Wet and dry tropical forests show opposite successional pathways in wood density but converge over time

Poorter, Lourens; Rozendaal, Danaë M. A.; Bongers, Frans; Almeida-Cortez, Jarcilene S.; Zambrano, Angélica M. Almeyda; Álvarez, Francisco S.; Andrade, José Luís; Villa, Luis Felipe Arreola; Balvanera, Patricia; Becknell, Justin M.; Bentos, Tony Vizcarra; Bhaskar, Radika; Boukili, Vanessa; Brancalion, Pedro Henrique Santin; Broadbent, Eben N.; César, Ricardo G.; Chave, Jérôme; Chazdon, Robin L.; Colletta, Gabriel Dalla; Craven, Dylan; Jong, Ben H. J. de; Denslow, Julie S.; Dent, Daisy H.; DeWalt, Saara J.; Garcia, EA; Dupuy, Juan Manuel; Durán, Sandra M.; Santo, Mário M. Espírito; Fandiño, María; Fernandes, Geraldo Wilson; Finegan, Bryan; Moser, Vanessa Granda; Hall, Jefferson S.; Hernández‐Stefanoni, José Luis; Jakovac, Catarina C.; Junqueira, André Braga; Kennard, Deborah K.; Lebrija‐Trejos, Edwin; Letcher, Susan G.; Lohbeck, Madelon; López, Omar R.; Marín-Spiotta, E.; Martı́nez-Ramos, Miguel; Martins, Sebastião Venâncio; Massoca, Paulo Eduardo dos Santos; Meave, Jorge A.; Mesquita, Rita; Mora, Francisco; Moreno, Vanessa de Souza; Müller, Sandra Cristina; Muñoz, Rodrigo; Muscarella, Robert; Neto, Sílvio Nolasco de Oliveira; Nunes, Yule Roberta Ferreira; Ochoa-Gaona, Susana; Paz, Horacio; Peña-Claros, Marielos; Piotto, Daniel; Ruíz, Jorge; Sanaphre-Villanueva, Lucía; Sánchez‐Azofeifa, Arturo; Schwartz, Naomi B.; Steininger, Marc K.; Thomas, William Wayt; Toledo, Marisol; Uriarte, María; Utrera, Luis P.; Breugel, Michiel van; Sande, Masha T. van der; Wal, Hans van der; Veloso, Maria das Dores Magalhães; Vester, H.F.M.; Vieira, Ima Célia Guimarães; Villa, Pedro Manuel; Williamson, G. Bruce; Wright, S. Joseph; Zanini, Kátia J.; Zimmerman, Jess K.; Westoby, Mark

doi:10.1038/s41559-019-0882-6

Cited by 159 publications

(142 citation statements)

References 51 publications

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“…, Poorter et al. ). First and foremost, TDFs typically receive a variable amount of rainfall, between 600 and 1800 mm per year, which is unevenly distributed throughout the year, leading to a pronounced dry season with a high water deficit that can last for 3–6 months (Murphy and Lugo , Gillespie et al.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…), and this irreversible loss of fertility constrains the natural regeneration of secondary forests (Campo and Vázquez‐Yanes ), particularly in low‐resource environments such as TDFs (Poorter et al. ). Finally, pressure from both wild and increasing numbers of domestic herbivores adds another burden that reduces success rates during the transition from seedling to sapling (Holl and Quiros‐Nietzen ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…TDFs remain the most threatened and degraded biome on Earth, with 97% severely endangered due to many anthropogenic pressures (Miles et al 2006), despite harboring an extremely rich diversity of organisms and a high level of endemism (Banda et al 2016). Moreover, TDF restoration from degraded woodland and farmland is particularly complex due to the challenging environmental conditions that identify this biome (Vieira and Scariot 2006, Holl 2012, Gei et al 2018, Werden et al 2018, Poorter et al 2019. First and foremost, TDFs typically receive a variable amount of rainfall, between 600 and 1800 mm per year, which is unevenly distributed throughout the year, leading to a pronounced dry season with a high water deficit that can last for 3-6 months (Murphy andLugo 1986, Gillespie et al 2000).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Seedling survival in TDFS is strongly limited by water availability (Murphy and Lugo 1986, Vieira and Scariot 2006, Werden et al 2018, despite the high levels of germination from soil seed banks during the favorable season (Lieberman andLi 1992, Ceccon et al 2004). Converting TDFs into agricultural land is also typically followed by the rapid depletion of stocks of available soil nutrients (Kauffman et al 1993), and this irreversible loss of fertility constrains the natural regeneration of secondary forests (Campo and V azquez-Yanes 2004), particularly in low-resource environments such as TDFs (Poorter et al 2019). Finally, pressure from both wild and increasing numbers of domestic herbivores adds another burden that reduces success rates during the transition from seedling to sapling (Holl and Quiros-Nietzen 1999).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Assessing intraspecific trait variability during seedling establishment to improve restoration of tropical dry forests

