Stand composition and structure of Rubroshorea curtisii in a lowland Dipterocarp remnant forest of Bukit Tiban, Riau Islands, Indonesia
Article Sidebar
Abstract Views: 580
File Views: 204
Main Article Content
Abstract
Abstract. Susilowati A, Rachmat HH, Anna N, Elfiati D, Dwiyanti FG, Kamiya K, Alawi F, Wijaya K, Ginting IM. 2025. Stand composition and structure of Rubroshorea curtisii in a lowland Dipterocarp remnant forest of Bukit Tiban, Riau Islands, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 26: 4793-4804. Rubroshorea curtisii is an ecologically and commercially valuable Dipterocarpaceae species native to the Malay Peninsula, Peninsular Thailand, and northern Borneo, but in Indonesia its distribution is restricted to the Riau Islands. Habitat disturbances in this area directly threaten the species’ persistence. This study assessed the stand composition, structure, and floristic diversity of R. curtisii in Bukit Tiban Protected Forest, Batam Island, Riau Islands. Vegetation data were collected from 25 nested plots (20×20 m for trees, 10×10 m for poles, 5×5 m for saplings, and 2×2 m for seedlings) along five transects purposefully located in areas where R. curtisii occurs. All individuals were identified and measured to calculate relative density, frequency, basal area, and Importance Value Index (IVI), along with Shannon–Wiener diversity (H?), evenness (E), and species richness (R). A total of 44 species from 13 families were recorded, including seven Dipterocarpaceae species. Rubroshorea curtisii dominated all strata with the highest IVI values in seedlings (21.38%), poles (30.83%), and trees (34.00%), indicating its keystone ecological role. The stand exhibited an inverted J-shaped diameter distribution, characterized by a predominance of small-diameter trees (10-19.9 cm) and a scarcity of large individuals, reflecting regeneration imbalance. Diversity was highest in tree strata (H? = 3.10) and lowest in saplings (H? = 1.70), while evenness remained high (E = 0.91-0.97). Tree strata showed the highest richness (R = 7.05), whereas saplings had the lowest (R = 1.25). Despite ongoing regeneration, reduced mature individuals and disrupted recruitment suggest vulnerability to fragmentation, logging, and limited reproductive events. Conservation priorities should include protection of mature trees, enrichment planting, canopy restoration, and long-term monitoring of reproductive ecology. Integrating community participation and habitat rehabilitation is essential to ensure sustainable management of R. curtisii and the ecological resilience of remnant dipterocarp forests in the Riau Islands.
Article Details
Issue
Section
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
References
Anjos LJS, Pereira NGP, Alves STM, Jose RDSA, de Souza LA. 2021. Forest remnants in private lands are critical to the persistence of endangered birds in an Amazonian hotspot. J Nat Conserv 61: 1617-1381. DOI: 10.1016/j.jnc.2021.125984.
Appanah S, Turnbull JM. 1998. A Review of Dipterocarps: Taxonomy, Ecology and Silviculture. Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) Indonesia, Bogor.
Ashton PS, Heckenhauer J. 2022. Tribe Shoreae (Dipterocarpaceae subfamily Dipterocarpoideae) finally dissected. Kew Bull 77: 885-903. DOI: 10.1007/s12225-022-10057-w.
Ashton PS. 1982. Dipterocarpaceae. In: Steenis (eds). Flora Malesiana Series I. National Herbarium of the Netherlands, Netherlands.
Awoke N, Nemomissa S, Bekele T. 2022. Floristic composition and diversity of vascular plants in remnant patches of arsi-bale massif of Oromia Regional State, Ethiopia. Intl J Ecol 2022 (2): 1-11. DOI: 10.1155/2022/6693679.
Barstow M. 2018. Shorea curtisii. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2018: e.T33463A68073253. DOI: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-1.RLTS.T33463A68073253.en.
Bodo T, Gimah BG, Seomoni KJ. 2021. Deforestation and habitat loss: human causes, consequences and possible solutions. J Geogr Res 4: 22-30. DOI: 10.30564/jgr.v4i2.3059.
