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Title: Variation in hydroclimate sustains tropical forest biomass and promotes functional diversity

Journal Article · · New Phytologist
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.15271· OSTI ID:1477355
ORCiD logo [1]; ORCiD logo [1]; ORCiD logo [2]; ORCiD logo [1];  [3]; ORCiD logo [1];  [4];  [5];  [6]; ORCiD logo [7];  [1]; ORCiD logo [8]
  1. Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
  2. Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
  3. National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, CO (United States)
  4. Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
  5. Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL (United States); Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL (United States)
  6. Univ. of California, Los Angeles, CA (United States); Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Balboa, (Republic of Panama)
  7. Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Balboa, (Republic of Panama)
  8. Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Univ. of California, Berkeley, CA (United States)
+ Show Author Affiliations

The fate of tropical forests under climate change is unclear as a result, in part, of the uncertainty in projected changes in precipitation and in the ability of vegetation models to capture the effects of drought-induced mortality on aboveground biomass (AGB). We evaluated the ability of a terrestrial biosphere model with demography and hydrodynamics (Ecosystem Demography, ED2-hydro) to simulate AGB and mortality of four tropical tree plant functional types (PFTs) that operate along light- and water-use axes. Model predictions were compared with observations of canopy trees at Barro Colorado Island (BCI), Panama. We then assessed the implications of eight hypothetical precipitation scenarios, including increased annual precipitation, reduced inter-annual variation, El Ni~no-related droughts and drier wet or dry seasons, on AGB and functional diversity of the model forest. When forced with observed meteorology, ED2-hydro predictions capture multiple BCI benchmarks. ED2-hydro predicts that AGB will be sustained under lower rainfall via shifts in the functional composition of the forest, except under the drier dry-season scenario. These results support the hypothesis that inter-annual variation in mean and seasonal precipitation promotes the coexistence of functionally diverse PFTs because of the relative differences in mortality rates. If the hydroclimate becomes chronically drier or wetter, functional evenness related to drought tolerance may decline.

Research Organization:
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Biological and Environmental Research (BER)
Grant/Contract Number:
AC02-05CH11231; AC05-76RL01830
OSTI ID:
1477355
Alternate ID(s):
OSTI ID: 1455084; OSTI ID: 1770317; OSTI ID: 1770318
Report Number(s):
PNNL-SA-147549; ark:/13030/qt8551s8zq
Journal Information:
New Phytologist, Vol. 219, Issue 3; ISSN 0028-646X
Publisher:
WileyCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 33 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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Cited By (2)

Wood allocation trade‐offs between fiber wall, fiber lumen, and axial parenchyma drive drought resistance in neotropical trees journal February 2020
Modelling water fluxes in plants: from tissues to biosphere journal February 2019

Figures / Tables (12)

Table 1: Part 1(p. 34)table Table 1: Part 1
Table 1: Part 2(p. 36)table Table 1: Part 2
Table 2(p. 39)table Table 2
Fig. 1(p. 40)figure Fig. 1
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Fig. 7(p. 46)figure Fig. 7
Fig. 8(p. 47)figure Fig. 8
Fig. 9(p. 48)figure Fig. 9

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54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
aboveground biomass
drought
functional diversity
mortality
terrestrial biosphere model
tropical forests
aboveground biomass
drought
functional diversity
mortality
terrestrial biosphere model
tropical forests