Although mahogany has a huge natural range, it usually occurs at very low densities within a forest. However, the high value of its timber pays for the long roads needed to reach the scattered trees. These roads open the forest to clearance for agriculture. Logging of mahogany therefore indirectly results in forest destruction.

There is widespread belief that mahogany is failing to regenerate after logging. As mahogany is one of the few trees in this part of the Amazon basin which has high commercial value, its commercial extinction undermines efforts to create a permanent forest estate. The high level of exploitation, combined with the lack of regeneration, has lead to concerns for the conservation of mahogany. In addition, as an important component of the local economy, its commercial extinction would have severe impacts at a local and regional level.

Most of the remaining stock of mahogany lies in indigenous reserves, and a large proportion of Brazil's mahogany harvest is extracted from them. Mahogany logging has been implicated in serious social disruption of indigenous communities, including assassination , alcohol and drug related problems, increased prostitution and the spread of diseases. At the very least, the advance of mahogany loggers into Indian lands jeopardises the planned and sensitive (and probably inevitable) cultural transition of Indian groups into modern Brazilian culture. The recently imposed moratorium on the felling of mahogany might alleviate some of the above problems, whilst worsening others.

To improve understanding of the population dynamics, regeneration ecology and the consequences of commercial exploitation of the most valuable timber species in tropical America.

• Dynamics of populations of mahogany seedlings in unlogged and logged forest characterised.
• Phytosociological characterisation of a mahogany forest and diagnostic survey of mahogany regeneration carried out.
• Mahogany seedling ecology studied.
• Initial effects of silvicultural treatment on mahogany regeneration characterised.
• Information on the regeneration ecology of mahogany disseminated.
• Good mahogany logging practices demonstrated.