Convergence of bark investment according to fire and climate structures ecosystem vulnerability to future change

• DOI: 10.1111/ele.12725
• Publication Date: 2017-01-11T05:07:59Z
• Authors: Adam F. A. Pelleg...; William R. L. And...; C. E. Timothy Paine; William A. Hoffmann; Tyler Kartzinel; Sam S. Rabin; Douglas Sheil; Augusto C. Franco; Stephen W. Pacala
• Keywords: Vulnerability; Fire ecology

Fire regimes in savannas and forests are changing over much of the world. Anticipating impact these changes requires understanding how plants adapted to fire. In this study, we test whether fire imposes a broad selective force on key fire-tolerance trait, bark thickness, across 572 tree species distributed worldwide. We show that investment thick is pervasive adaptation frequently burned areas both temperate tropical regions where surface fires occur. Geographic variability thickness largely explained by annual area precipitation seasonality. Combining environmental distribution data allowed us assess vulnerability future climate conditions: rainforests especially vulnerable, whereas seasonal more robust. The strong link between provides an avenue for assessing communities demands inclusion global models.