Both S, Riutta T, Paine CET, Elias DMO, Cruz RS, Jain A, Johnson D, Kritzler UH, Kuntz M, Majalap N, Mielke N, Montoya-Pfeiffer P, Ostle NJ, Arn Teh YH, Arnold A, Burslem DFRP, Majalap-Lee N, McGuire KL, Turner BL. 2019. Logging and soil nutrients independently explain plant trait expression in tropical forests. New Phytol 226 (3): 571-582. DOI: 10.1111/nph.16392.
Cadavid-Florez L, Laborde J, Mclean DJ. 2020. Isolated trees and small woody patches greatly contribute to connectivity in highly fragmented tropical landscapes. Landsc Urban Plan 196: 103745. DOI: 10.1016/j.landurbplan.2020.103745.
Conover WJ. 1999. Practical Nonparametric Statistics (3rd ed.). John Wiley & Sons. New York.
Curtis JT, McIntosh RP. 1950. The interrelations of certain analytical and synthetic phytosociological characters. Ecology 31 (3): 434-455. DOI: 10.2307/1931497.
De Frenne P, Lenoir JRMH, Luoto M, Scheffers B, Zellweger F. 2021. Forest microclimates and climate change: Importance, drivers and future research agenda. Glob Change Biol 27 (11): 2279-2297. DOI: 10.1111/gcb.15569.
Di Biase L, Pace L, Mantoni C, Fattorini S. 2021. Variations in plant richness, biogeographical composition, and life forms along an elevational gradient in a Mediterranean Mountain. Plants 10: 2090. DOI: 10.3390/plants10102090.
Do HTT, Grant JC, Zimmer HC, Trinh BN, Nichols JD. 2020. Site conditions for regeneration of climax species, the key for restoring moist deciduous tropical forest in Southern Vietnam. Plos One 15 (5): e0233524. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0233524.
Ediriweera S, Bandara C, Woodbury DJ, Gunatilleke XMIAUN, Gunatilleke CVS, Ashton MS. 2020. Changes in tree structure, composition, and diversity of a mixed-dipterocarp rainforest over a 40-year period. For Ecol Manag 458: 117764. DOI: 10.1016/j.foreco.2019.117764.
Fambayun RA, Kalima T. 2020. Population of potential rattan in Bukit Tiban protection forest, Batam, Indonesia. Jurnal Penelitian Kehutanan Wallacea 9 (2): 93-109. DOI: 10.18330/jwallacea.2020.vol9iss2pp93-109.
Faria D, Delabie JHC, Dias MH. 2021. The Hileia Baiana: An assessment of natural and historical aspects of the land use and degradation of the Central Corridor of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. In: Marques MCM, Grelle CEV. The Atlantic Forest (eds). Springer International Publishing, Cham.
Firdamayanti A, Alawy F, Saifimar C, Galingging A, Wijaya K, Rachmat HH. 2024. Fragmented forests in highly industrialized Batam Island, Indonesia: A vital pocket for biodiversity conservation of Rubroshorea curtisii (Dipterocarpaceae). IOP Conf Ser Earth Environ Sci 1433: 012009. DOI: 10.1088/1755-1315/1433/1/012009.
Ganivet E, Unggang J, Bodos V, Demies M, Ling CY, Sang J, Bloomberg M. 2020. Assessing tree species diversity and structure of mixed dipterocarp forest remnants in a fragmented landscape of north-western Borneo, Sarawak, Malaysia. Ecol Indic 112: 106117. DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolind.2020.106117.
Hammer Ø, Harper DAT, Ryan PD. 2001. PAST: Paleontological statistics software package for education and data analysis. Palaeontol Electron 4 (1): 1-9.
Hammond ME, Pokorný R, Okae-Anti D, Gyedu A, Obeng IO. 2021. The composition and diversity of natural regeneration of tree species in gaps under different intensities of forest disturbance. J For Res 32: 1843-1853. DOI: 10.1007/s11676-020-01269-6.
Hayward RM, Banin LF, Burslem DFRP, Chapman DS, Philipson CD, Cutler MEJ, Reynolds G, Nilus R, Dent DH. 2021. Three decades of post-logging tree community recovery in naturally regenerating and actively restored dipterocarp forest in Borneo. For Ecol Manag 488: 119036. DOI: 10.1016/j.foreco.2021.119036.
