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Funding: Data collection was largely funded by the UK Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) project TREMOR (NE/N004655/1) to D.G., E.G. and O.P., with further funds from Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior—Brasil (CAPES, finance code 001) to J.V.T. and a University of Leeds Climate Research Bursary Fund to J.V.T. D.G., E.G. and O.P. acknowledge further support from a NERC-funded consortium award (ARBOLES, NE/S011811/1). This paper is an outcome of J.V.T.’s doctoral thesis, which was sponsored by CAPES (GDE 99999.001293/2015-00). J.V.T. was previously supported by the NERC-funded ARBOLES project (NE/S011811/1) and is supported at present by the Swedish Research Council Vetenskapsrådet (grant no. 2019-03758 to R.M.). E.G., O.P. and D.G. acknowledge support from NERC-funded BIORED grant (NE/N012542/1). O.P. acknowledges support from an ERC Advanced Grant and a Royal Society Wolfson Research Merit Award. R.S.O. was supported by a CNPq productivity scholarship, the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP-Microsoft 11/52072-0) and the US Department of Energy, project GoAmazon (FAPESP 2013/50531-2). M.M. acknowledges support from MINECO FUN2FUN (CGL2013-46808-R) and DRESS (CGL2017-89149-C2-1-R). C.S.-M., F.B.V. and P.R.L.B. were financed by Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior—Brasil (CAPES, finance code 001). C.S.-M. received a scholarship from the Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq 140353/2017-8) and CAPES (science without borders 88881.135316/2016-01). Y.M. acknowledges the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation and ERC Advanced Investigator Grant (GEM-TRAITS, 321131) for supporting the Global Ecosystems Monitoring (GEM) network (gem.tropicalforests.ox.ac.uk), within which some of the field sites (KEN, TAM and ALP) are nested. The authors thank Brazil–USA Collaborative Research GoAmazon DOE-FAPESP-FAPEAM (FAPESP 2013/50533-5 to L.A.) and National Science Foundation (award DEB-1753973 to L. Alves). They thank Serrapilheira Serra-1709-18983 (to M.H.) and CNPq-PELD/POPA-441443/2016-8 (to L.G.) (P.I. Albertina Lima). They thank all the colleagues and grants mentioned elsewhere [8,36] that established, identified and measured the Amazon forest plots in the RAINFOR network analysed here. The authors particularly thank J. Lyod, S. Almeida, F. Brown, B. Vicenti, N. Silva and L. Alves. This work is an outcome approved Research Project no. 19 from ForestPlots.net, a collaborative initiative developed at the University of Leeds that unites researchers and the monitoring of their permanent plots from the world’s tropical forests [61]. The authros thank A. Levesley, K. Melgaço Ladvocat and G. Pickavance for ForestPlots.net management. They thank Y. Wang and J. Baker, respectively, for their help with the map and with the climatic data. The authors acknowledge the invaluable help of M. Brum for kindly providing the comparison of vulnerability curves based on PAD and on PLC shown in this manuscript. They thank J. Martinez-Vilalta for his comments on an early version of this manuscript. The authors also thank V. Hilares and the Asociación para la Investigación y Desarrollo Integral (AIDER, Puerto Maldonado, Peru); V. Saldaña and Instituto de Investigaciones de la Amazonía Peruana (IIAP) for local field campaign support in Peru; E. Chavez and Noel Kempff Natural History Museum for local field campaign support in Bolivia; ICMBio, INPA/NAPPA/LBA COOMFLONA (Cooperativa mista da Flona Tapajós) and T. I. Bragança-Marituba for the research support. Tropical forests face increasing climate risk1,2, yet our ability to predict their response to climate change is limited by poor understanding of their resistance to water stress. Although xylem embolism resistance thresholds (for example, Ψ50) and hydraulic safety margins (for example, HSM50) are important predictors of drought-induced mortality risk3-5, little is known about how these vary across Earth's largest tropical forest. Here, we present a pan-Amazon, fully standardized hydraulic traits dataset and use it to assess regional variation in drought sensitivity and hydraulic trait ability to predict species distributions and long-term forest biomass accumulation. Parameters Ψ50 and HSM50 vary markedly across the Amazon and are related to average long-term rainfall characteristics. Both Ψ50 and HSM50 influence the biogeographical distribution of Amazon tree species. However, HSM50 was the only significant predictor of observed decadal-scale changes in forest biomass. Old-growth forests with wide HSM50 are gaining more biomass than are low HSM50 forests. We propose that this may be associated with a growth-mortality trade-off whereby trees in forests consisting of fast-growing species take greater hydraulic risks and face greater mortality risk. Moreover, in regions of more pronounced climatic change, we find evidence that forests are losing biomass, suggesting that species in these regions may be operating beyond their hydraulic limits. Continued climate change is likely to further reduce HSM50 in the Amazon6,7, with strong implications for the Amazon carbon sink. Publisher PDF

Aim: The latitudinal biodiversity gradient is considered a first-order biogeographical pattern for most taxonomic groups. Latitudinal variation in plant diversity is not always consistent, and this could be related to the particular characteristics of different forest types. In this study, we compare latitudinal changes in floristic diversity (alpha diversity), composition (beta diversity) and dominance across different tropical forest types: floodplain, terra firme and submontane forests. Location: Western Amazonia (Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia). Taxon: Woody plants. Methods: We inventoried 1978 species and 31,203 individuals of vascular plants with a diameter at breast height ≥ 2.5 cm in 118 0.1-ha plots over an 1800 km latitudinal gradient in three different forest types. The relationships between alpha diversity, latitude and forest type were analysed using generalised linear mixed models. Semi-parametric permutational multivariate analysis of variance was used to investigate the effects of latitude and forest type on beta diversity. Dominant species abundances were correlated with non-metric multidimensional scaling ordination axes to reflect their contributions in shaping changes in beta diversity. Results: Alpha diversity increased towards equatorial latitudes in terra firme and submontane forests but remained relatively constant in floodplains. Beta diversity of all forest types changed with latitude, although less clearly in floodplains. Also, in floodplain forests, there were fewer dominant species contributing to beta diversity and more species homogeneous along the gradient. Main Conclusions: Latitudinal diversity patterns are manifested in alpha and beta diversity since latitude summarizes climatic and edaphic changes. However, we found different responses of each forest type. In floodplain forests, inundation regime is a stronger predictor than latitude, limiting floristic diversity and composition. Changes in dominant species abundance over gradients explained species composition, but floodplain forests harboured more homogeneous dominant species than well drained forests. It is key to study environmental trends and habitat characteristics of each forest type to understand their species diversity and dominance patterns