et al. 2020

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Forest restoration is an effective tool to mitigate climate change, but its implementation in highly diverse and threatened tropical dry forests (TDFs) is particularly challenging due to the hostile environment. Intraspecific trait variability (ITV) in response to these constraints may be very informative for predicting the potential for species acclimation and therefore for improving trait‐based species screenings that best match each particular scenario of forest restoration. We analyzed ITV during seedling establishment of three widely distributed and ecologically contrasting TDF species in a greenhouse multifactorial experiment crossing levels of resource availability (nutrients and water) and herbivory to assess the capacity of ITV to discern strategies of seedling establishment and to predict species’ growth rates and acclimation potential. The three species studied had contrasting responses to the experimental treatments, suggesting different strategies of seedling establishment. The species with the most plastic pattern of growth performed the best, especially due to its ability to modulate the trade‐off of root‐to‐shoot allocation of biomass depending on nutrient availability. Almost 50% of the variation in the root mass ratio was within species, half of which was a direct response of the treatments, indicating a strong acclimation potential. Individual‐level trait measurements, however, were poor predictors of seedling growth rates. ITV, particularly the ability to adapt the pattern of biomass allocation, can be critical during seedling establishment. We propose incorporating information about ITV and the ability of species to modulate their phenotypic expression to cope with environmental variability into programs of forest restoration. Easily implemented and standardized greenhouse experiments are an inexpensive way to obtain high‐quality data on the plasticity of forest species, which can be very valuable for predicting the potential of species acclimation and thus improving the selection of species that better match each particular scenario of restoration.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Assessing intraspecific trait variability during seedling establishment to improve restoration of tropical dry forests

et al. 2020

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“…They have been shown to be good predictors of ecosystem functioning (Diaz & Cabido, 2001;Lavorel & Garnier, 2002;McGill, Enquist, Weiher, & Westoby, 2006) and of forest succession trajectories (e.g. Poorter et al, 2019). In moist and wet forests, tree species adapted to distinct successional phases have clearly distinct traits, which vary from more acquisitive strategies (pioneer species -trees with low wood density and high specific leaf area, for example) to conservative attributes that characterize late-successional species of such ecosystems (Lohbeck et al, 2013;Poorter et al, 2019).…”

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Drivers of subtropical forest dynamics: The role of functional traits, forest structure and soil variables

