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Abstract:
Allometric models to estimate biomass components such as stem mass Ms, foliage
mass Ml, root mass Mr and aboveground mass Ma, were developed for the palm species
Euterpe precatoria Mart., which is the most abundant tree species in the Amazon. We
harvested twenty palms including above- and below-ground parts in an old growth
Amazonian forest in Brazil. The diameter at breast height D ranged from 3.9–12.7 cm, and
the stem height H ranged from 2.3–16.4 m. The D, diameter at ground basis D0, crown
diameter CD, H, stem specific gravity ρ, and number of fronds Nf were considered as
independent variables and incorporated into a power function model. The best predictors
were D2Hρ for Ms and Ma, D2HNf for Ml, and D for Mr. Slender index (H/D) ranged from
0.56–1.46 m·cm−1, and the D-H relationship suggested that the stem shape becomes more
slender with increasing D. On the other hand, ρ increased with D implying a stiffening of stem tissue. The average root/shoot ratio was estimated as 0.29 which was higher than that
reported for the non-palm tree species in the Amazon. Comparisons of several models to
estimate Ma of different palm species, suggested that the variations of the D-H relationship
and ρ should be considered to develop allometric models for estimating biomass in palm
species. In particular the ρ largely varied depending on individual size, which should be important to consider, when developing the allometric models for palms.