Plot-based monitoring has yielded much information on the taxonomic diversity and carbon (C) storage in tropical lowland forests of the Amazon basin. This has resulted in an improved understanding of the relationship between lowland forest biomass dynamics and global change drivers, such as climate change and atmospheric CO2 concentration. Much less attention has been paid to the mountain ecosystems of South America that comprise montane forests and alpine vegetation (páramo, puna, high Andean grasslands, wetlands, and alpine heath). This vegetation complex provides a variety of ecosystem services and forms a natural laboratory along various physiographic, geological and evolutionary history/biogeography, and land use history gradients. Here, we review existing empirical understanding and model-based approaches to quantify the contribution of mountain ecosystems to ecosystem service provision in the rapidly changing socioecological setting of the South American mountains. The objective of this paper is to outline a broad road map for the implementation of mountain vegetation into dynamic global vegetation models (DGVM) for use in Earth System Models (ESM), based on our current understanding of their structure and function and of their responsiveness to global change drivers. We also identify treeline processes, critical in mountain ecosystems, as key missing elements in DGVMs/ESMs, and thus explore in addition a treeline model. Stocktaking of the availability of empirical data was undertaken from eight research sites along the Andes and in south-eastern Brazil. Out of eight sites, two (one each in Venezuela and Brazil) had some climate, ecological and ecophysiological data potentially suitable to parametrise a DGVM. Tree biomass data were available for six sites. A preliminary assessment of the Joint UK Land Environment Simulator (JULES) DGVM was made to identify gaps in available data and their impacts on model parametrisation and calibration. Additionally, the potential climate-determined elevation of the treeline was modelled to check the DGVM for its ability to identify the transition between the montane forest and alpine vegetation. Outcomes of the evaluation of the JULES land surface model identified the following key processes in montane forests: temperature-related decrease in net primary production, respiration, and allocation to above-ground biomass and increase in soil C stocks with elevation. There was a variable agreement between simulated biomass and those derived from field measurements via allometric equations. We identified major gaps between data availability and the needs for process-based modelling of South American mountain vegetation and its dynamics in DGVMs. To bridge this gap, we propose a transdisciplinary network, composed of members of the theoretical/modelling and empirical scientific communities, to study the natural dynamics of mountain ecosystems and their responses to global change drivers locally, regionally and at the continental scale, within a social-ecological system framework. The work presented here forms the basis for the design of data collection from field measurements and instrumental monitoring stations to parametrise and verify DGVMs. The network is designed to collaborate with and complement existing long-term research initiatives in the region and will adopt existing standard field protocols. Complementary protocols will ensure compatibility between field data collection and data needed for process-based and empirical models.

Recent studies have demonstrated that ecological processes that shape community structure and dynamics change along environmental gradients. However, much less is known about how the emergence of the gradients themselves shape the evolution of species that underlie community assembly. In this study, we address how the creation of novel environments leads to community assembly via two nonmutually exclusive processes: immigration and ecological sorting of pre-adapted clades (ISPC), and recent adaptive diversification (RAD). We study these processes in the context of the elevational gradient created by the uplift of the Central Andes. We develop a novel approach and method based on the decomposition of species turnover into within- and among-clade components, where clades correspond to lineages that originated before mountain uplift. Effects of ISPC and RAD can be inferred from how components of turnover change with elevation. We test our approach using data from over 500 Andean forest plots. We found that species turnover between communities at different elevations is dominated by the replacement of clades that originated before the uplift of the Central Andes. Our results suggest that immigration and sorting of clades pre-adapted to montane habitats is the primary mechanism shaping tree communities across elevations.

Tropical forests are some of the most biodiverse ecosystems in the world, yet their functioning is threatened by anthropogenic disturbances and climate change. Global actions to conserve tropical forests could be enhanced by having local knowledge on the forestsʼ functional diversity and functional redundancy as proxies for their capacity to respond to global environmental change. Here we create estimates of plant functional diversity and redundancy across the tropics by combining a dataset of 16 morphological, chemical and photosynthetic plant traits sampled from 2,461 individual trees from 74 sites distributed across four continents together with local climate data for the past half century. Our findings suggest a strong link between climate and functional diversity and redundancy with the three trait groups responding similarly across the tropics and climate gradient. We show that drier tropical forests are overall less functionally diverse than wetter forests and that functional redundancy declines with increasing soil water and vapour pressure deficits. Areas with high functional diversity and high functional redundancy tend to better maintain ecosystem functioning, such as aboveground biomass, after extreme weather events. Our predictions suggest that the lower functional diversity and lower functional redundancy of drier tropical forests, in comparison with wetter forests, may leave them more at risk of shifting towards alternative states in face of further declines in water availability across tropical regions.

