Contrasting carbon cycle along tropical forest aridity gradients in West Africa and Amazonia

• DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-47202-x
• Publication Date: 2024-04-11T17:01:35Z
• Authors: Huanyuan Zhang-Zheng; Stephen Adu-Bredu; Akwasi Duah-Gyamfi; Sam Moore; Shalom D. Addo-Danso; Lucy Amissah; Riccardo Valentini; Gloria Djagbletey; Kelvin Anim-Adjei; John Quansah; Bernice Sarpong; Kennedy Owusu-Afr...; Agne Gvozdevaite; Minxue Tang; Maria C. Ruiz-Jaen; Forzia Ibrahim; Cécile A. J. Gira...; Sami Rifai; Cecilia A. L. Dah...; Terhi Riutta; Xiongjie Deng; Yuheng Sun; Iain Colin Prentice; Imma Oliveras Menor; Yadvinder Malhi
• Keywords: 580; 0106 biological sciences; Tropical Climate; Science; Q; Forests; Tropical ecology; Ghana; 01 natural sciences; 630; Article; Carbon; Trees; Carbon Cycle; [SDE]Environmental Sciences; Ecosystem

Abstract Tropical forests cover large areas of equatorial Africa and play a substantial role in the global carbon cycle. However, there has been lack biometric measurements to understand forests’ gross net primary productivity (GPP, NPP) their allocation. Here we present detailed field assessment budget multiple forest sites Africa, by monitoring 14 one-hectare plots along an aridity gradient Ghana, West Africa. When compared with equivalent Amazonia, studied African generally had higher lower use efficiency (CUE). The consistently shows highest NPP, CUE, GPP, autotrophic respiration at medium-aridity site, Bobiri. Notably, NPP GPP site are yet reported anywhere for intact forests. Widely used data products substantially underestimate when Amazonia Our analysis suggests that high is linked allocation canopy semi-deciduous characteristics.