 forests …

The analysis of species distribution patterns along environmental gradients is important for
understanding the diversity and ecology of plants and species responses to climate change …

The importance of niche vs. neutral assembly mechanisms in structuring tropical tree
communities remains an important unsettled question in community ecology [Bell G (2005) …

Long‐term studies have revealed that the structure and dynamics of many tropical forests
are changing, but the causes and consequences of these changes remain debated. To learn …

Organisms are adapted to particular habitats; consequently, community composition
changes across environmental gradients, enhancing regional diversity. In Panama, a rainfall …

Summary 1 We hypothesized that severe drought affects the structure of tropical forests by
favouring seedlings of some species or groups at the expense of others. To test this …

Significant changes in the composition of tree species have been observed in various
forests worldwide. We hypothesised that these changes might result from variable …

Within the tropics, the species richness of tree communities is strongly and positively
associated with precipitation. Previous research has suggested that this macroecological …

Summary 1 Spatial distributions of tropical trees often correlate with environmental variation,
suggesting that ecological sorting caused by niche differentiation may be important for …