Made available in DSpace on 2021-06-25T11:16:28Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2021-01-01 Agence Nationale Des Parcs Nationaux Centre for International Forestry Research Departamento Administrativo de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación (COLCIENCIAS) David and Lucile Packard Foundation European Space Agency Leverhulme Trust Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP) Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Goiás European Research Council Belgian Federal Science Policy Office Vlaamse Interuniversitaire Raad Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) National Science Foundation Natural Environment Research Council Royal Society National Geographic Society Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) Tropical forests are the most diverse and productive ecosystems on Earth. While better understanding of these forests is critical for our collective future, until quite recently efforts to measure and monitor them have been largely disconnected. Networking is essential to discover the answers to questions that transcend borders and the horizons of funding agencies. Here we show how a global community is responding to the challenges of tropical ecosystem research with diverse teams measuring forests tree-by-tree in thousands of long-term plots. We review the major scientific discoveries of this work and show how this process is changing tropical forest science. Our core approach involves linking long-term grassroots initiatives with standardized protocols and data management to generate robust scaled-up results. By connecting tropical researchers and elevating their status, our Social Research Network model recognises the key role of the data originator in scientific discovery. Conceived in 1999 with RAINFOR (South America), our permanent plot networks have been adapted to Africa (AfriTRON) and Southeast Asia (T-FORCES) and widely emulated worldwide. Now these multiple initiatives are integrated via ForestPlots.net cyber-infrastructure, linking colleagues from 54 countries across 24 plot networks. Collectively these are transforming understanding of tropical forests and their biospheric role. Together we have discovered how, where and why forest carbon and biodiversity are responding to climate change, and how they feedback on it. This long-term pan-tropical collaboration has revealed a large long-term carbon sink and its trends, as well as making clear which drivers are most important, which forest processes are affected, where they are changing, what the lags are, and the likely future responses of tropical forests as the climate continues to change. By leveraging a remarkably old technology, plot networks are sparking a very modern revolution in tropical forest science. In the future, humanity can benefit greatly by nurturing the grassroots communities now collectively capable of generating unique, long-term understanding of Earth's most precious forests. Resumen: Los bosques tropicales son los ecosistemas más diversos y productivos del mundo y entender su funcionamiento es crítico para nuestro futuro colectivo. Sin embargo, hasta hace muy poco, los esfuerzos para medirlos y monitorearlos han estado muy desconectados. El trabajo en redes es esencial para descubrir las respuestas a preguntas que trascienden las fronteras y los plazos de las agencias de financiamiento. Aquí mostramos cómo una comunidad global está respondiendo a los desafíos de la investigación en ecosistemas tropicales a través de diversos equipos realizando mediciones árbol por árbol en miles de parcelas permanentes de largo plazo. Revisamos los descubrimientos más importantes de este trabajo y discutimos cómo este proceso está cambiando la ciencia relacionada a los bosques tropicales. El enfoque central de nuestro esfuerzo implica la conexión de iniciativas locales de largo plazo con protocolos estandarizados y manejo de datos para producir resultados que se puedan trasladar a múltiples escalas. Conectando investigadores tropicales, elevando su posición y estatus, nuestro modelo de Red Social de Investigación reconoce el rol fundamental que tienen, para el descubrimiento científico, quienes generan o producen los datos. Concebida en 1999 con RAINFOR (Suramérica), nuestras redes de parcelas permanentes han sido adaptadas en África (AfriTRON) y el sureste asiático (T-FORCES) y ampliamente replicadas en el mundo. Actualmente todas estas iniciativas están integradas a través de la ciber-infraestructura de ForestPlots.net, conectando colegas de 54 países en 24 redes diferentes de parcelas. Colectivamente, estas redes están transformando nuestro conocimiento sobre los bosques tropicales y el rol de éstos en la biósfera. Juntos hemos descubierto cómo, dónde y porqué el carbono y la biodiversidad de los bosques tropicales está respondiendo al cambio climático y cómo se retroalimentan. Esta colaboración pan-tropical de largo plazo ha expuesto un gran sumidero de carbono y sus tendencias, mostrando claramente cuáles son los factores más importantes, qué procesos se ven afectados, dónde ocurren los cambios, los tiempos de reacción y las probables respuestas futuras mientras el clima continúa cambiando. Apalancando lo que realmente es una tecnología antigua, las redes de parcelas están generando una verdadera y moderna revolución en la ciencia tropical. En el futuro, la humanidad puede beneficiarse enormemente si se nutren y cultivan comunidades de investigadores de base, actualmente con la capacidad de generar información única y de largo plazo para entender los que probablemente son los bosques más preciados de la tierra. Resumo: Florestas tropicais são os ecossistemas mais diversos e produtivos da Terra. Embora uma boa compreensão destas florestas seja crucial para o nosso futuro coletivo, até muito recentemente os esforços de medições e monitoramento foram amplamente desconexos. É essencial formarmos redes para obtermos respostas que transcendem fronteiras e horizontes de agências financiadoras. Neste estudo nós mostramos como uma comunidade global está respondendo aos desafios da pesquisa de ecossistemas tropicais, com equipes diversas medindo florestas, árvore por árvore, em milhares de parcelas monitoradas à longo prazo. Nós revisamos as maiores descobertas científicas deste trabalho, e mostramos também como este processo está mudando a ciência de florestas tropicais. Nossa abordagem principal envolve unir iniciativas de base a protocolos padronizados e gerenciamento de dados a fim de gerar resultados robustos em escalas ampliadas. Ao conectar pesquisadores tropicais e elevar seus status, nosso modelo de Rede de Pesquisa Social reconhece o papel-chave do produtor dos dados na descoberta científica. Concebida em 1999 com o RAINFOR (América do Sul), nossa rede de parcelas permanentes foi adaptada para África (AfriTRON) e Sudeste asiático (T-FORCES), e tem sido extensamente reproduzida em todo o mundo. Agora estas múltiplas iniciativas estão integradas através de uma infraestrutura cibernética do ForestPlots.net, conectando colegas de 54 países de 24 redes de parcelas. Estas iniciativas estão transformando coletivamente o entendimento das florestas tropicais e seus papéis na biosfera. Juntos nós descobrimos como, onde e por que o carbono e a biodiversidade da floresta estão respondendo às mudanças climáticas, e seus efeitos de retroalimentação. Esta duradoura colaboração pantropical revelou um grande sumidouro de carbono persistente e suas tendências, assim como tem evidenciado quais direcionadores são mais importantes, quais processos florestais são mais afetados, onde eles estão mudando, seus atrasos no tempo de resposta, e as prováveis respostas das florestas tropicais conforme o clima continua a mudar. Dessa forma, aproveitando uma notável tecnologia antiga, redes de parcelas acendem faíscas de uma moderna revolução na ciência das florestas tropicais. No futuro a humanidade pode se beneficiar incentivando estas comunidades basais que agora são coletivamente capazes de gerar conhecimentos únicos e duradouros sobre as florestas mais preciosas da Terra. Résume: Les forêts tropicales sont les écosystèmes les plus diversifiés et les plus productifs de la planète. Si une meilleure compréhension de ces forêts est essentielle pour notre avenir collectif, jusqu'à tout récemment, les efforts déployés pour les mesurer et les surveiller ont été largement déconnectés. La mise en réseau est essentielle pour découvrir les réponses à des questions qui dépassent les frontières et les horizons des organismes de financement. Nous montrons ici comment une communauté mondiale relève les défis de la recherche sur les écosystèmes tropicaux avec diverses équipes qui mesurent les forêts arbre après arbre dans de milliers de parcelles permanentes. Nous passons en revue les principales découvertes scientifiques de ces travaux et montrons comment ce processus modifie la science des forêts tropicales. Notre approche principale consiste à relier les initiatives de base à long terme à des protocoles standardisés et une gestion de données afin de générer des résultats solides à grande échelle. En reliant les chercheurs tropicaux et en élevant leur statut, notre modèle de réseau de recherche sociale reconnaît le rôle clé de l'auteur des données dans la découverte scientifique. Conçus en 1999 avec RAINFOR (Amérique du Sud), nos réseaux de parcelles permanentes ont été adaptés à l'Afrique (AfriTRON) et à l'Asie du Sud-Est (T-FORCES) et largement imités dans le monde entier. Ces multiples initiatives sont désormais intégrées via l'infrastructure ForestPlots.net, qui relie des collègues de 54 pays à travers 24 réseaux de parcelles. Ensemble, elles transforment la compréhension des forêts tropicales et de leur rôle biosphérique. Ensemble, nous avons découvert comment, où et pourquoi le carbone forestier et la biodiversité réagissent au changement climatique, et comment ils y réagissent. Cette collaboration pan-tropicale à long terme a révélé un important puits de carbone à long terme et ses tendances, tout en mettant en évidence les facteurs les plus importants, les processus forestiers qui sont affectés, les endroits où ils changent, les décalages et les réactions futures probables des forêts tropicales à mesure que le climat continue de changer. En tirant parti d'une technologie remarquablement ancienne, les réseaux de parcelles déclenchent une révolution très moderne dans la science des forêts tropicales. À l'avenir, l'humanité pourra grandement bénéficier du soutien des communautés de base qui sont maintenant collectivement capables de générer une compréhension unique et à long terme des forêts les plus précieuses de la Terre. Abstrak: Hutan tropika adalah di antara ekosistem yang paling produktif dan mempunyai kepelbagaian biodiversiti yang tinggi di seluruh dunia. Walaupun pemahaman mengenai hutan tropika amat penting untuk masa depan kita, usaha-usaha untuk mengkaji dan mengawas hutah-hutan tersebut baru sekarang menjadi lebih diperhubungkan. Perangkaian adalah sangat penting untuk mencari jawapan kepada soalan-soalan yang menjangkaui sempadan dan batasan agensi pendanaan. Di sini kami menunjukkan bagaimana sebuah komuniti global bertindak balas terhadap cabaran penyelidikan ekosistem tropika melalui penglibatan pelbagai kumpulan yang mengukur hutan secara pokok demi pokok dalam beribu-ribu plot jangka panjang. Kami meninjau semula penemuan saintifik utama daripada kerja ini dan menunjukkan bagaimana proses ini sedang mengubah bidang sains hutan tropika. Teras pendekatan kami memberi tumpuan terhadap penghubungan inisiatif akar umbi jangka panjang dengan protokol standar serta pengurusan data untuk mendapatkan hasil skala besar yang kukuh. Dengan menghubungkan penyelidik-penyelidik tropika dan meningkatkan status mereka, model Rangkaian Penyelidikan Sosial kami mengiktiraf kepentingan peranan pengasas data dalam penemuan saintifik. Bermula dengan pengasasan RAINFOR (Amerika Selatan) pada tahun 1999, rangkaian-rangkaian plot kekal kami kemudian disesuaikan untuk Afrika (AfriTRON) dan Asia Tenggara (T-FORCES) dan selanjutnya telah banyak dicontohi di seluruh dunia. Kini, inisiatif-inisiatif tersebut disepadukan melalui infrastruktur siber ForestPlots.net yang menghubungkan rakan sekerja dari 54 negara di 24 buah rangkaian plot. Secara kolektif, rangkaian ini sedang mengubah pemahaman tentang hutan tropika dan peranannya dalam biosfera. Kami telah bekerjasama untuk menemukan bagaimana, di mana dan mengapa karbon serta biodiversiti hutan bertindak balas terhadap perubahan iklim dan juga bagaimana mereka saling bermaklum balas. Kolaborasi pan-tropika jangka panjang ini telah mendedahkan sebuah sinki karbon jangka panjang serta arah alirannya dan juga menjelaskan pemandu-pemandu perubahan yang terpenting, di mana dan bagaimana proses hutan terjejas, masa susul yang ada dan kemungkinan tindakbalas hutan tropika pada perubahan iklim secara berterusan di masa depan. Dengan memanfaatkan pendekatan lama, rangkaian plot sedang menyalakan revolusi yang amat moden dalam sains hutan tropika. Pada masa akan datang, manusia sejagat akan banyak mendapat manfaat jika memupuk komuniti-komuniti akar umbi yang kini berkemampuan secara kolektif menghasilkan pemahaman unik dan jangka panjang mengenai hutan-hutan yang paling berharga di dunia. Instituto de Ecología Regional (IER) Universidad Nacional de Tucumán (UNT) Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET) Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias Universidad Nacional de Jujuy James Cook University (JCU) CSIRO (Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation) School of Land & Food University of Tasmania CSIRO Tropical Forest Research Centre Independent Researcher Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Centre for Tropical Environmental and Sustainability Science (TESS) College of Marine and Environmental Sciences James Cook University Centre for Tropical Environmental and Sustainability Science College of Science and Engineering James Cook University University of the Sunshine Coast University of York Flamingo Land Ltd. Sommersbergseestrasse Ghent University CAVElab Ghent University Royal Museum for Central Africa - Service of Wood Biology Isotope Bioscience Laboratory-ISOFYS Ghent University Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech Université de Liege Landscape Ecology and Vegetal Production Systems Unit CAVElab Computational & Applied Vegetation Ecology Ghent University Tropical Forestry Forest Resources Management Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech University of Liege Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB) Evolutionary Biology and Ecology Royal Museum for Central Africa Royal Museum for Central Africa Ghent University Department of Environment Ghent University Service Evolution Biologique et Ecologie Belize Foundation for Research and Environmental Education IBIF Museo de Historia Natural Noel Kempff Mercado Universidad Autonoma Gabriel Rene Moreno PROMAB Museo Noel Kempff Consultor Independiente Jardin Botanico Municipal de Santa Cruz Museo de Historia Natural Noel Kempff Mercado Forest Management in Bolivia Universidad Autónoma del Beni Riberalta Museo de Historia Natural Noel Kempff Herbario del Sur de Bolivia Universidad Autónoma del Beni Conservation International Instituto de Biodiversidade e Floresta Universidade Federal do Oeste do Pará Universidade Federal de Pernambuco Universidade do Estado de Mato Grosso Universidade do Estado de Mato Grosso (UNEMAT) Projeto TEAM – Manaus Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora (UFJF) Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia Projeto Dinâmica Biológica de Fragmentos Florestais Departamento de Genética Ecologia e Evolução Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais Universidade Estadual de Campinas Laboratório de Ecologia de Comunidades e Funcionamento de Ecossistemas-ECoFERP Departamento de Biologia Faculdade de Filosofia Ciências e Letras USP National Institute for Space Research (INPE) Universidade Federal de Roraima (UFRR) UNESP - São Paulo State University Carbonozero Consultoria Ambiental Departamento de Biologia Universidade Federal do Amazonas (UFAM) Centro de Energia Nuclear na Agricultura Universidade de São Paulo UERR - Campus Rorainópolis Universidade Federal do Acre Instituto Agronômico de Campinas Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul Embrapa Universidade Estadual do Norte Fluminense (UENF) Universidade Federal da Bahia (UFBA) Instituto de Biologia Universidade Estadual de Campinas Universidade Federal do Piauí (UFPI) Botany and Plant Ecology Laboratory Federal University of Acre INPA- Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia UERR - Campus Boa Vista Universidade Federal do Ceará Universidade Federal de Campina Grande Universidade Federal do Para Núcleo de Estudos e Pesquisas Ambientais Universidade Estadual de Campinas Instituto Federal de Educação Ciência e Tecnologia do Acre Instituto de Pesquisas Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro Universidade Federal do Oeste do Pará UEFS Depto. de Ciências Biológicas Universidade Federal do Agreste de Pernambuco (UFAPE) Universidade Estadual de Montes Claros FFCLRP-USP/Br UNEMAT Universidade Federal de Jataí Universidade Federal do Pará Instituto de Ciências Biológicas Universidade de Campinas Universidade Federal de Lavras (UFLA) Museu Goeldi Embrapa Amazônia Oriental Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia UFMG - Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais Fundação Universidade Fedral de Rondônia - UNIR INPA- Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Amazônicas Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia - Coordenação de Pesquisas em Silvicultura Tropical Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro National Institute for Research in Amazonia Universidade Federal de Roraima (UFRR/PRONAT) Universidade Estadual de Campinas/UNICAMP Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia/CPBO Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina (UFSC) INCAPER- Instituto Capixaba de Pesquisa Assistência Técnica e Extensão Rural INPE- Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais Universidade de São Paulo Instituto de Biociências Universidade Estadual Paulista Semiarid National Institute (INSA) Universidade de Brasília Departamento de Engenharia Florestal IBAM - Instituto Bem Ambiental Universidade do Estado de Mato Grosso Campus de Nova Xavantina University in Campinas Universidade Estadual do Norte Fluminense Darcy Ribeiro (UENF) LMF Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia Universidade Federal do Vale do São Francisco USP - University of São Paulo Instituto Federal do Espírito Santo (IFES) INPA - Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia Grupo MAUA Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso Instituto de Ciências Naturais Humanas e Sociais Instituto Nacional da Mata Atlântica RAINFOR-PPBIO Universidade Federal Rural da Amazônia - UFRA/CAPES Universidade Federal do Amazonas (UFAM) INPA/Max-Planck Project EMBRAPA- Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuária (Amazônia Oriental) Serviço Florestal Brasileiro Museu Universitário Universidade Federal do Acre Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco PUCPR - Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Paraná Museu Paraense Emilio Goeldi Universiti Brunei Darussalam Environmental and Life Sciences Faculty of Science Universiti Brunei Darussalam Institute for Biodiversity and Environmental Research Universiti Brunei Darussalam Plant Systematic and Ecology Laboratory Department of Biology Higher Teachers’ Training College University of Yaounde I Faculty of Science Department of Botany and Plant Physiology University of Buea Faculty of Science Department of Plant Science University of Buea National Herbarium Plant Systematics and Ecology Laboratory Higher Teachers’ Training College University of Yaoundé I Department of Plant Biology Faculty of Sciences University of Yaounde 1 Bioversity International Faculty of Forestry University of Toronto Ministère des Eaux Forêts Chasse et Pêche (MEFCP) Universidad Católica de la Santísima Concepción Universidad de La Serena Research Institute of Tropical Forestry Chinese Academy of Forestry Kunming Institute of Botany Chinese Academy of Sciences Beijing Forestry University Universidad Nacional Abierta y a Distancia Red COL-TREE Corporación COL-TREE Nuevo Estándar Biotropical NEBIOT SAS Universidad del Tolima Asociación GAICA Universidad de Nariño – Red BST-Col Parques Nacionales Naturales Territorial Caribe – Red BST-Col Universidad del Atlantico – Red BST-Col Departamento de Ciencias Forestales Universidad Nacional de Colombia - Sede Medellín Socioecosistemas y Clima Sostenible Fundacion con Vida Parques Nacionales Naturales de Colombia – Red BST-Col Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Biológicos Alexander von Humboldt – Red BST-Col UNAL Instituto de Investigación Recursos Biologicos Alexander von Humboldt – Red BST-Col Fundación Jardín Botánico de Medellín Herbario “Joaquín Antonio Uribe” (JAUM) – Red BST-Col Universidad Nacional de Colombia sede Amazonia Coltree Facultad del Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales Universidad Distrital Francisco José de Caldas – Red BST-Col Universidad de Tolima Fundación Orinoquia Biodiversa – Red BST-Col Departamento de Biología Facultad de Ciencias Naturales Universidad Icesi – Red BST-Col Instituto de Ciencias Naturales Universidad Nacional de Colombia Universidad de los Llanos Servicios Ecoysistemicos y Cambio Climatico (SECC) Fundación Con Vida & Corporación COL-TREE Universidad del Rosario Fundacion Ecosistemas Secos de Colombia – Red BST-Col Universidad de los Andes - ANDES herbarium Institute of Botany Czech Academy of Sciences Palacky University Czech University of Life Sciences Mendel University World Wide Fund for Nature Wildlife Conservation Society-DR Congo Lukuru Wildlife Research Foundation Université de Kisangani Faculté des Sciences Laboratoire d'écologie et aménagement forestier Université de Kisangani Université de Kisangani Faculté des Sciences Agronomiques République Démocratique du Congo Ministère de l'Environnement et Développement Durable Aarhus University University of Copenhagen Escuela Politécnica Nacional del Ecuador Herbario Alfredo Paredes (QAP) Universidad Central del Ecuador Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja Grupo de Investigación en Biodiversidad Medio Ambiente y Salud-BIOMAS Universidad de las Américas, Campus Queri Keller Science Action Center The Field Museum, 1400 South Lake Shore Dr. Universidad Estatal Amazónica Facultad de Ingeniería Ambiental Universidad Tecnica del Norte Herbario Nacional del Ecuador Grupo de Ecosistemas Tropicales y Cambio Global Universidad Regional Amazónica ikiam Colegio de Ciencias Biológicas y Ambientales COCIBA & Extensión Galápagos Universidad San Francisco de Quito-USFQ Herbario de Botánica Económica del Ecuador QUSF Universidad San Francisco de Quito USFQ Galapagos Science Center USFQ UNC Chapel Hill University of North Carolina-UNC Chapel Hill University of Florida FindingSpecies Mekelle University Environment Climate Change and Coffee Forest Forum (ECCCFF) University of Turku Centre de coopération International en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (CIRAD) CNRS ONF INRAE Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique AMAP Univ Montpellier IRD CNRS CIRAD INRA Forêts et Sociétés (F&S) Centre de coopération International en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (CIRAD) Departement Hommes Natures Societes Museum national d'histoire naturelle INRA Cirad UMR Ecologie des Forêts de Guyane (AgroparisTech CNRS INRAE Université des Antilles Université de la Guyane) Ministry of Forests Seas Environment and Climate Rougier-Gabon Agence Nationale des Parcs Nationaux Gabon Commission of Central African Forests (COMIFAC) Agence Nationale des Parcs Nationaux Ministère des Forêts des Eaux de la Mer de l'Environnement Chargé du Plan Climat des Objectifs de Développement Durable et du Plan d'Affectation des Terres Institut de Recherche en Ecologie Tropicale (CENAREST) Gabon/Agence Nationale des Parcs Nationaux Georg-August-University Göttingen University of Freiburg Institute of Botany University of Hohenheim Max Planck Institute for Chemistry Forestry Research Institute of Ghana (FORIG) Mensuration Unit Forestry Commission of Ghana Center for International Forestry Research Iwokrama International Centre for Rainforest Conservation and Development Guyana Forestry Commission Utrecht University Centre for Sustainable Technologies Indian Institute of Science Centre for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) Herbarium Borgoriense Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) Indonesian Institute of Science Forest Research and Development Agency (FORDA) Balitek-KSDA Samboja University of Florence and MUSE - Museo delle Scienze Cirad Hokkaido University Graduate School of Agriculture Kyoto University Forestry Development Authority of the Government of Liberia (FDA) University of Liberia Sungai Wain Protection Forest South East Asia Rainforest Research Partnership Danum Valley Field Centre Malaysian Palm Oil Board Sabah Forestry Department Forest Research Centre Universiti Malaysia Sabah Sabah Forestry Department Sarawak Forestry Corporation Eduardo Mondlane University Herbarium UNAN-Leon Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Nicaragua University of Abeokuta Natural History Museum of Norway University of Oslo Norwegian University of Life Sciences Universidad Nacional de la Amazonía Peruana (UNAP) Universidad Nacional de Jaén Jardin Botanico de Missouri Andes to Amazon Biodiversity Program Universidad Nacional de San Agustín de Arequipa Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas Universidad Nacional de la Amazonía Peruana Kené - Instituto de Estudios Forestales y Ambientales Instituto de Investigaciones de la Amazonia Peruana (IIAP) Universidad Nacional Jorge Basadre de Grohmann (UNJBG) Universidad Nacional de San Antonio Abad del Cusco Centro de Conservación Investigación y Manejo CIMA Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú Asociacion Bosques Perú Université Officielle de Bukavu Université Marien N'Gouabi Wildlife Conservation Society Ecole Nationale Supérieure d'Agronomie et de Foresterie Université Marien Ngouabi Univeriste Marien Ngouabi The Gola Rainforest National Park Department of Geography National University of Singapore Departamento de Biología y Geología Física y Química inorgánica Universidad Rey Juan Carlos Real Jardín Botánico – CSIC Departamento de Biología Área de Botánica Universidad Autónoma de Madrid Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (MNCN-CSIC) Centre for Agricultural Research in Suriname (CELOS) Stockholm Environment Institute Department of Plant Ecology and Evolution Uppsala University Southern Swedish Forest Research Centre InfoFlora Conservatoire et Jardin Botanique Geneve National Chung Hsing University Sokoine University of Agriculture Naturalis Biodiversity Center Wageningen University Forest Ecology and Forest Management Group Tropenbos International Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics University of Amsterdam Bureau Waardenburg BV Van Hall Larenstein University of Applied Sciences Van der Hout Forestry Consulting Utrecht University, Domplein 29 Wageningen University Plant Ecology and Nature Conservation Group Data for Sustainability Department of Zoology Entomology & Fisheries Sciences Makerere University The Institute of Tropical Forest Conservation (ITFC) Mbarara University of Science and Technology (MUST) George Washington University Makerere University Department of Forestry Biodiversity and Tourism Makerere University University of Stirling University of Kent School of Geography University of Leeds UK Centre of Ecology & Hydrology Lancaster University University of Oxford The Landscapes and Livelihoods Group (TLLG) Overseas Development Institute Manchester Metropolitan University University of Aberdeen University of Exeter School of GeoSciences University of Edinburgh University of Cambridge Department of Environment and Geography University of York Department of Geography University College London Imperial College School of Geography Earth & Environmental Sciences Birmingham Institute of Forest Research University of Birmingham University of Plymouth Geography College of Life and Environmental Sciences University of Exeter Lancaster Environment Centre Lancaster University University of Edinburgh School of Biology University of Leeds Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh CENAREST & ANPN & Stirling University University of Bristol School of Biological Sciences Department of Plant Sciences University of Cambridge Living with Lake Centre Laurentian University Royal Botanic Gardens Kew The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds centre for Conservation Science Environmental Change Institute School of Geography and the Environment University of Oxford UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology School of Geography and the Environment University of Oxford The Royal Botanic Gardens Department of Geography and Environmental Science University of Dundee School of Biological Sciences University of Southampton University of East Anglia Stirling University School of Earth and Environment University of Leeds Department of Plant & Soil Science School of Biological Sciences University of Aberdeen, Cruickshank Building Institute for Transport Studies University of Leeds UK Research & Innovation University of Nottingham University of Bangor Center for Tropical Research Institute of the Environment and Sustainability University of California Center for Tropical Conservation Nicholas School of the Environment Duke University Ecology and Evolutionary Biology University of Michigan Saint Louis Zoo Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology Harvard University Center for Global Discovery and Conservation Science Arizona State University Wildlife Conservation Society – Programme Congo Woods Hole Research Center The University of Michigan Herbarium Nicholas School of the Environment National Park Service University of California ForestGEO Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute University of Texas at Austin Smithsonian Institute Washington University in Saint Louis Center for Conservation and Sustainable Development at the Missouri Botanical Garden Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute Smithsonian Institution Forest Global Earth Observatory (ForestGEO) Forest Global Earth Observatory (ForestGEO) Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute George Mason University Missouri Botanical Garden Broward County Parks and Recreation Nova Southeastern University Science and Education The Field Museum Department of Biology Boston University Wake Forest University Department of Geographical Sciences University of Maryland San Diego Zoo Institute for Conservation Research Biology Department Washington State University Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies Columbia University Department of Environmental Science Policy and Management University of California Berkeley School of Earth Sciences and Environmental Sustainability Northern Arizona University Department of Geography and the Environment University of Texas at Austin UNELLEZ-Guanare Programa de Ciencias del Agro y el Mar Herbario Universitario (PORT) Ci Progress GreenLife Universidad Nacional Experimental de Guayana Instituto Venezolano de Investigaciones Científicas (IVIC) Universidad de los Andes Viet Nature Conservation Centre CIRAD School of Life Sciences University of Lincoln UNESP - São Paulo State University Instituto de Biociências Universidade Estadual Paulista Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation: 1656 FAPESP: 2012/51509-8 FAPESP: 2012/51872-5 Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Goiás: 2017/10267000329 European Research Council: 291585 Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation: 5349 European Research Council: 758873 Belgian Federal Science Policy Office: BR/132/A1/AFRIFORD Belgian Federal Science Policy Office: BR/143/A3/HERBAXYLAREDD Vlaamse Interuniversitaire Raad: CD2018TEA459A103 CNPq: CNPq/PPBio/457602/2012-0 National Science Foundation: DEB 1754647 Natural Environment Research Council: E/M0022021/1 Royal Society: ICA/R1/180100 Natural Environment Research Council: NE/D005590/1 European Research Council: NE/F005806/1 Natural Environment Research Council: NE/F005806/1 FAPESP: NE/K016431/1 Natural Environment Research Council: NE/N004655/1 FAPESP: NE/N012542/1 Royal Society: NE/P008755/1 FAPESP: NE/S011811/1 National Geographic Society: NE/T01279X/1 CNPq: PELD/441244/2016-5 Belgian Federal Science Policy Office: SD/AR/01A/COBIMFO

