Effects of climate change on Lepanthes rupestris

Abstract

The last decades have experienced dramatic changes in the overall climate (UNFCCC 2002, EEA 2006, Chambers 2006). In the Caribbean, the annual average temperature has increased about 0.5°C with an expected trend for drier periods based on the convection zones (Neelin et to., 2006) and the study of rain patterns over the last 15 years (Heartsill-Scalley et to., 2007) .Such climate variation may affect the phenology of epiphytic plants in tropical environments (Parmesan & Yohe 2003). If so, these epiphytic plants may be useful tools to study the response of plant populations to atmospheric and/or climatic changes . This study focused on the demographic responses of Lepanthes rupestris a highly studied epiphytic and litophytic orchid (Fig 1 and 2) endemic to montane forests of Puerto Rico which exhibits metapopulation structures.