Long-term liana infestation leaves architectural legacies in host trees

Abstract Lianas are an integral component of tropical forests, and their increasing abundance may alter forest structure and function. Whether infested host trees are shorter and smaller-crowned because lianas suppress them, or because lianas preferentially colonise already small trees, has remained unresolved. We used a longitudinal dataset of individual liana infestation histories spanning fourteen years (2011–2025), combined with terrestrial laser scanning (TLS)-derived structural metrics for 251 trees across 67 species on Barro Colorado Island, Panama. Bayesian analyses showed that persistently infested trees were shorter (−11.0%), with smaller crown projected area (−22.3%) and crown volume (−25.9%) than never-infested trees; the 95% credible intervals for these effects excluded zero. Pre-infestation crown architecture did not credibly predict subsequent colonisation. These patterns are more consistent with persistent infestation imposing lasting architectural legacies than with strong pre-existing architectural susceptibility, suggesting rising liana abundance may progressively reduce forest stature and canopy density, with implications for tropical carbon storage projections.