Impacts of past Human disturbances on present day tree species assembly in the tropical forests of South-East Cameroon

Non-random spatial distribution of trees is the result of both neutral and deterministic factors. Neutral models suggest that species within a community are equally competitive, with spatial structures mainly due to dispersal limitation. Deterministic (or non-neutral) models consider species assemblages as the result of what we name “induced spatial dependence”, where forcing (explanatory) variables shape diversity organization. However, deterministic models have often included habitat variables only, without considering human disturbance which we know enhances the competitive advantage of heliophytic (light-demanding) species and therefore the floristic composition of phytocenoses. Based on charcoal abundance in the soil (used as an indicator of anthropogenic perturbation), species abundance, and environmental data from a forest of south-east Cameroon, we applied modern variation partitioning methods to assess the relative impact of human disturbance on floristic patterns, controlling for purely spatial and habitat effects. Significant signals of human influence have been found so far, and a new collection of data should establish with a better precision the importance of the anthropogenic impact on tree species assemblages.