Costa Rica has been a world leader regarding the implementation of national policies that address the conservation of tropical forests and biodiversity. Specific conservation strategies currently in use include payments for ecosystem services, ecotourism, research stations, and national parks, but it is unclear how these strategies differentially affect forest structure and recruitment. Therefore, we examined how forest canopy cover, canopy height, number of seedlings/m2, number of saplings/m2, total DBH, and average DBH varied across 18 forests protected under these four different conservation scenarios. Data were collected in nested plots (n = 78) across the study sites in two study areas, La Selva and Las Cruces Biological Stations and surrounding forests. These forests included two national parks, two research stations, four ecotourism sites, three participating in the Payments for Ecosystem Services (PSA) Program, and seven not participating in any conservation strategy.
Results/Conclusions
Canopy height (m) had a significant association with conservation strategy (p=0.003) which was driven by sites existing as a national park (p=0.02). Sites located in national parks had the tallest canopy, were located at higher elevation, and consisted of the largest areas of forest while sites located within research stations had the most canopy cover. As old-growth forests generally have a higher canopy than secondary forests even at 35 to 40 years in age and the forests in national parks are likely older than the other forests due to the history of conservation strategies in Costa Rica, this study highlights the importance of conservation strategies that protect remnants of old-growth forests in Costa Rica due to their ability to provide more carbon sequestration and maintain biodiversity and ecosystem services than younger forests. As forests in PSA and ecotourism continue to grow, they may approach the forest structure currently seen in national parks, unless fragmentation and edge effects become problematic.