PARENT SESSION
Poster Session # 7: Restoration, Resource Management, and Conservation.
Monday, August 4 Presentation from 5:00 PM to 6:30 PM. SITCC Exhibit Hall B.
Demography and life history of Geonoma orbignyana: An understory palm used as foliage in Colombia.
Rodriguez, Susana*,1, Orjuela, Maria A.2, Galeano, Gloria2, 3, 1 The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, Usa2 Univesidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogota, Colombia3 Instituto de Ciencias Naturales, Bogota, Colombia
ABSTRACT- Geonoma orbignyana is a common understory palm, which leaves are used as foliage in Colombia. Currently, no information about its ecology or conservation status is available. Our objective is to characterize the life history and population dynamics of this palm as a first step to assess the effect of leaf harvesting. More than 2000 palms were monitored from June 1999 to March 2000; we measured growth, mortality, and reproduction success. Population dynamics were evaluated using Lefkovitch matrix model, and elasticity analysis. Results indicate that G. orbignyana behaves according to its understory condition. The growth rate is low (1.98 leaves/year), the palm has a long lifespan, and growth and reproduction are related with the light conditions in the forest. The density is high (21.061 palms/ha), which is explained in part by its capacity of recovery after damage, and the frequent gap formation in the forest. The population is growing (
= 1.0585). Elasticity values indicate survival is the most important event (0.77), although growth is higher than in other understory palms (0.204). Because of the high density, the importance of growth transitions, and the recovery capacity of this palm, we hypothesize G. orbignyana behaves as an opportunistic species taking advantage of the forest gaps. This behavior would make this palm a promising Non Timber Forest Product (NTFP) because management plans could use this behavior to ensure the leaf availability and the persistence of the populations.
Key words: Life history, Colombia, Demography, Palm