Five tropical forest sites were selected randomly from the perimeter of the pineapple plantations
One 30 m transect was placed in each forest site. Four plantations were selected that differed in age or stage within the management cycle
The youngest was a six-year old plantation with three-year old pineapple plants
The second, a nine-year old plantation was bare: the previous rotation of pineapple plant biomass was chipped and incorporated into the soil within the preceding three months