Riparian and upland understory vegetation lifeforms and leaf-litterfall ordination analyses in the Luquillo Forest Dynamics Plot

Riparian areas are proportionally a small component of the forested landscape, they are significant contributors to ecosystem process, terrestrial and aquatic linkages, plant community composition, as well to basal energy resources for aquatic fauna. We describe vegetation and leaf-litterfall composition in relation to past land use in riparian and upland locations in tropical wet forest, Luquillo Forest Dynamics Plot (LFDP), Luquillo Experimental Forest, Puerto Rico. Data collected from 2003 to 2005. Stratified sampling was conducted in riparian and upland areas of LFDP with high and low past land use. Understory vegetation life-form composition were sampled in plots. \<para\> Support for this work was provided by grants BSR-8811902, DEB-9411973, DEB-9705814 , DEB-0080538, DEB-0218039 , DEB-0620910 , DEB-1239764, DEB-1546686, and DEB-1831952 from the National Science Foundation to the University of Puerto Rico as part of the Luquillo Long-Term Ecological Research Program. Additional support provided by the University of Puerto Rico and the International Institute of Tropical Forestry, USDA Forest Service.\</para\>