Canopy tree

  • Title

    Canopy tree

  • Definition

    A species of tree in which adult individuals occupy the more or less continuous canopy layer of a forest which, in lowland neotropical rainforests, is less than 20 m in height.

  • Notes

    In the Lecythidaceae, a tree that is greater than 20 and less than 35 m in height is considered to be a canopy tree. The Lecythidaceae are predominately species found at elevations lower than 1000 meters and in vegetation without water restrictions but our definition of understory, canopy, and emergent does not consider these differences. In others words, our classification of understory, canopy, and emergent is applied to the species as if it were growing in a standardized lowland forest.

  • Related Terms

    Understory tree

    Emergent tree

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