Kowarik I, von der Lippe M. 2017. Plant population success across urban ecosystems: A framework to inform biodiversity conservation in cities. J Appl Ecol 55: 2354-2361. DOI: 10.1111/1365-2664.13144.
Lepun P, Heng RKJ. 2020. Floristic and forest structure of hill mixed dipterocarp forest at Bukit Kana National Park, Sarawak, Malaysia. Malays For 83 (2): 259-280.
Magurran AE. 2004. Measuring Biological Diversity. Blackwell Publishing, Oxford.
Malik S. 2025. Comparative analyses and phylogenetic dependence in traits and trends of Dipterocarpaceae. Ecol Evol 15 (3): e70784. DOI: 10.1002/ece3.70784.
Malkinson D, Kopel D, Wittenberg L. 2018. From rural-urban gradients to patch-matrix frameworks: plant diversity patterns in urban landscapes. Landsc Urban Plan 169: 260-268. DOI: 10.1016/j.landurbplan.2017.09.021.
Matsuo T, Martínez-Ramos M, Bongers F, van der Sande MT, Poorter L. 2021. Forest structure drives changes in light heterogeneity during tropical secondary forest succession. J Ecol 109: 2871-2884. DOI: 10.1111/1365-2745.13680.
Milodowski DT, Coomes DA, Swinfield T, Disney MI, Muir J, Burt A, Wilkes P, Nilus R, Bin Jami J, Cutler MEJ. 2021. The impact of logging on vertical canopy structure across a gradient of tropical forest degradation intensity in Borneo. J Appl Ecol 58 (8): 1764-1775. DOI: 10.1111/1365-2664.13895.
Muluneh MG, Feyissa MT, Wolde TM. 2021. Effect of forest fragmentation and disturbance on diversity and structure of woody species in dry Afromontane forests of northern Ethiopia. Biodivers Conserv 30: 1753-1779. DOI: 10.1007/s10531-021-02167-x.
Nath B, Wang Z, Ge Y, Islam K, Singh RP, Niu Z. 2020. Land use and land cover change modeling and future potential landscape risk assessment using Markov-CA model and analytical hierarchy process. ISPRS Intl J Geo-Inform 9 (2): 134. DOI: 10.3390/ijgi9020134.
Newman MF, Burgess PF, Whitmore TC. 1999. Pedoman Identifikasi Pohon-Pohon Dipterocarpaceae Sumatera. Prosea Indonesia, Bogor. [Indonesian]
Ng CH, Ng KKS, Lee SL, Alias NN. 2024. Genetic diversity and population structure of Rubroshorea curtisii, a hill dipterocarp species: implications for conservation. Tree Genet Genom 20: 16. DOI: 10.1007/s11295-024-01649-7.
Ng F, Zubir I, Zurfatiha Z, Sharma D, Latiff A, Hazrina Z, Shahira A, Shah-Redza H. 2022. Speciation in the Malay Peninsula in relation to dipterocarp forest height, structure, turnover, and reproductive biology. J Trop For Sci 34 (1): 103-113.
Numata S, Kachi N, Okuda T, Manokaran N, Ashton PS. 2003. Temporal and spatial patterns of mass flowerings on the Malay Peninsula. Am J Bot 90 (7): 1025-1031. DOI: 10.3732/ajb.90.7.1025.
O’Connor MI, Gonzalez A, Byrnes JEK, Cardinale BJ, Duffy JE, Gamfeldt L, Griffin JN, Hooper D, Hungate BA, Panquette A, Thompson PL, Dee LE, Dolan KL. 2017. A general biodiversity function relationship is mediated by trophic level. Oikos 126 (1): 18-31. DOI: 10.1111/oik.03652.
Okuda T, Yamada T, Hosaka T, Miyasaku N, Hashim M, Lau AMS, Saw LG. 2019. Canopy height recovery after selective logging in a lowland tropical rain forest. For Ecol Manag 442: 117-123. DOI: 10.1016/j.foreco.2019.03.045.
Paul A, Khan MF, Das AK. 2019. Population structure and regeneration status of rhododendrons in temperate mixed broad-leaved forests of western Arunachal Pradesh, India. Geol Ecol Landsc 3: 168-186. DOI: 10.1080/24749508.2018.1525671.
