#  Tropical Forest Responses to Hurricanes 

 



   ![Hurricane damage in Dominica](/sites/g/files/omnuum7056/files/styles/hwp_1_1__360x360_scale/public/taylorlab/files/dominica_hurricane_damage400w.png?itok=YCtAIu0U) 

 

Hurricanes can create large-scale forest disturbance, and data indicate that the strength of these storms is increasing with rising global temperatures. We work with collaborators at Clemson University to better understand the community dynamics of tropical forests on the island of Dominica in the Caribbean Lesser Antilles. We have established a series of long-term forest monitoring plots across the island. Initial censuses from these plots allow us to monitor long-term recovery from Hurricane David in 1979 and intermediate recovery from Hurricane Dean in 2007. Recently, Dominica was the first site of landfall for Hurricane Maria in 2017, which decimated the island’s forests. We are now monitoring recovery from Maria to better predict the community and ecosystem dynamics of forests following major hurricanes that are predicted to become increasingly common disturbances as the world continues to warm.