Measurement of fluxes of CO₂, latent heat and sensible heat were made above a three-year-old oil palm canopy in north Kedah, Malaysia where there is a regular dry season of three months or more annually. The results indicate substantially lower levels of CO₂ flux and latent heat flux (evapotranspiration) and substantially increased levels of sensible heat flux in the middle of the annual dry season in February, than in the succeeding wetter months of April to June. Canopy conductance for water vapour was likewise low during the drought and incresed subsequently.
The use of these results as an aid to quantifying the responses of oil palm to water deficits is discussed.