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Climate sensitive size-dependent survival in tropical trees

Journal Article · · Nature Ecology and Evolution
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  1. Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); School of Forest Resources and Conservation, Gainesville, FL (United States)
  2. Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, Edgewater, MD (United States)
  3. Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
  4. Univ. of California, Irvine, CA (United States)
  5. Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Washington, DC (United States)
  6. Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, Front Royal, VA (United States)
  7. Wildlife and Plant Conservation, Bangkok (Thailand)
  8. Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
  9. National Dong Hwa University, Hualien (Taiwan)
  10. Tunghai University, Taichung (Taiwan)
  11. University of Buea (Cameroon)
  12. Field Museum, Chicago, IL (United States)
  13. Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry, USDA Forest Service, Hilo, HI (United States)
  14. Forest Research Institute Malaysia, Kepong, Selangor Darul Ehsan (Malaysia)
  15. University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, Honolulu, HI (United States)
  16. University of Peradeniya (Sri Lanka)
  17. National Taiwan University, Taipei (Taiwan)
  18. Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Panama (Republic of Panama)
  19. University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, HI (United States)
  20. Univ. of Florida, Gainesville, FL (United States)
  21. Nanyang Technological University (Singapore)
  22. Sarawak Forestry Department, Kuching, Sarawak (Malaysia)
  23. University of the Philippines Diliman, Quezon City (Philippines)
  24. University of Hawaii, Hilo, HI (United States)
  25. Univ. of California, Los Angeles, CA (United States)
  26. University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD (United States)
  27. National Dong Hwa University, Hualian (Taiwan)
  28. Washington State University, Vancouver, WA (United States)
  29. Bush Estate, Penicuik, Midlothian (United Kingdom)
  30. Columbia Univ., New York, NY (United States)
  31. Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador, Quito (Ecuador)
  32. Far Eastern University, Manila (Philippines)
  33. University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras (Puerto Rico)
  34. Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
+ Show Author Affiliations

Survival rates of large trees determine forest biomass dynamics. Survival rates of small trees have been linked to mechanisms that maintain biodiversity across tropical forests. How species survival rates change with size offers insight into the links between biodiversity and ecosystem function across tropical forests. In this study, we tested patterns of size-dependent tree survival across the tropics using data from 1,781 species and over 2 million individuals to assess whether tropical forests can be characterized by size-dependent life-history survival strategies. We found that species were classifiable into four ‘survival modes’ that explain life-history variation that shapes carbon cycling and the relative abundance within forests. Frequently collected functional traits, such as wood density, leaf mass per area and seed mass, were not generally predictive of the survival modes of species. Mean annual temperature and cumulative water deficit predicted the proportion of biomass of survival modes, indicating important links between evolutionary strategies, climate and carbon cycling. The application of survival modes in demographic simulations predicted biomass change across forest sites. Finally, our results reveal globally identifiable size-dependent survival strategies that differ across diverse systems in a consistent way. The abundance of survival modes and interaction with climate ultimately determine forest structure, carbon storage in biomass and future forest trajectories.

Research Organization:
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Biological and Environmental Research (BER)
Grant/Contract Number:
AC02-05CH11231
OSTI ID:
1485100
Alternate ID(s):
OSTI ID: 1708853
Journal Information:
Nature Ecology and Evolution, Journal Name: Nature Ecology and Evolution Journal Issue: 9 Vol. 2; ISSN 2397-334X
Publisher:
Nature Publishing GroupCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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Cited By (1)

Tree height explains mortality risk during an intense drought journal September 2019

Figures / Tables (6)

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Figure 3(p. 29)figure Figure 3
Figure 4(p. 30)figure Figure 4
Figure 5(p. 31)figure Figure 5
Figure 6(p. 32)figure Figure 6

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