These web pages are about a project I carried out on the diversity of invertebrates living within tank bromeliad rosettes in Chiquibul forest, Belize. Tank bromeliads are plants that grow in the forests of tropical and sub-tropical America. Their leaves form a funnel-shaped rosette that traps pools of rainwater and falling debris, such as dead leaves. For more information about tank bromeliads click here.

A wide diversity of organisms have been found to make use of the microhabitat created by tank bromeliad rosettes, including: amphibians, reptiles, birds, invertebrates, bacteria, fungi, protozoa and algae. The majority these probably use bromeliad tanks opportunistically, but some are known to form more dependent relationships. These include several species of tree frog which lay their eggs almost exclusively in water held in bromeliad tanks, and even a species of crab.

Relatively few studies have focussed upon the terrestrial invertebrate communities that inhabit tank bromeliad rosettes. The focus of this project were the macroinvertebrate communities associated with bromeliad rosettes and whether selective logging of the surrounding forest has any effect upon them.

The fieldwork was carried out at Las Cuevas Research Station, which is located in the Maya mountains, Cayo district, Belize. Las Cuevas is run jointly between the Government of Belize and the Natural History Museum, London. The surrounding Chiquibul forest supports a rich biodiversity, a few examples of the animals I encountered whilst there can be seen here.