2.1 Study area
The study was conducted at a national scale and included all forest
types in Mexico (Fig 1). The country is located between latitudes 32°
and 14° N, where the Nearctic and Neotropical biogeographic zones
converge. Due to its geographical location, the territory has complex
topographic and climatic characteristics (CONABIO, 1998). From the arid
zones in the northwest to the humid rainforest in the southeast, forest
ecosystems in Mexico are very diverse. They comprise a vast variety of
vegetation, having tree heights ranging between 60m in coniferous
forests to 1.3 m in xerophilous scrubs (CONAFOR, 2017). Tree species of
economic interest include mahogany (Swietenia macrophylla ) and
cedar (Cedrela odorata ), which are typical of tropical forests.