Anthony Di Fiore
A5072453406- Primate Behavior and Ecology
- Animal Behavior and Reproduction
- Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies
- Animal Vocal Communication and Behavior
- Wildlife Ecology and Conservation
- Plant and animal studies
- Forest ecology and management
- Plant Water Relations and Carbon Dynamics
- Amphibian and Reptile Biology
- Conservation, Biodiversity, and Resource Management
- Species Distribution and Climate Change
- Evolution and Paleontology Studies
- Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior
- Evolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior
- Genetic diversity and population structure
- Bat Biology and Ecology Studies
- Plant Diversity and Evolution
- Gut microbiota and health
- Genomics and Phylogenetic Studies
- Evolutionary Game Theory and Cooperation
- Amazonian Archaeology and Ethnohistory
- Child and Animal Learning Development
- Mosquito-borne diseases and control
- Zoonotic diseases and public health
- Tree-ring climate responses
The University of Texas at Austin
2016-2025
Universidad San Francisco de Quito
2018-2025
University of Edinburgh
2016-2024
Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh
2024
University of California, Davis
1994-2023
George Washington University
2022-2023
Georgia State University
2022-2023
San Diego State University
2022-2023
Association of American Universities
2023
Hudson Institute
2022
Amazon forests are a key but poorly understood component of the global carbon cycle. If, as anticipated, they dry this century, might accelerate climate change through losses and changed surface energy balances. We used records from multiple long-term monitoring plots across Amazonia to assess forest responses intense 2005 drought, possible analog future events. Affected lost biomass, reversing large sink, with greatest impacts observed where season was unusually intense. Relative pre-2005...
The vast extent of the Amazon Basin has historically restricted study its tree communities to local and regional scales. Here, we provide empirical data on commonness, rarity, richness lowland species across entire Guiana Shield (Amazonia), collected in 1170 plots all major forest types. Extrapolations suggest that Amazonia harbors roughly 16,000 species, which just 227 (1.4%) account for half trees. Most these are habitat specialists only dominant one or two regions basin. We discuss some...
Renewed interest in fission‐fusion dynamics is due to the recognition that such may create unique challenges for social interaction and distinctive selective pressures acting on underlying communicative cognitive abilities. New frameworks integrating current knowledge emerge from a fundamental rethinking of term “fission‐fusion” away its general use as label particular modal type system (i.e., “fission‐fusion societies”). Specifically, because degree spatial temporal cohesion group members...
Microsatellite loci are highly informative genetic markers useful for population studies, linkage mapping and parentage determination. Methods to identify novel microsatellite commonly use subtractive hybridization enrich small-insert genomic libraries repeat sequences. A critical step in enrichment is attachment of an oligonucleotide linker DNA fragments so that repeat-containing sequences can be recovered by PCR cloning. Current linkers ligation methods rely on single restriction enzymes...
Abstract Uncertainty in biomass estimates is one of the greatest limitations to models carbon flux tropical forests. Previous comparisons field‐based aboveground (AGB) trees greater than 10 cm diameter within Amazonia have been limited by paucity data for western Amazon forests, and use site‐specific methods estimate from inventory data. In addition, role regional variation stand‐level wood specific gravity has not previously considered. Using 56 mature forest plots across Amazonia, we...
Abstract. Forest structure and dynamics vary across the Amazon Basin in an east-west gradient coincident with variations soil fertility geology. This has resulted hypothesis that may play important role explaining Basin-wide forest biomass, growth stem turnover rates. Soil samples were collected a total of 59 different plots analysed for exchangeable cations, carbon, nitrogen pH, several phosphorus fractions likely plant availability also quantified. Physical properties additionally examined...
The extent to which pre-Columbian societies altered Amazonian landscapes is hotly debated. We performed a basin-wide analysis of impacts on forests by overlaying known archaeological sites in Amazonia with the distributions and abundances 85 woody species domesticated peoples. Domesticated are five times more likely than nondomesticated be hyperdominant. Across basin, relative abundance richness increase around sites. In southwestern eastern Amazonia, distance strongly influences species....
Abstract The net primary production of tropical forests and its partitioning between long‐lived carbon pools (wood) shorter‐lived (leaves, fine roots) are considerable importance in the global cycle. However, these terms have only been studied at a handful field sites, with no consistent calculation methodology. Here we calculate above‐ground coarse wood productivity for 104 forest plots lowland New World humid forests, using methodology that incorporates corrections spatial variations...
