Dendrochronology and Isotope Chronology of Juglans neotropica and Its Response to El Niño-Related Rainfall Events in Tropical Highlands of Piura, Northern Peru

Tropical trees represent an important potential archive of climate and ecological information, but their dendrochronology based on conventional techniques has been challenging. We conducted a pilot study of the wood anatomy and dendroclimatological potential of Juglans neotropica Diels (Juglandaceae), an IUCN Red List species, using 225 radii sampled from 57 trees in Piura (4°55′ S, 79° 56′ W), northern Peru. A total of 112 radii from 40 trees passed quality control and are included in the tree-ring width chronology for this species. J. neotropica has demonstrably annual rings, and results are consistent with reports that the species has a dormant period during the dry season, which locally is approximately June–November. Local precipitation is correlated (p = 0.10, 1-tailed test) with tree-ring growth, lagged by one year, consistent with other studies of tropical tree species. The age distribution of the sample collection of J. neotropica is young and invariant, probably because of selective cutting by local villagers. To supplement ring-width analysis, we conducted the first oxygen isotopic (δ¹⁸O) and radiocarbon (∆¹⁴C) analysis for this species on radii from two individuals; results are preliminary given sample size limitations, but consistent with dendrochronological dating, within uncertainties, in all three chronometric analyses. A two-sample composite annually-averaged δ¹⁸O anomaly data series is correlated significantly with gridded regional growing season (December–May) precipitation (1973/74–2005/06). Qualitatively consistent with simulation of ring width and δ18O, responses to El Niño events are manifested in positive ring-growth anomalies and negative isotopic anomalies following known event years. The combination of tree-ring, radiocarbon, stable isotopic analyses, and the application of sensor and chronological modeling provides a degree of confidence in the results that would not have been possible by relying on any single approach and indicates the potential for further investigation of this and other tropical tree species with uncertain ring boundaries.