Tropical soils contain huge carbon stocks, which climate warming is projected to reduce by stimulating organic matter decomposition, creating a positive feedback that will promote further warming. Models predict that the loss of carbon from warming soils will be mediated by microbial physiology, but no empirical data are available on the response of soil carbon and microbial physiology to warming in tropical forests, which dominate the terrestrial carbon cycle. Here we show that warming caused a considerable loss of soil carbon that was enhanced by associated changes in microbial physiology. By translocating soils across a 3000 m elevation gradient in tropical forest, equivalent to a temperature change of ± 15 °C, we found that soil carbon declined over 5 years by 4% in response to each 1 °C increase in temperature. The total loss of carbon was related to its original quantity and lability, and was enhanced by changes in microbial physiology including increased microbial carbon‐use‐efficiency, shifts in community composition towards microbial taxa associated with warmer temperatures, and increased activity of hydrolytic enzymes. These findings suggest that microbial feedbacks will cause considerable loss of carbon from tropical forest soils in response to predicted climatic warming this century.

Durante el período 2000 – 2016, se llevaron a cabo 15 inventarios biológicos en áreas remotas en el pie de monte andino y el llano amazónico del Perú. En estos inventarios, 27 botánicos colectaron un total de 9397 especímenes de plantas vasculares fértiles. Hasta finales del 2017, más de la mitad de estos especímenes se han identificado a nivel de especie, de los cuales 64 especies y 2 géneros (Dicorynia y Monopteryx) representan nuevos registros para la flora del Perú. Si esta tasa de novedades se mantiene, el número de registros nuevos en el material de los inventarios podría aumentar, lo cual nos indica que aún queda mucho por descubrir en la flora andino-amazónica del Perú.

