Lianas, or woody vines, are integral components of tropical forests that have substantial impacts on the dynamics and functioning of these important ecosystems. There is growing evidence that liana competition with trees is threatening the global carbon sink by hindering the recovery of forests from disturbances. A recent hypothesis, built on local and regional evidence, suggests that their competitive success over trees (liana dominance) is facilitated by interactions between forest disturbance and climate. Despite their increasing competitiveness with trees at the global scale, robust measurements of liana aboveground biomass (AGB) have been limited. Moreover, it is unclear how forest disturbance interacts with liana–tree ratios (LTRs), climate, topography and soil properties to shape tree dynamics and the trajectories of succession in tropical forests. This thesis aims to improve understanding of the role lianas play in the recovery of tropical forests from disturbance, through the use of innovative sampling approaches to investigate forest dynamics and relationships with disturbance, liana–tree trade-offs and environmental factors.