Patricia Álvarez-Loayza
A5036395534- Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies
- Forest ecology and management
- Plant and animal studies
- Forest Management and Policy
- Species Distribution and Climate Change
- Plant Water Relations and Carbon Dynamics
- Conservation, Biodiversity, and Resource Management
- Wildlife Ecology and Conservation
- Tree-ring climate responses
- Fire effects on ecosystems
- Plant Pathogens and Fungal Diseases
- Mycorrhizal Fungi and Plant Interactions
- Rangeland and Wildlife Management
- International Relations in Latin America
- Forest Ecology and Biodiversity Studies
- Ecosystem dynamics and resilience
- Banana Cultivation and Research
- Economic and Environmental Valuation
- Evolution and Paleontology Studies
- Plant Parasitism and Resistance
- Animal Ecology and Behavior Studies
- Forest Insect Ecology and Management
- Environmental and Cultural Studies in Latin America and Beyond
- Environmental Conservation and Management
- Animal and Plant Science Education
Duke University
2014-2024
Field Museum of Natural History
2017-2024
Duke University Hospital
2021-2023
University of New Hampshire
2020-2021
Conservation International
2021
Organization For Tropical Studies
2015-2019
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
2008-2011
Universidad Nacional Agraria La Molina
2008
Rutgers Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights
2007
The biodiversity-productivity relationship (BPR) is foundational to our understanding of the global extinction crisis and its impacts on ecosystem functioning. Understanding BPR critical for accurate valuation effective conservation biodiversity. Using ground-sourced data from 777,126 permanent plots, spanning 44 countries most terrestrial biomes, we reveal a globally consistent positive concave-down BPR, showing that continued biodiversity loss would result in an accelerating decline forest...
Significance People are fascinated by the amazing diversity of tropical forests and will be surprised to learn that robust estimates number tree species lacking. We show there at least 40,000, but possibly more than 53,000, in tropics, contrast only 124 across temperate Europe. Almost all restricted their respective continents, Indo-Pacific region appears as species-rich America, with each these two regions being almost five times rich African forests. Our study shows most extremely rare,...
Abstract Tropical forests are global centres of biodiversity and carbon storage. Many tropical countries aspire to protect forest fulfil climate mitigation policy targets, but the conservation strategies needed achieve these two functions depend critically on tree diversity-carbon storage relationship. Assessing this relationship is challenging due scarcity inventories where stocks in aboveground biomass species identifications have been simultaneously robustly quantified. Here, we compile a...
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...
Abstract The Amazon Basin has experienced more variable climate over the last decade, with a severe and widespread drought in 2005 causing large basin‐wide losses of biomass. A similar climatological magnitude occurred again 2010; however, there been no ground‐based evaluation effects on vegetation. We examine to what extent 2010 affected forest dynamics using observations mortality growth from an extensive plot network. find that during interval, forests did not gain biomass (net change:...
Extinction rates in the Anthropocene are three orders of magnitude higher than background and disproportionately occur tropics, home half world's species. Despite global efforts to combat tropical species extinctions, lack high-quality, objective information on biodiversity has hampered quantitative evaluation conservation strategies. In particular, scarcity population-level monitoring forests stymied assessment outcomes, such as status trends animal populations protected areas. Here, we...
Abstract Forests are a substantial terrestrial carbon sink, but anthropogenic changes in land use and climate have considerably reduced the scale of this system 1 . Remote-sensing estimates to quantify losses from global forests 2–5 characterized by considerable uncertainty we lack comprehensive ground-sourced evaluation benchmark these estimates. Here combine several 6 satellite-derived approaches 2,7,8 evaluate forest potential outside agricultural urban lands. Despite regional variation,...
Determining the drivers of non-native plant invasions is critical for managing native ecosystems and limiting spread invasive species1,2. Tree in particular have been relatively overlooked, even though they potential to transform economies3,4. Here, leveraging global tree databases5-7, we explore how phylogenetic functional diversity communities, human pressure environment influence establishment species subsequent invasion severity. We find that anthropogenic factors are key predicting...
Abstract The tropical forest carbon sink is known to be drought sensitive, but it unclear which forests are the most vulnerable extreme events. Forests with hotter and drier baseline conditions may protected by prior adaptation, or more because they operate closer physiological limits. Here we report that in South American climates experienced greatest impacts of 2015–2016 El Niño, indicating greater vulnerability temperatures drought. long-term, ground-measured tree-by-tree responses 123...
Pathogens are hypothesized to play an important role in the maintenance of tropical forest plant species richness. Notably, richness may be promoted by incomplete filling niche space due interactions host populations with their pathogens. A potentially group pathogens endophytic fungi, which asymptomatically colonize plants and diverse abundant ecosystems. Endophytes alter competitive abilities individuals improve fitness under stress, but also become pathogenic. Little is known impacts...