The functional traits of organisms within multispecies assemblages regulate biodiversity effects on ecosystem functioning. Yet how traits should assemble to boost multiple ecosystem functions simultaneously (multifunctionality) remains poorly explored. In a multibiome litter experiment covering most of the global variation in leaf trait spectra, we showed that three dimensions of functional diversity (dispersion, rarity, and evenness) explained up to 66% of variations in multifunctionality, although the dominant species and their traits remained an important predictor. While high dispersion impeded multifunctionality, increasing the evenness among functionally dissimilar species was a key dimension to promote higher multifunctionality and to reduce the abundance of plant pathogens. Because too-dissimilar species could have negative effects on ecosystems, our results highlight the need for not only diverse but also functionally even assemblages to promote multifunctionality. The effect of functionally rare species strongly shifted from positive to negative depending on their trait differences with the dominant species. Simultaneously managing the dispersion, evenness, and rarity in multispecies assemblages could be used to design assemblages aimed at maximizing multifunctionality independently of the biome, the identity of dominant species, or the range of trait values considered. Functional evenness and rarity offer promise to improve the management of terrestrial ecosystems and to limit plant disease risks., This work was funded by the British Ecological Society (SR17\1297 grant, PI: P.G.-P.) and by the European Research Council (ERC Grant Agreement #647038, BIODESERT, PI: F.T.M.). Y.L.B.-P. was supported by a Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions Individual Fellowship within the European Program Horizon 2020 (DRYFUN Project #656035). H.S. was supported by a Juan de la Cierva-Formación grant from the Span ish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (FJCI-2015-26782). F.T.M. and S.A. were supported from the Generalitat Valenciana (CIDEGENT/ 2018/041). M.D. was supported by a Formación del Profesorado Universi tario (FPU) fellowship from the Spanish Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports (FPU-15/00392). S.A. was supported by the Spanish MINECO for financial support via the DIGGING_DEEPER project through the 2015 to 2016 BiodivERsA3/FACCE‐JPI joint call for research proposals. B.K.S. re search on biodiversity-ecosystem functions was supported by the Austra lian Research Council (DP170104634 and DP190103714). P.G.-P. was supported by a Ramón y Cajal grant from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (RYC2018-024766-I). R.M. was supported by MINECO (Grants CGL2014-56567-R and CGL2017-83855-R)

