Wetlands are transitional systems between terrestrial and aquatic habitats. In Puerto Rico, coastal wetlands provide great ecological services such as, habitat for many species, a natural barrier against storms, strong tides, resistance against erosion and most importantly, they serve as major carbon sinks. As a result, proper management and monitoring of these ecosystems are important. To accomplish this, a well understanding of their phenological patterns is necessary since these are governed by abiotic factors, which are affected by recent climate change. In this study, we determined productivity of a coastal stand of Annona glabra plant species in the Punta Tuna Natural Reserve Wetland in Maunabo Puerto Rico, to establish the phenological patterns of the species. To determine forest productivity, we collected leaf litter from 20 baskets located in two sites (Natural Population and Plantation) in the Punta Tuna Reserve. This data was collected for the years 2018, 2019 and are currently being collected for 2020.
Results/Conclusions
During the year 2018, we observed similar patterns of phenology between both sites: leaf fall (Sept-July), fruiting (May-July), flowering (March-April) and seed production (Sept-Nov). The wetland’s phenological patterns have not been altered in 2019. However, there was an earlier occurrence of leaf fall (Feb-March). The earlier occurrence of leaf fall observed in 2019 when compared to 2018 could have been a result of the wetland still being in process of recovery from Hurricane Maria. On the other hand, the slight difference in fruiting between both areas could have been due to variation in the forest structure (aggregated in hummocks vs linear planted trees) or the arrangements of the baskets. We observed that fruiting overlaps with the wetland’s dry season, while seed production overlaps with the wetlands rain season, this is because A. glabra uses water as a vector for seed dispersion (hydrochory). Due to the difference in patterns, further monitoring of the wetland during the year 2020 has continued, to confirm which patterns are correct. With these results, we expect to establish the normal phenological patterns of the wetland, which will function as a tool for the management of the reserve, by serving as an indicator of the effect climate change is having on it.