Fine-scale forest structure and natural regeneration in a mature tropical rainforest assessed using terrestrial LiDAR
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https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5701-5455
Abstract
Natural regeneration in tropical forests is influenced by fine-scale structural heterogeneity and light availability, yet these relationships remain difficult to quantify using conventional field methods. We evaluated associations between forest structure and early regeneration in a mature lowland tropical rainforest in Costa Rica using field measurements and terrestrial laser scanning (TLS). We characterized six permanent forest plots through estimates of canopy openness, overstory attributes, and TLS-derived indices describing understory complexity (UCI) and stand structural complexity (SSCI). We assessed regeneration through surveys of seedlings and saplings within subplots. Canopy openness exhibited the strongest relationship with regeneration, particularly with sapling abundance. TLS- derived metrics captured variation in forest structure and revealed positive associations between understory complexity and regeneration, whereas stand structural complexity showed no clear relationship with recruitment patterns. These findings highlighted the importance of light availability and understory structure in shaping regeneration dynamics and demonstrated the potential of TLS as a complementary tool for characterizing structural conditions associated with natural regeneration in tropical forests.
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