Monteverde : Ecology and Conservation of a Tropical Cloud Forest

Figure 2.13.

Monteverde.

A bulldozer cuts through heavily weathered bedrock to create a road to the San Luis valley below

Photograph by Paul Butler.

ing device (e.g., a weir) be installed on the stream at is a study of a 10-ha watershed on Barro Colorado
the mouth of the basin. Nonautomated monitoring Island, which provides insights on the hydrology of
requires time but is inexpensive in terms of equip- the basin based on an evaluation of stream discharge
ment. This type of study can be expanded to quan- records, precipitation data, and soil analyses (Dietrich
tify other variables of hydrologic significance but et al. 1982b).
would require more funds and expertise. A model

MICROCLIMATE VARIABILITY

Kenneth L Clark <& Nalini IVL Nadkarni

icroclimate variability across Monteverde

is greatest during the transition and dry

seasons, primarily because of the high fre-

quency and duration of stratus and stratocumulus

cloud immersion along slopes and ridges on the Con-

tinental Divide, Cloud water and precipitation depths

are substantially greater near the Continental Divide

compared to other locations in Monteverde during

these seasons (Table 2.2). Cloud immersion at La

Ventana typically results in relative humidities of 95-

100%, ambient air temperatures of 12-15°C, and

low solar radiation inputs compared to clear-sky con-

ditions due to the reflectance and absorption of solar

radiation by clouds (K. Clark and N. Nadkarni, un-

publ. data).

33 The Physical Environment

M