Journal ArticleDOI
Tropical grassy biomes: misunderstood, neglected, and under threat
Catherine L. Parr,Caroline E. R. Lehmann,Caroline E. R. Lehmann,William J. Bond,William A. Hoffmann,Alan N. Andersen +5 more
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TLDR
Threats linked to the definition of TGB, the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) and Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation schemes (REDD+), and enhanced atmospheric CO2, which may facilitate future state shifts are discussed.Abstract:
Tropical grassy biomes (TGBs) are globally extensive, provide critical ecosystem services, and influence the earth–atmosphere system. Yet, globally applied biome definitions ignore vegetation characteristics that are critical to their functioning and evolutionary history. Hence, TGB identification is inconsistent and misinterprets the ecological processes governing vegetation structure, with cascading negative consequences for biodiversity. Here, we discuss threats linked to the definition of TGB, the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) and Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation schemes (REDD+), and enhanced atmospheric CO2, which may facilitate future state shifts. TGB degradation is insidious and less visible than in forested biomes. With human reliance on TGBs and their propensity for woody change, ecology and evolutionary history are fundamental to not only the identification of TGBs, but also their management for future persistence.read more
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A human-driven decline in global burned area
Niels Andela,Niels Andela,Douglas C. Morton,Louis Giglio,Yang Chen,G. R. van der Werf,Prasad S. Kasibhatla,Ruth DeFries,G. J. Collatz,Stijn Hantson,Silvia Kloster,Dominique Bachelet,Matthew Forrest,Gitta Lasslop,Fang Li,Stéphane Mangeon,Joe R. Melton,Chao Yue,James T. Randerson +18 more
TL;DR: Assessing long-term fire trends using multiple satellite data sets found that global burned area declined by 24.3 ± 8.8% over the past 18 years, and the estimated decrease in burned area remained robust after adjusting for precipitation variability and was largest in savannas.
Journal ArticleDOI
Ecology and evolution of plant diversity in the endangered campo rupestre: a neglected conservation priority
Fernando A. O. Silveira,Daniel Negreiros,Newton P. U. Barbosa,Elise Buisson,Flávio Fonseca do Carmo,Daniel W. Carstensen,Abel Augusto Conceição,Tatiana Cornelissen,Livia Echternacht,G. Wilson Fernandes,G. Wilson Fernandes,Queila Souza Garcia,Tadeu J. Guerra,Claudia Maria Jacobi,José P. Lemos-Filho,Soizig Le Stradic,Soizig Le Stradic,Soizig Le Stradic,Leonor Patrícia Cerdeira Morellato,Frederico de Siqueira Neves,Rafael S. Oliveira,Rafael S. Oliveira,Carlos Ernesto Gonçalves Reynaud Schaefer,Pedro Lage Viana,Hans Lambers +24 more
TL;DR: It is shown that campo rupestre is fully comparable to and remarkably convergent with both fynbos and kwongkan, and fulfills the criteria for a classic OCBIL.
Journal ArticleDOI
Savanna woody encroachment is widespread across three continents
TL;DR: It is argued that the functional traits of each woody flora, specifically the N-fixing ability and architecture of woody plants, are critical to predicting encroachment over the next century and that African savannas are at high risk of widespread vegetation change.
Journal ArticleDOI
Grasslands—more important for ecosystem services than you might think
Jan Bengtsson,Jan Bengtsson,James M. Bullock,Benis N. Egoh,Benis N. Egoh,Colin S. Everson,Terry M. Everson,Timothy G. O’Connor,Patrick J. O’Farrell,Patrick J. O’Farrell,Henrik G. Smith,Regina Lindborg,Regina Lindborg +12 more
TL;DR: In this article, a comprehensive overview of ecosystem services provided by natural and semi-natural grasslands, using southern Africa (SA) and northwest Europe as case studies, respectively, is presented.
Journal ArticleDOI
The future of hyperdiverse tropical ecosystems
Jos Barlow,Filipe França,Filipe França,Toby A. Gardner,Christina C. Hicks,Gareth D. Lennox,Erika Berenguer,Erika Berenguer,Leandro Castello,Evan P. Economo,Joice Ferreira,Benoit Guénard,Cecília Gontijo Leal,Victoria J. Isaac,Alexander C. Lees,Catherine L. Parr,Catherine L. Parr,Catherine L. Parr,Shaun K. Wilson,Paul Young,Nicholas A. J. Graham +20 more
TL;DR: The immense biodiversity of tropical ecosystems is threatened by multiple interacting local and global stressors that can only be addressed by the concerted efforts of grassroots organizations, researchers, national governments and the international community.
References
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Journal ArticleDOI
Global fire emissions and the contribution of deforestation, savanna, forest, agricultural, and peat fires (1997-2009)
G. R. van der Werf,James T. Randerson,Louis Giglio,Louis Giglio,G. J. Collatz,Mingquan Mu,Prasad S. Kasibhatla,Douglas C. Morton,Ruth DeFries,Yufang Jin,T. T. van Leeuwen +10 more
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors used a revised version of the Carnegie-Ames-Stanford-Approach (CASA) biogeochemical model and improved satellite-derived estimates of area burned, fire activity, and plant productivity to calculate fire emissions for the 1997-2009 period on a 0.5° spatial resolution with a monthly time step.
Journal ArticleDOI
Tree-grass interactions in Savannas
TL;DR: Understanding of the widely observed increase in tree biomass following introduction of commercial ranching into savannas requires inclusion of interactions among browsers, grazers, and fires, and their effects on tree recruitment.
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