The carbon sink capacity of tropical forests is substantially affected by tree mortality. However, the main drivers death remain largely unknown. Here we present a pan-Amazonian assessment how and why trees die, analysing over 120,000 representing > 3800 species from 189 long-term RAINFOR forest plots. While mortality rates vary greatly Amazon-wide, on average are as likely to die standing they broken or uprooted-modes with different ecological consequences. Species-level growth rate single...
Carnivores have long been used as model organisms to examine mechanisms that allow coexistence among ecologically similar species. Interactions between carnivores, including competition and predation, comprise important processes regulating local community structure diversity. We use data from an intensive camera-trapping monitoring program across eight Neotropical forest sites describe the patterns of spatiotemporal organization a guild five sympatric cat species: jaguar (Panthera onca),...
Abstract Defaunation is causing declines of large-seeded animal-dispersed trees in tropical forests worldwide, but whether and how these will affect carbon storage across this biome unclear. Here we show, using a pan-tropical data set, that simulated have contrasting effects on aboveground stocks Earth’s forests. In our simulations, African, American South Asian forests, which high proportions species, consistently show losses (2–12%), Southeast Australian where there are more abiotically...
1. The operation of 'negative density-dependence' in seedling cohorts tropical forests is empirically well-established, but only at a phenomenological level that leaves open the question why seedlings conspecific with an overtopping parent tree experience higher mortality than heterospecifics. distinction theoretical importance because distinct mechanisms are involved. 2. We consider two most debated possibilities: resulting from classical Lotka–Volterra density-dependence and action biotic...
Abstract Aim Water availability is the major driver of tropical forest structure and dynamics. Most research has focused on impacts climatic water availability, whereas remarkably little known about influence table depth excess soil processes. Nevertheless, given that plants take up from soil, supply are likely to be modulated by conditions. Location Lowland Amazonian forests. Time period 1971–2019. Methods We used 344 long‐term inventory plots distributed across Amazonia analyse effects...
Abstract 1. Biodiversity is an important component of natural ecosystems, with higher species richness often correlating increase in ecosystem productivity. Yet, this relationship varies substantially across environments, typically becoming less pronounced at high levels richness. However, alone cannot reflect all properties a community, including community evenness, which may mediate the between biodiversity and If evenness correlates negatively forests globally, then greater number not...
Abstract Understanding what controls global leaf type variation in trees is crucial for comprehending their role terrestrial ecosystems, including carbon, water and nutrient dynamics. Yet our understanding of the factors influencing forest types remains incomplete, leaving us uncertain about proportions needle-leaved, broadleaved, evergreen deciduous trees. To address these gaps, we conducted a global, ground-sourced assessment leaf-type by integrating inventory data with comprehensive form...
1. The term 'dispersal limitation' represents two distinct component processes: the number of seeds produced (fecundity) and spatial pattern seed rain (distribution). We present a quantitative evaluation these processes dispersal limitation for tropical forest tree community. 2. Using regularly spaced grid 289 traps (0.5 m2 each), we monitored into 1.44 ha upper Amazonian floodplain 6 years whilst concurrently monitoring sapling recruitment in 0.81-ha subplot centred within seed-trapping...
Abstract Treefall gaps have long been a central feature of discussions about the maintenance tree diversity in both temperate and tropical forests. Gaps expose parts forest floor to direct sunlight create distinctive microenvironment that can favor recruitment into community so‐called gap pioneers. This traditional view enjoys strong empirical support, yet has cast doubt by much‐cited article claiming are inherently “neutral” their contribution dynamics. We present concurrent data on...
Tall canopy trees produce many more seeds than do understory treelets, yet, on average, both classes of achieve the same lifetime fitness. Using concurrent data seedfall (8 years) and sapling recruitment (12 from a long‐established tree plot at Cocha Cashu Biological Station in Peru, we show that 40‐m must roughly 13 times mass to generate as 5‐m treelet. Mature height accounted for 41% variance seed per recruit simple univariate regression, whereas multivariate model included intrinsic...
The conservation of tropical forest carbon stocks offers the opportunity to curb climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation and simultaneously conserve biodiversity. However, there has been considerable debate about extent which stock will provide benefits biodiversity in part because whether forests that contain high density their aboveground biomass also animal diversity is unknown. Here, we empirically examined medium large bodied ground-dwelling mammal bird...
The emergence of alternative stable states in forest systems has significant implications for the functioning and structure terrestrial biosphere, yet empirical evidence remains scarce. Here, we combine global biodiversity observations simulations to test presence evergreen deciduous types. We reveal a bimodal distribution leaf types across temperate regions Northern Hemisphere that cannot be explained by environment alone, suggesting signatures states. Moreover, empirically demonstrate...
Tree growth and longevity trade-offs fundamentally shape the terrestrial carbon balance. Yet, we lack a unified understanding of how such vary across world’s forests. By mapping life history traits for wide range species Americas, reveal considerable variation in expectancies from 10 centimeters diameter (ranging 1.3 to 3195 years) show that pace trees can be accurately classified into four demographic functional types. We found emergent patterns strength between temperature gradient....