Understanding how evolutionary constraints shape the elevational distributions of tree lineages provides valuable insight into the future of tropical montane forests under global change. With narrow elevational ranges, high taxonomic turnover, frequent habitat specialization, and exceptional levels of endemism, tropical montane forests and trees are predicted to be highly sensitive to environmental change. Using plot census data from a gradient traversing > 3,000 m in elevation on the Amazonian flank of the Peruvian Andes, we employ phylogenetic approaches to assess the influence of evolutionary heritage on distribution trends of trees at the genus‐level. We find that closely related lineages tend to occur at similar mean elevations, with sister genera pairs occurring a mean 254 m in elevation closer to each other than the mean elevational difference between non‐sister genera pairs. We also demonstrate phylogenetic clustering both above and below 1,750 m a.s.l, corresponding roughly to the cloud‐base ecotone. Belying these general trends, some lineages occur across many different elevations. However, these highly plastic lineages are not phylogenetically clustered. Overall, our findings suggest that tropical montane forests are home to unique tree lineage diversity, constrained by their evolutionary heritage and vulnerable to substantial losses under environmental changes, such as rising temperatures or an upward shift of the cloud‐base.

Andean tropical montane forests (TMF) are hotspots of biodiversity that provide fundamental hydrological services as well as carbon sequestration and storage. Agroforestry systems occupy large areas in the Andes but climatic pressures, market volatility and diseases may result inagroforest abandonment, promoting secondary succession. Secondary forests are well-adapted and efficient carbon sinks whose conservation is vital to mitigate and adapt to climate change and to support biodiversity. Little is known, however, about how secondary TMF recover their aboveground biomass (AGB) and composition after abandonment. We established a 1.5 ha plot at 1780 masl on a 30-year old abandoned agroforest and compared it against two control forest plots at similar elevations. Agroforestry legacies influenced AGB leading to far lower stocks (42.3 +/- 5.4-59.6 +/- 7.9 Mg ha(-1) using allometric equations) than those expected after 30 years (106 +/- 33 Mg ha(-1)) based on IPCC standard growth rates for secondary montane forests. This suggests a regional overestimation of mitigation potentials when using IPCC standards. Satellite-derived AGB largely overestimated our plot values (179 +/- 27.3 Mg ha(-1)). Secondary growth rates (1.41-2.0 Mg ha(-1) yr(-1) for DBH >= 10 cm) indicate recovery times of ca. 69 to 97 years to reach average control AGB values (137 +/- 12.3 Mg ha(-1)). This is 26 years above the average residence time of montane forests at our elevation (71 +/- 1.91 years) suggesting a non-recovery or far slower recovery to control AGB values. Three variables appear to define this outcome compared to the control plots: lower DBH (15.8 +/- 5.9 cm vs 19.8 +/- 11.0 cm), lower basal area (12.67 +/- 0.7 vs 28.03 +/- 1.5 m(2) ha(-1)) and higher abundance of lighter-wood tree genera (0.46 +/- 0.10 vs 0.57 +/- 0.11 gr cm(3)) such as Inga, a common shade-tree in Andean agroforests. With 3.2 million hectares committed to restoration, Peru needs to target currently neglected TMF recovery schemes to support biodiversity, water and carbon storage and fulfill its international commitments. This work was supported by a CONCYTEC (Peru) -World Bank grant (Contract 011-2019-FONDECYT-BM-INC-INV). In Huayopata we thank the Cuba and Povea families for their hospitality and help during field work.

