Seasonal tropical forest

Seasonal (mixed) tropical forests can be found in many parts of the tropical zone, with examples found in: The climate of seasonal forests is typically controlled by a system called the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), located near the equator and created by the convergence of the trade winds from the Northern and Southern Hemispheres.

[7] These regions appear to have experienced strong warming, at a mean rate of 0.26 degrees Celsius per decade, which coincides with a global rise in temperature resulting from the anthropocentric inputs of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.

[8] Additionally, El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events drive the inter-annual climatic variability in temperature and precipitation and result in drought and increased intensity of the dry season.

[8] As with tropical rainforests there are different canopy layers, but these may be less pronounced in mixed forests, which are often characterised by numerous lianas due to their growth advantage during the dry season.

Determining which strands of mixed forest are primary and secondary can also be problematic, since the species mixture is influenced by factors such as soil depth and climate, as well as human interference.