The phenology of Colicodendron scabridum, sapote, in a dry forest of northern Peru

Colicodendron scabridum, commonly known as " sapote", is one of the most common woody species in seasonally dry neotropical forests, and an important food for numerous animals. We investigated sapote's reproductive phenology and evaluated its relationship to temperature and precipitation. To do so, we installed seven 2 m x 300 m transects, each with fifteen focal individual sapote trees, at seven sites from 257 - 353 m at Cerro Venado, Lambayeque, Peru. The duration of flowering and fruiting varied among individuals, sites, and years. On average, 85-97 % of individuals with flowers bore fruit. The average fruiting period was shorter than the average flowering period, which it followed three months later. We used a cross correlation test to evaluate the relationship between flowering, and fruiting, with the monthly average temperature and precipitation. Sapote flowering changed in opposition to monthly average temperature, with a strong inverse correlation between flowering and temperature. In contrast, the frequency of individuals with fruits was positively correlated with temperature. There was no relationship between monthly precipitation with either flowering or fruiting. Our results suggest that temperature may determine when the species reproduces, thus affecting food availability for wildlife. The phenological variations we recorded are relevant to decisions for the conservation of this species.