Composition and structure of a one hectare forest plot in the Crater Mountain Wildlife Management area, Papua New Guinea

A one hectare plot transect was established at 550 m above sea level in the Crater Mountain Wildlife Management Area, Simbu Province, Papua New Guinea. All stems ≥ 10 cm in diameter at breast height were enumerated within twenty five contiguous 20 m x 20 m subplots. Overall, the plot contained 615 stems representing 174 species of trees, lianes and hemiepiphytes. The majority of species (63%) were represented by one or two individuals and only 11 species had ≥ 10 individuals. Myristica subalulata (Myristicaceae), Pometia pinnata (Sapindaceae), Cryptocarya 'depressa-multipaniculata' spp. group (Lauraceae), and Chisocheton lasiocarpus (Meliaceae) were most abundant. The forest canopy was 30-40 m in height with emergent Pometia pinnata and showed no indications of recent large-scale disturbance. The results are compared to other PNG forest inventories and suggestions for future surveys are proposed.