Tropical forest ecosystems are undergoing rapid transformation as a result of changing environmental conditions and direct human impacts. However, we cannot adequately understand, monitor or simulate tropical ecosystem responses to environmental changes without capturing the high diversity of plant functional characteristics in the species-rich tropics. Failure to do so can oversimplify our understanding of ecosystems responses to environmental disturbances. Innovative methods and data products are needed to track changes in functional trait composition in tropical forest ecosystems through time and space. This study aimed to track key functional traits by coupling Sentinel-2 derived variables with a unique data set of precisely located in-situ measurements of canopy functional traits collected from 2434 individual trees across the tropics using a standardised methodology. The functional traits and vegetation censuses were collected from 47 field plots in the countries of Australia, Brazil, Peru, Gabon, Ghana, and Malaysia, which span the four tropical continents. The spatial positions of individual trees above 10 cm diameter at breast height (DBH) were mapped and their canopy size and shape recorded. Using geo-located tree canopy size and shape data, community-level trait values were estimated at the same spatial resolution as Sentinel-2 imagery (i.e. 10 m pixels). We then used the Geographic Random Forest (GRF) to model and predict functional traits across our plots. We demonstrate that key plant functional traits can be accurately predicted across the tropicsusing the high spatial and spectral resolution of Sentinel-2 imagery in conjunction with climatic and soil information. Image textural parameters were found to be key components of remote sensing information for predicting functional traits across tropical forests and woody savannas. Leaf thickness (R2 = 0.52) obtained the highest prediction accuracy among the morphological and structural traits and leaf carbon content (R2 = 0.70) and maximum rates of photosynthesis (R2 = 0.67) obtained the highest prediction accuracy for leaf chemistry and photosynthesis related traits, respectively. Overall, the highest prediction accuracy was obtained for leaf chemistry and photosynthetic traits in comparison to morphological and structural traits. Our approach offers new opportunities for mapping, monitoring and understanding biodiversity and ecosystem change in the most species-rich ecosystems on Earth.

SummaryBiogeographic events occurring in the deep past can contribute to the structure of modern ecological communities. However, little is known about how the emergence of environmental gradients shape the evolution of species that underlie community assembly. In this study, we address how the creation of novel environments lead to community assembly via two non-mutually exclusive processes: 1) the immigration and ecological sorting of pre-adapted clades (ISPC), and 2) recent adaptive diversification (RAD). We study these processes in the context of the elevational gradient created by the uplift of the Central Andes.We develop a novel approach and method based on the decomposition of species turnover into within- and among-clade components, where clades correspond to lineages that originated before mountain uplift. Effects of ISPC and RAD can be inferred from how components of turnover change with elevation. We test our approach using data from over 500 Andean forest plots.We found that species turnover between communities at different elevations is dominated by the replacement of clades that originated before the uplift of the Central Andes.Our results suggest that immigration and sorting of clades pre-adapted to montane habitats is the primary mechanism shaping communities across elevations.

3-hydroxy fatty acids (3-OH FAs) with 10 to 18 C atoms are membrane lipids mainly produced by Gram-negative bacteria. They have been recently proposed as temperature and pH proxies in terrestrial settings. Nevertheless, the existing correlations between pH/temperature and indices derived from 3-OH FA distribution (RIAN, RAN15 and RAN17) are based on a small soil dataset (ca. 70 samples) and only applicable regionally. The aim of this study was to investigate the applicability of 3-OH FAs as mean annual air temperature (MAAT) and pH proxies at the global level. This was achieved using an extended soil dataset of 168 topsoils distributed worldwide, covering a wide range of temperatures (5 °C to 30 °C) and pH (3 to 8). The response of 3-OH FAs to temperature and pH was compared to that of established branched GDGT-based proxies (MBT'5Me/CBT). Strong linear relationships between 3-OH FA-derived indices (RAN15, RAN17 and RIAN) and MAAT/pH could only be obtained locally, for some of the individual transects. This suggests that these indices cannot be used as paleoproxies at the global scale using simple linear regression models, in contrast with the MBT'5Me and CBT. However, strong global correlations between 3-OH FA relative abundances and MAAT/pH were shown by using other algorithms (multiple linear regression, k-NN and random forest models). The applicability of the k-NN and random forest models for paleotemperature reconstruction was tested and compared with the MAAT record from a Chinese speleothem. The calibration based on the random forest model appeared to be the most robust. It showed similar trends with previously available records and highlighted known climatic events poorly visible when using local 3-OH FA calibrations. Altogether, these results demonstrate the potential of 3-OH FAs as paleoproxies in terrestrial settings.

Forests are integral to global carbon cycling but are threatened by anthropogenic degradation and climate change. Assessing this global threat has been hindered by a lack of clear, flexible, and easy-to-use productivity models along with a lack of functional trait and productivity data for parameterizing and testing those models. Current productivity models are either extremely complex requiring up to hundreds of parameters, many sub-models, and considerable computational expense or rely on statistical trait-growth relationships that can be hard to extrapolate to new systems or climates. Here we provide a simple alternative: a remote sensing canopy functional model (RS-CFM) that uses remotely-sensed foliar traits and canopy structure data to efficiently map productivity at high-resolution and large spatial scales. We test this model by quantifying net primary productivity (NPP) at 0.01-ha resolution in 30,040 hectares of Peruvian tropical rainforest along a 3,322-m Amazon-to-Andes elevation gradient. Our model predicts local NPP and elevational shifts in NPP much more accurately and in greater detail than a prominent alternative method—NASA’s MODIS NPP product. Furthermore, we show how NPP estimates depend on light competition and identify the appropriate spatial resolution for remote productivity estimation. Our framework opens up possibilities to fully harness remote sensing data and reliably scale up from traits to map regional or global productivity in a more direct, efficient, and cost-effective manner.

The sizes and shapes of tree crowns are of fundamental importance in ecology, yet understanding the forces that determine them remains elusive. A cardinal question facing ecologists is the degree to which general and non-specific versus ecological and context-dependent processes are responsible for shaping tree crowns. Here, we test this question for the first time across diverse tropical ecosystems. Using trees from 20 plots varying in elevation, precipitation, and ecosystem type (savanna-forest transitions) across the paleo- and neo-tropics, we test the relationship between crown dimensions and tree size. By analyzing these scaling relationships across environmental gradients, biogeographic regions, and phylogenetic distance, we extend Metabolic Scaling Theory (MST) predictions to include how local selective pressures shape variation in crown dimensions. Across all sites, we find strong agreement between mean trends and MST predictions for the scaling of crown size and shape, but large variation around the mean. While MST explained approximately half of the observed variation in tree crown dimensions, we find that local, ecosystem, and phylogenetic predictors account for the half of the residual variation. Crown scaling does not change significantly across regions, but does change across ecosystem types, where savanna tree crowns grow more quickly with tree girth than forest tree crowns. Crowns of legumes were wider and more voluminous than those of other taxa. Thus, while MST can accurately describe the central tendency of tree crown size, local ecological conditions and evolutionary history appear to modify the scaling of crown shape. Importantly, our extension of MST incorporating these differences accounts for the mechanisms driving variation in the scaling of crown dimensions across the tropics. We present allometric equations for the prediction of crown dimensions across tropical ecosystems. These results are critical when scaling the function of individual trees to larger spatial scales or incorporating the size and shape of tree crowns in global biogeochemical models.