Paper Review: Community Ecology

The study by Castillo et al. (2020) titled Tree Composition, Diversity, and Stand
Structure of Mid-montane Forest in Sipit Watershed, Mount Makiling Forest Reserve
ASEAN Heritage Park, Philippines aims to establish benchmark data for the 2-ha LTER
plot to determine the diversity, stand structure, status of biodiversity, and assess by
identifying species and habitats that need immediate protection and conservation. In a
more general context, monitor ecosystem dynamics through time.

The study was conducted in mid-montane forest in Sipit Watershed of Mount

Makiling Forest Reserve ASEAN Heritage Park (MMFR AHP). Sipit Watershed is the
most less studied area due to its inaccessibility especially the mid-montane forest to the
summit area. For this reason, Castillo et al. pursued this study which of course requires
patience and commitment since there’s a relative number of years needed as requirement
in the conduct of this study—it’s a “long-term ecological research”.

The researchers employed the LTER plot method where a 2-ha LTER plot was
established in the mid-montane forest in Sipit Watershed of MMFR AHP. Tree Inventory
and assessment was also done where trees were tagged, numbered, and mapped. In
addition to that, voucher specimens were collected for identification, authentication, and
herbarium collection. Tree Diversity indices were also employed and were computed
using the formulas by Curtis and McIntosh (1950), Magurran (1988), and Kindt and Coe
(2005). Species diversity (H’) was calculated using the Shannon-Weiner index (Shannon
and Weiner 1963) and R Studio (2013) for diversity profile. Lastly, Ordination and
Hierarchical Clustering was done to determine the similarity between the 20 m x 20 m
plots. R Studio (Oksanen et al., 2016). The Vegan package was used to determine the
results for the ordination while Paleontological Statistics was used to generate a graph
for the hierarchical clustering.

The researchers used long-term ecological research (LTER) plots because it

emphasizes the study of ecological phenomena over long periods of time. LTER is vital in
achieving an integrated understanding about ecosystem dynamics through time such as
populations and communities—in this case, the current tree diversity, stand structure,
and floral composition of the MMFR’s mid-montane Sipit Watershed. Studies before
were conducted for only over short periods of time and traditional sampling methods
generally one (1) to three (3) years limit ecological understanding. We have to
understand that a number of ecological phenomena take many years to unfold even
reaching over decades. For this reason, using this method is more appropriate and
advantageous as it enriches the data that will be obtained.
 A total of 1,055 tree individuals, including palms and tree ferns with a DBH of ≥
10 cm belonging to 73 species distributed in 49 genera and 33 families were recorded and
it presented a very high diversity statistic at 3.32 Shannon diversity index with an evenness
of 0.28. Of these 73 species, five were dominant namely: Antidesma pleuricum Tul.,
Neolitsea vidalii Merr., Palaquium philippense C.B.Rob., Micromelum minutum
(G.Forst) Wight & Arn., and Syzygium barnesii (Merr.) Merr. The common and
consistent dominant species is P. philippense which is most widely spreading species in
the Sipit Watershed and is considered threatened. In addition, the study reveals
relatively high endemism in the area where 44% (32 species) of the 73 species are
endemic. There are 11 threatened species that are found thriving in the area. The study
also recorded several species that are suspected to be unique in the mid-montane forest
of Sipit Watershed and not found in other watersheds of MMFR.

Data revealed that the mid-montane forest in Sipit Watershed is 80% dominated
by the smallest diameter range (10–30 cm), which generally is a characteristic of high
elevation and steep slopes such as the Sipit Watershed. The diameter at breast height
(DBH) measurements were included to assess the stand structure of trees. In addition, it
will also help the researchers know how well the growing forest is utilizing functional
and structural resources and diameter of trees are used to represent the population
structure of forests. The DBH also explains the dynamics of species richness and
diversity in the forest. The greater the DBH class, the lower the species richness and
diversity because we all know that bigger trees form canopies and it restricts sunlight
from reaching the ground (or the lower species on the ground) thereby affecting
environmental conditions in which other species might thrive.

The mid-montane forest of Sipit Watershed in MMFR AHP is highly diverse and
is home to many flowering species which are endemic to the Philippines. The plots
contain different species and numbers meaning they are broken into groups. The
abundance differed because the area was highly diverse as presented through the
diversity indices. The area should be prioritized for conservation and protection
initiatives because there are threatened and unique species. Doing otherwise will be
detrimental for the said species. Although the results are partly promising knowing there
is high diversity, there is still a need to monitor the ecosystem of Sipit Watershed in
MMFR AHP and mobilize efforts for biodiversity conservation.