Positive feedbacks and alternative stable states in forest leaf types

Yibiao Zou; Constantin M Zohner; Colin Averill; Haozhi Ma; Julian Merder; Miguel Berdugo; Lalasia Bialic-Murphy; Lidong Mo; Philipp Brun; Niklaus E Zimmermann; Jingjing Liang; Sergio de-Miguel; Gert-Jan Nabuurs; Peter B Reich; Ulo Niinements; Jonas Dahlgren; Gerald Kändler; Sophia Ratcliffe; Paloma Ruiz-Benito; Miguel Angel de Zavala; GFBI Consortium; Thomas W Crowther; Robin Chazdon; John Herbohn; Andrew Marshall

doi:10.1038/s41467-024-48676-5

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Positive feedbacks and alternative stable states in forest leaf types

Yibiao Zou, Constantin M Zohner, Colin Averill, Haozhi Ma, Julian Merder, Miguel Berdugo, Lalasia Bialic-Murphy, Lidong Mo, Philipp Brun, Niklaus E Zimmermann, …

Nature Communications, Vol.15, pp.1-15

2024

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-48676-5

PMID: 38821957

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Abstract

ecophysiology

ecosystem ecology

forest ecology

The emergence of alternative stable states in forest systems has significant implications for the functioning and structure of the terrestrial biosphere, yet empirical evidence remains scarce. Here, we combine global forest biodiversity observations and simulations to test for alternative stable states in the presence of evergreen and deciduous forest types. We reveal a bimodal distribution of forest leaf types across temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere that cannot be explained by the environment alone, suggesting signatures of alternative forest states. Moreover, we empirically demonstrate the existence of positive feedbacks in tree growth, recruitment and mortality, with trees having 4-43% higher growth rates, 14-17% higher survival rates and 4-7 times higher recruitment rates when they are surrounded by trees of their own leaf type. Simulations show that the observed positive feedbacks are necessary and sufficient to generate alternative forest states, which also lead to dependency on history (hysteresis) during ecosystem transition from evergreen to deciduous forests and vice versa. We identify hotspots of bistable forest types in evergreen-deciduous ecotones, which are likely driven by soil-related positive feedbacks. These findings are integral to predicting the distribution of forest biomes, and aid to our understanding of biodiversity, carbon turnover, and terrestrial climate feedbacks.

Details

Title: Positive feedbacks and alternative stable states in forest leaf types
Authors: Yibiao Zou (Corresponding Author) - ETH Zurich
Constantin M Zohner - ETH Zurich
Colin Averill - ETH Zurich
Haozhi Ma - ETH Zurich
Julian Merder - Carnegie Institution for Science
Miguel Berdugo - ETH Zurich
Lalasia Bialic-Murphy - ETH Zurich
Lidong Mo - ETH Zurich
Philipp Brun - Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research
Niklaus E Zimmermann - Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research
Jingjing Liang - Purdue University West Lafayette
Sergio de-Miguel - Forest Science and Technology Centre of Catalonia
Gert-Jan Nabuurs - Wageningen University & Research
Peter B Reich - University of Michigan
Ulo Niinements - Estonian University of Life Sciences
Jonas Dahlgren - Forest Science and Technology Centre of Catalonia
Gerald Kändler - Forstliche Versuchs- und Forschungsanstalt Baden-Württemberg
Sophia Ratcliffe - National Biodiversity Network Trust
Paloma Ruiz-Benito - Universidad de Alcalá
Miguel Angel de Zavala - Universidad de Alcalá
GFBI Consortium (Research Group)
Thomas W Crowther - ETH Zurich
Robin Chazdon (Consortium Member) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Forest Research Institute
John Herbohn (Consortium Member) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Forest Research Institute
Andrew Marshall (Consortium Member) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Forest Research Institute
Publication details: Nature Communications, Vol.15, pp.1-15
Publisher: Nature Publishing Group
Date published: 2024
DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-48676-5
ISSN: 2041-1723
PMID: 38821957
Copyright note: © The Author(s) 2024. This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
Organisation Unit: Australian Centre for Pacific Islands Research; Tropical Forests and People Research Centre; School of Science, Technology and Engineering; Forest Research Institute
Language: English
Record Identifier: 991043596502621
Output Type: Journal article

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Web Of Science research areas: Ecology

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