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Lookup NU author(s): Professor Marion PfeiferORCiD
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).
© 2024 Botanical Society of Scotland and Taylor & Francis. Background: Above-ground biomass (AGB) and its temporal dynamics are key parameters of forest ecosystems, related to their resilience and capacity to fix atmospheric carbon. AGB is related to species richness, composition, forest structure, soils and climate. In human-modified landscapes, fragmentation and human pressure may change the nature of these relationships. Aims: Our aim was to quantify how species richness and composition, leaf area index, and edge effect were related to biomass stocks and growth in fragmented sub-tropical secondary forests. Methods: We tested the relationship between leaf area index, tree species richness and composition, edge effect and AGB stocks in secondary forest stands in the Atlantic Forest using multiple linear models on data from 104 sites. Results: Our results show that biomass stocks were related to species richness, distance to forest edge and the interaction of both (R2 = 0.25; p < 0.05). Biomass change showed positive relationships with pioneer species richness and distance to edge, and negative relationship with the interaction of total species richness and distance to edge (R2 = 0.15; p < 0.05). Conclusion: Edge effect can affect AGB dynamics directly and indirectly, by weakening the positive effects of species richness and composition on biomass. AGB loss at some sites suggests that some fragments are under chronic disturbance or may be experiencing delayed mortality due to fragmentation.
Author(s): da Silva DA, Vibrans AC, Pfeifer M
Publication type: Article
Publication status: Published
Journal: Plant Ecology and Diversity
Year: 2024
Pages: Epub ahead of print
Online publication date: 22/11/2024
Acceptance date: 12/11/2024
Date deposited: 13/03/2024
ISSN (print): 1755-0874
ISSN (electronic): 1755-1668
Publisher: Taylor and Francis Ltd
URL: https://doi.org/10.1080/17550874.2024.2430010
DOI: 10.1080/17550874.2024.2430010
ePrints DOI: 10.57711/4xd7-zv88
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