Prohaska A, Seddon AWR, Rach O, Smith A, Sachse D, Willis KJ. 2023. Long-term ecological responses of a lowland dipterocarp forest to climate changes and nutrient availability. New Phytol 240: 2513-2529. DOI: 10.1111/nph.19169.
R Core Team. 2023. R: A Language and Environment for Statistical Computing. https://cran.r-project.org/doc/manuals/r-release/fullrefman.pdf.
Romadini NP, Indrioko S, Widiyatno, Faridah E. 2022. Regeneration failure and seedling growth of Dipterocarpus gracilis, a vulnerable dipterocarp in a tropical monsoon forest in Central Java, Indonesia. J Trop For Sci 32 (1): 45-58. DOI: 10.13057/biodiv/d230963.
Rüger N, Schorn ME, Kambach S, Chazdon RL, Farrior CE, Meave JA, Muñoz R, vanBreugel M, Amissah L, Bongers F, Craven D, Hérault B, Jakovac CC, Norden N, Poorter L, van der Sande MT, Wirth C, Delgado D, Dent DH, Lopez OR. 2023. Successional shifts in tree demographic strategies in wet and dry Neotropical forests. Glob Ecol Biogeogr 32: 1002-1014. DOI: 10.1111/geb.13669.
Ruziman HH, Ismail A, Pardi F, Mohd-Hatta SK. 2022. Edaphic influences on tree species composition and community structure in a secondary-lowland Dipterocarp forest of Kota Damansara Forest Reserve, Selangor. Malays Appl Biol 51 (4): 11-21. DOI: 10.55230/mabjournal.v51i4.06.
Sadeghi SM, Hanum IF, Razali WMW, Kudus KA, Hakeem KR. 2014. Tree composition and diversity of a hill dipterocarp forest after logging. Malay Nat J 66 (4): 1-5.
Sakai A, Arbain A, Sugiarto S, Rahmawati K, Mirmanto E, Takahashi M, Ueda A. 2022. Composition and diversity of tree species after fire disturbance in a lowland tropical forest in East Kalimantan, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 23 (3): 1576-1587. DOI: 10.13057/biodiv/d230348.
Sawada Y, Imai N, Takeshige R, Kitayama K. 2021. Relationships between tree-community composition and regeneration potential of Shorea trees in logged-over tropical rain forests. J For Res 27 (3): 222-229. DOI: 10.1080/13416979.2021.2015830.
Shu H, Xiao C, Ma T, Sang W. 2021. Ecological health assessment of Chinese National Parks based on landscape pattern: A case study in Shennongjia National Park. Intl J Environ Res Public Health 18: 11487. DOI: 10.3390/ijerph182111487.
Soepadmo E, Wong KM. 2004. Tree Flora of Sabah and Sarawak (Vol. 5: Dipterocarpaceae). Forest Research Institute Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur.
Sosef MSM, Dauby G, Blach-Overgaard A et al. 2017. Exploring the floristic diversity of tropical Africa. BMC Biol 15 (1): 15. DOI: 10.1186/s12915-017-0356-8.
Suhaimi AH, Kobayashi MJ, Satake A, Ng CC, Lee SL, Muhammad N, Numata S, Otani T, Kondo T, Tani N, Yeoh SH. 2023. An ecological transcriptome approach to capture the molecular and physiological mechanisms of mass flowering in Shorea curtisii. PeerJ 11: e16368. DOI: 10.7717/peerj.16368.
Susilowati A, Rachmat HH, Yulita KS, Wijaya K. 2023. Floristic composition and structure of Eurycoma longifolia habitat in Muka Kuning Nature Tourism Park, Riau Islands, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 24 (5): 2836-2842. DOI: 10.13057/biodiv/d240537.
Susilowati A, Wijaya K, Mawazin, Rachmat HH, Lismayati Y, Kurniawan H, Ginting IM. 2024. Conserving dipterocarps biodiversity in remnant forests of small islands in Batam Island, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 25 (2): 726-733. DOI: 10.13057/biodiv/d250232.
Symington CF. 1943. Foresters’ Manual of Dipterocarps. Malayan Forest Records No. 16. Forest Department, Federated Malay States, Kuala Lumpur.
