Decomposition is essential for nutrient cycling, soil fertility, and productivity in tropical forest ecosystems. However, there is limited information on these aspects for some tropical forest tree species. The present study compared the decomposition rates of leaf litter of three tree species (Baphia nitida, Dacryodes klaineana, and Gluema ivorensis) and the influence of litter quality across three habitat types in the Ankasa Conservation Area, Ghana. Using the litterbag technique, a total of 432 bags were prepared and placed on the forest floor across the three habitats for 360 days. Litter samples were removed monthly to determine the mass remaining. At the beginning of the study, the litter chemistry of each species was determined using standard spectrophotometric methods. Differences in litter constituents and decomposition rates in the three species and habitats were evaluated using analysis of variance. Pearson product-moment correlation was used to explore the relationships between litter mass loss and the initial litter quality. The results showed variations (p<0.05) in litter quality among the three studied species, with nitrogen (4.95%) and lignin (1.63%) contents being highest in B. nitida, whereas phosphorous (0.97%), hemicellulose (31.85%) and C:N ratio (15.98) were more abundant in G. ivorensis. D. klaineana recorded the highest proportion of cellulose (65.3) and potassium (2.53). Decomposition rates averaged between 1.99 g year-1 (in D. klaineana) to 2.35 g year-1 (in B. nitida), although no statistical differences (F[2]=0.252, p=0.0778) were found among the species. Habitat type and duration significantly influenced the decomposition rate (p > 0.05).
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Citation
Owusu G, Anning AK (2026). Litter quality and decomposition rates of selected species in the Ankasa Conservation Area, Ghana. iForest 19: 122-129. - doi: 10.3832/ifor4671-018
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Lorenzo Mw Rossi
Paper history
Received: Jun 21, 2024
Accepted: Oct 29, 2025
First online: Apr 11, 2026
Publication Date: Apr 30, 2026
Publication Time: 5.47 months
© SISEF - The Italian Society of Silviculture and Forest Ecology 2026
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This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made.
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