Pattern in a Rain Forest in Sri Lanka

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Abstract
Pattern in a lowland rain forest in south-central Sri Lanka was investigated by block-size analysis of variance, covariance and correlation coefficient. Four of the 6 tree species analyzed showed 1 scale of pattern; Horsfieldia irya and Semicarpus parvifolia showed no evidence of pattern. A trend in abundance occurred in Dipterocarpus zeylanicus, which was positively correlated with soil-K concentration. The pattern of D. hispidus, the leading dominant, was related to variations in concentration of soil N and P, while that of Artocarpus nobilis and Campnosperma zeylanica was interpreted as pattern imposed upon them by the pattern of D. hispidus. The strong negative correlation of D. hispidus with A. nobilis and with C. zeylanica is indicative of density-dependent inter-species interference in the forest.