Tani N, Ng CH, Lee SL, Lee CT, Muhammad N, Kondo T, Tsumura Y, Sugiyama S, Niiyama K, Ripin A, Kassim AR, Musa S. 2025. Negative frequency-dependent selection through variations in seedling fitness due to genetic differentiation of parents’ pair in a tropical rainforest tree, Rubroshorea curtisii (Dipterocarpaceae). Front Genet 16: 1552024. DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2025.1552024.
Thanh-Tuan N, Quang Bao T, Rodríguez-Hernández DI, Gliottone I. 2021. Tree diversity and species composition of tropical dry forests in Vietnam’s Central Highlands Region. For Stud 75 (1): 80-103. DOI: 10.2478/fsmu-2021-0013.
Tilahun D, Gashu K, Shiferaw GT. 2022. Effects of agricultural land and urban expansion on peri-urban forest degradation and implications on sustainable environmental management in Southern Ethiopia. Sustainability 14 (24): 16527. DOI: 10.3390/su142416527.
Trozzo K, Munsell J, Niewolny K, Chamberlain JL. 2019. Forest food and medicine in contemporary Appalachia. Southeast Geogr 59: 52-76. DOI: 10.1353/sgo.2019.0005.
Turkis S, Elmas E. 2018. Tree species diversity and importance value of different forest communities in Yenice Forests. Fresenius Environ Bul 27: 4440-4447.
Van Steenis CGGJ. 1983. Flora Malesiana. Noordhoff-Kolff, Jakarta.
Visitthisath K, Setthapun W, Jansri SN. 2021. Vegetation structure diversity and value-added guideline corresponding to biodiversity for Phu Hung community forest, Thum Tong Subdistrict, Mueang Nan District, Nan Province, Thailand. Turk J Comput Math Educ 12 (8): 2739-2746.
Wardhana HD, Mutaqqin T, Aryanti NA, Kurniawan I. 2022. Potential feeding plants of Javan Langur (Trachypithecus auratus) in the eastern slope of Biru Mountain, Batu City, East Java, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 23 (8): 4216-4222. DOI: 10.13057/biodiv/d230845.
Wintle BA, Kujala H, Whitehead A, Cameron A, Veloz S, Kukkala A, Moilanen A, Gordon A, Lentini PE, Cadenhead NCR, Bekessy SA. 2019. Global synthesis of conservation studies reveals the importance of small habitat patches for biodiversity. Proc Natl Acad Sci 116: 909-914. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1813051115.
Wu MM, Liang Y, He HS, Liu B, Ma T. 2022. Remnant trees location and abundance play different roles in forest landscape recovery. For Ecol Manag 511: 120154. DOI: 10.1016/j.foreco.2022.120154.
Yang J, Yang J, Xing D, Luo X, Lu S, Huang C, Hahs AK. 2021. Impacts of the remnant sizes, forest types, and landscape patterns of surrounding areas on woody plant diversity of urban remnant forest patches. Urban Ecosyst 24: 345-354. DOI: 10.1007/s11252-020-01040-z.
Yasuda M, Matsumoto J, Osada N, Ichikawa S, Kachi N, Tani M, Okuda T, Furukawa A, Nik AR, Manokaran N. 1999. The mechanism of general flowering in Dipterocarpaceae in the Malay Peninsula. J Trop Ecol 15 (4): 437-449. DOI: 10.1017/S0266467499000930.
Yatar C, Thinka S, Sungkaew S, Wachrinrat C, Asanok L, Kamyo T, Hermhuk S, Kachina P, Thongsawi J, Phumphuang W, Yarnvudhi A, Waengsothorn S, Cheysawat S, Marod D. 2024. The dynamics of deciduous dipterocarp forest in relation to climate variability in the Sakaerat Biosphere Reserve, Northeastern Thailand. Biodiversitas 25 (9): 3088-3098. DOI: 10.13057/biodiv/d250914.
Yuliastrin A. 2020. Ancaman Bencana Longsor di Hutan Lindung Bukit Tiban, Batam. Universitas Terbuka UPBJJ-UT, Batam.
Zhou C, Ding Y, Zang R. 2023. Assessing the recovery in species, size and location diversities of a lowland tropical rainforest after shifting cultivation by multiple indices at stand and neighborhood scales. J Environ Manag 341: 118089. DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.118089.