Journal article
Above-ground biomass and structure of 260 African tropical forests
Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences, Vol.368(1625), pp.1-14
2013
Abstract
We report above-ground biomass (AGB), basal area, stemdensity and wood mass density estimates from 260 sample plots (mean size: 1.2 ha) in intact closed-canopy tropical forests across 12 African countries. Mean AGB is 395.7 Mg dry mass ha-1 (95% CI: 14.3), substantially higher than Amazonian values, with the Congo Basin and contiguous forest region attaining AGB values (429 Mg ha-1) similar to those of Bornean forests, and significantly greater than East or West African forests. AGB therefore appears generally higher in palaeo- comparedwithneotropical forests.However, mean stem density is low(426±11 stems ha-1 greater than or equal to 100 mm diameter) compared with both Amazonian and Bornean forests (cf. approx. 600) and is the signature structural feature of African tropical forests. While spatial autocorrelation complicates analyses, AGB shows a positive relationship with rainfall in the driest nine months of the year, and an opposite association with the wettest three months of the year; a negative relationship with temperature; positive relationship with clay-rich soils; and negative relationshipswith C:Nratio (suggesting a positive soil phosphorus- AGB relationship), and soil fertility computed as the sum of base cations. The results indicate that AGB is mediated by both climate and soils, and suggest that the AGB of African closed-canopy tropical forests may be particularly sensitive to future precipitation and temperature changes. © 2013 The Authors.
Details
- Title
- Above-ground biomass and structure of 260 African tropical forests
- Authors
- S L Lewis (Author)B Sonké (Author)T Sunderland (Author)S K Begne (Author)G Lopez-Gonzalez (Author)G M F van der Heijden (Author)O L Phillips (Author)K Affum-Baffoe (Author)T R Baker (Author)L Banin (Author)J F Bastin (Author)H Beeckman (Author)P Boeckx (Author)J Bogaert (Author)C De Cannière (Author)E Chezeaux (Author)C J Clark (Author)M Collins (Author)Gloria Djagbletey (Author)Marie Noel (Author)K Djuikouo (Author)Vincent Droissart (Author)Jean-Louis Doucet (Author)Cornielle E N Ewango (Author)Sophie Fauset (Author)Ted R Feldpausch (Author)Ernest G Foli (Author)Francois Gillet (Author)Alan C Hamilton (Author)David J Harris (Author)Terese B Hart (Author)Thales de Haulleville (Author)Annette Hladik (Author)Koen Hufkens (Author)Dries Huygens (Author)Philippe Jeanmart (Author)Kathryn J Jeffery (Author)Elizabeth Kearsley (Author)Miguel E Leal (Author)Jon Lloyd (Author)Jon C Lovett (Author)Jean-Remy Makana (Author)Yadvinder Malhi (Author)Andrew R Marshall (Author) - University of York, United KingdomLucas Ojo (Author)Kelvin S H Peh (Author)Georgia Pickavance (Author)John R Poulsen (Author)Jan M Reitsma (Author)Douglas Sheil (Author)Murielle Simo (Author)Kathy Steppe (Author)Hermann E Taedoumg (Author)Joey Talbot (Author)James R D Taplin (Author)David W Taylor (Author)Sean C Thomas (Author)Benjamin Toirambe (Author)Hans Verbeeck (Author)Jason Vleminckx (Author)Lee J T White (Author)Simon Willcock (Author)Hannsjorg Woell (Author)Lise Zemagho (Author)
- Publication details
- Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences, Vol.368(1625), pp.1-14
- Publisher
- Royal Society Publishing
- Date published
- 2013
- DOI
- 10.1098/rstb.2012.0295
- ISSN
- 0962-8436
- Copyright note
- Copyright © 2013 The Authors. Published by the Royal Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/, which permits unrestricted use, provided the original author and source are credited.
- Organisation Unit
- Tropical Forests and People Research Centre; University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland; School of Science, Technology and Engineering; Forest Research Institute
- Language
- English
- Record Identifier
- 99450595502621
- Output Type
- Journal article
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