How do tropical forests recover after decades of human disturbance? For PhD student Fung Tze Kwan, answering this question means investigating the complex relationships between trees, wildlife and the next generation of forest plants.

At the 62nd Annual Meeting of the Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation (ATBC 2026) in Xishuangbanna, China, Tze Kwan presented her research examining how land use history, tree diversity and frugivorous animals jointly influence tropical forest recovery. Conducted in collaboration with the NParks Tropical Forest Ecology Research Programme under the supervision of Professor Koh Lian Pin, her work focuses on the ecological processes that enable forests to regenerate naturally.

Drawing on data collected from 30 forest plots across Singapore, Tze Kwan investigated how historical land use continues to shape interactions between trees, seed-dispersing animals and seedling recruitment. Her findings reveal that the legacy of past disturbances can alter these ecological relationships long after forests begin recovering. Importantly, the study found that tree species richness and the functional composition of frugivores were more strongly linked to forest regeneration than the sheer number of frugivore species present. These insights underscore the importance of restoring key ecological functions, particularly seed dispersal, in forest restoration efforts.