Bordin

Müller

2019

J Vegetation Science

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Question How do biotic forest conditions, in terms of plant functional traits and tree basal area, and soil variables influence old‐growth forest dynamics? Location A subtropical old‐growth forest in Southern Brazil. Methods Forest inventories were conducted in 1999 and 2017, in 24 permanent plots of 500 m2. All trees with a circumference at breast height of ≥ 30 cm were measured, identified to the species level, and tagged. We fitted linear models to evaluate the effect of the biotic variables of initial forest communities (tree basal area, trait community‐weighted mean [CWM] and both species and functional diversity metrics) and of soil variables on forest dynamics. These models included biomass dynamics (annual rate of biomass increment and mortality) and demographic rates (recruitment and mortality rates). Furthermore, linear models were used to evaluate the effect of tree survival, recruitment and mortality and biomass increment on the net biomass change. Results We observed a positive effect of species diversity and a negative effect of CWM leaf phosphorus content on the biomass increment. Biomass loss was positively related to basal area and negatively related to the CWM of leaf nitrogen content. Overall, net biomass change was negatively influenced by biomass loss due to mortality. Recruitment rates were negatively affected by soil potassium content and were positively affected by soil pH and functional evenness of the community. Mortality rates were positively predicted by soil clay content and negatively predicted by species diversity. Conclusions Community functional traits, basal area and soil variables predicted growth, mortality and recruitment dynamics of this subtropical old‐growth forest. This work provides important information about the biomass and demographic dynamics of subtropical forests, showing that initial community characteristics influence the gain and loss of biomass and individuals over a period of almost two decades.

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Slow rate of secondary forest carbon accumulation in the Guianas compared with the rest of the Neotropics

Chave

Piponiot

Maréchaux

et al. 2019

Ecological Applications

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Secondary forests are a prominent component of tropical landscapes, and they constitute a major atmospheric carbon sink. Rates of carbon accumulation are usually inferred from chronosequence studies, but direct estimates of carbon accumulation based on long‐term monitoring of stands are rarely reported. Recent compilations on secondary forest carbon accumulation in the Neotropics are heavily biased geographically as they do not include estimates from the Guiana Shield. We analysed the temporal trajectory of aboveground carbon accumulation and floristic composition at one 25‐ha secondary forest site in French Guiana. The site was clear‐cut in 1976, abandoned thereafter, and one large plot (6.25 ha) has been monitored continuously since. We used Bayesian modeling to assimilate inventory data and simulate the long‐term carbon accumulation trajectory. Canopy change was monitored using two aerial lidar surveys conducted in 2009 and 2017. We compared the dynamics of this site with that of a surrounding old‐growth forest. Finally, we compared our results with that from secondary forests in Costa Rica, which is one of the rare long‐term monitoring programs reaching a duration comparable to our study. Twenty years after abandonment, aboveground carbon stock was 64.2 (95% credibility interval 46.4, 89.0) Mg C/ha, and this stock increased to 101.3 (78.7, 128.5) Mg C/ha 20 yr later. The time to accumulate one‐half of the mean aboveground carbon stored in the nearby old‐growth forest (185.6 [155.9, 200.2] Mg C/ha) was estimated at 35.0 [20.9, 55.9] yr. During the first 40 yr, the contribution of the long‐lived pioneer species Xylopia nitida, Goupia glabra, and Laetia procera to the aboveground carbon stock increased continuously. Secondary forest mean‐canopy height measured by lidar increased by 1.14 m in 8 yr, a canopy‐height increase consistent with an aboveground carbon accumulation of 7.1 Mg C/ha (or 0.89 Mg C·ha−1·yr−1) during this period. Long‐term AGC accumulation rate in Costa Rica was almost twice as fast as at our site in French Guiana. This may reflect higher fertility of Central American forest communities or a better adaptation of the forest tree community to intense and frequent disturbances. This finding may have important consequences for scaling‐up carbon uptake estimates to continental scales.

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Wet and dry tropical forests show opposite successional pathways in wood density but converge over time

Cited by 159 publications

References 51 publications

Assessing intraspecific trait variability during seedling establishment to improve restoration of tropical dry forests

Assessing intraspecific trait variability during seedling establishment to improve restoration of tropical dry forests

Drivers of subtropical forest dynamics: The role of functional traits, forest structure and soil variables

Slow rate of secondary forest carbon accumulation in the Guianas compared with the rest of the Neotropics

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