AI Article Synopsis
- - Tropical forests in equatorial Africa are crucial for the global carbon cycle, but there has been insufficient biometric data on their productivity levels (GPP and NPP).
- - A study conducted on 14 one-hectare plots in West Africa revealed that these forests generally exhibit higher productivity and lower carbon use efficiency compared to a similar aridity gradient in the Amazon.
- - The research highlighted that the highest reported NPP and GPP for intact forests occur at a medium-aridity site in Ghana, with findings indicating that existing data models underestimate forest productivity in both regions.
Article Abstract
Tropical forests cover large areas of equatorial Africa and play a substantial role in the global carbon cycle. However, there has been a lack of biometric measurements to understand the forests' gross and net primary productivity (GPP, NPP) and their allocation. Here we present a detailed field assessment of the carbon budget of multiple forest sites in Africa, by monitoring 14 one-hectare plots along an aridity gradient in Ghana, West Africa. When compared with an equivalent aridity gradient in Amazonia, the studied West African forests generally had higher productivity and lower carbon use efficiency (CUE). The West African aridity gradient consistently shows the highest NPP, CUE, GPP, and autotrophic respiration at a medium-aridity site, Bobiri. Notably, NPP and GPP of the site are the highest yet reported anywhere for intact forests. Widely used data products substantially underestimate productivity when compared to biometric measurements in Amazonia and Africa. Our analysis suggests that the high productivity of the African forests is linked to their large GPP allocation to canopy and semi-deciduous characteristics.
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| http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11009382 | PMC |
| http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-47202-x | DOI Listing |
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