In disturbed rain forests, large, living remnant trees may be of significant importance for postdisturbance reorganization either directly, by producing large quantities of seeds, or indirectly, by attracting vertebrate seed dispersers. In addition, remnant trees may also be important in providing a favorable microhabitat for seedlings of late-successional species. This study focused on the role of large remnant trees (> 40 cm dbh) in patterns of regeneration after cyclone and fire damage in the Tafua and Falealupo Rain Forest Preserves, Savaií, Samoa. At Tafua, 10 large trees at each of two sites (one site burned in 1990) were investigated with regard to numbers of species and densities of plants from three different size classes at... |