A previous study by Phillips et al . of changes in the biomass permanent sample plots Amazonian forests was used to infer presence a regional carbon sink. However, these results generated vigorous debate about sampling and methodological issues. Therefore we present new analysis change old–growth forest using updated inventory data. We find that across 59 sites, above–ground dry trees are more than 10 cm diameter (AGB) has increased since plot establishment 1.22 ± 0.43 Mg per hectare year...
Previous work has shown that tree turnover, biomass and large liana densities have increased in mature tropical forest plots the late twentieth century. These results point to a concerted shift ecological processes may already be having significant impacts on terrestrial carbon stocks, fluxes biodiversity. However, findings proved controversial, partly because rather limited number of permanent been monitored for short periods. The aim this paper is characterize regional–scale patterns ‘tree...
Abstract. Aboveground tropical tree biomass and carbon storage estimates commonly ignore height (H). We estimate the effect of incorporating H on tropics-wide forest in 327 plots across four continents using 42 656 diameter measurements harvested trees from 20 sites to answer following questions: 1. What is best H-model form geographic unit include models minimise site-level uncertainty destructive biomass? 2. To what extent does including derived (1) reduce all plots? 3. accounting for have...
Abstract Most of the planet's diversity is concentrated in tropics, which includes many regions undergoing rapid climate change. Yet, while climate‐induced biodiversity changes are widely documented elsewhere, few studies have addressed this issue for lowland tropical ecosystems. Here we investigate whether floristic and functional composition intact Amazonian forests been changing by evaluating records from 106 long‐term inventory plots spanning 30 years. We analyse three traits that...
The threats facing Ecuador's Yasuní National Park are emblematic of those confronting the greater western Amazon, one world's last high-biodiversity wilderness areas. Notably, country's second largest untapped oil reserves--called "ITT"--lie beneath an intact, remote section park. conservation significance may weigh heavily in upcoming state-level and international decisions, including whether to develop or invest alternatives.
Recent studies increasingly note the effect of captivity or built environment on microbiome humans and other animals. As symbiotic microbes are essential to many aspects biology (e.g., digestive immune functions), it is important understand how lifestyle differences can impact microbiome, and, consequently, health hosts. Animals living in experience a range changes that may influence gut bacteria, such as diet changes, treatments, reduced contact with individuals, species variable...
Abstract Aim Capuchin monkey species are widely distributed across Central and South America. Morphological studies consistently divide the clade into robust gracile forms, which show extensive sympatry in Amazon Basin. We use genetic data to test whether Miocene or Plio‐Pleistocene processes may explain capuchin species’ present distributions, consider three possible scenarios widespread sympatry. Location The Neotropics, including Atlantic Coastal Forest. Methods sequenced 12S ribosomal...
The accurate mapping of forest carbon stocks is essential for understanding the global cycle, assessing emissions from deforestation, and rational land-use planning. Remote sensing (RS) currently key tool this purpose, but RS does not estimate vegetation biomass directly, thus may miss significant spatial variations in structure. We test stated accuracy pantropical maps using a large independent field dataset.Tropical forests Amazon basin. permanent archive plot data can be accessed at:...
Thermal sensitivity of tropical trees A key uncertainty in climate change models is the thermal forests and how this value might influence carbon fluxes. Sullivan et al. measured stocks fluxes permanent forest plots distributed globally. This synthesis plot networks across climatic biogeographic gradients shows that dominated by high daytime temperatures. extreme condition depresses growth rates shortens time resides ecosystem killing under hot, dry conditions. The effect temperature worse...
Abstract While Amazonian forests are extraordinarily diverse, the abundance of trees is skewed strongly towards relatively few ‘hyperdominant’ species. In addition to their diversity, a key component global carbon cycle, assimilating and storing more than any other ecosystem on Earth. Here we ask, using unique data set 530 forest plots, if functions producing woody concentrated in small number tree species, whether most abundant species also dominate cycling, dominant characterized by...
Within the tropics, species richness of tree communities is strongly and positively associated with precipitation. Previous research has suggested that this macroecological pattern driven by negative effect water‐stress on physiological processes most species. This implies range limits taxa are defined their ability to occur under dry conditions, thus in terms distributions predicts a nested distribution from wet areas. However, ‘dry‐tolerance’ hypothesis yet be adequately tested at large...
Trees structure the Earth's most biodiverse ecosystem, tropical forests. The vast number of tree species presents a formidable challenge to understanding these forests, including their response environmental change, as very little is known about species. A focus on common may circumvent this challenge. Here we investigate abundance patterns using inventory data 1,003,805 trees with trunk diameters at least 10 cm across 1,568 locations