Éditeur(s) : Elsevier France-editions Scientifiques Medicales Elsevier
Résumé : The essential characteristics of the vegetation dynamics of tropical Africa remain only partially known. This study assesses the succession of vegetation-types over Central Africa during the last two glacial/interglacial cycles. Analysis of core KZai 02, which contains pollen from the Zaire River watershed (latitudes 9°N-13°S), allows the investigation of long-term patterns of plant ecosystem development and their climatic causes. Core KZai 02 (18.20 m long) was recovered from 6°24.20′S/9°54.10′E in the uppermost axial edifice of the Zaire deep sea fan. The chronology of this sedimentary archive was established using nannofossils and correlations of pollen and total organic carbon signals with the nearby core GeoB1008. The pollen record indicates that: (i) glacials (MIS 6, 4, 2) are marked by the development of afromontane (Podocarpus) forest at high altitudes when central basin lowlands were occupied by Cyperaceae marshes and savannah; (ii) during interglacials (MIS 1, 5) lowland forests were developed, marked by the successive expansion of pioneer, warm-temperate, rain forests, and mangrove indicating sea-level rise; (iii) glacial-interglacial transitions (MIS 6/5, 2/1) display similar vegetation dynamics. The strong evidence of afromontane forest and the opening of the vegetation during glacials suggest a reduced latitudinal distribution of rainfall by the strengthening of the trade wind system. West African monsoon systems were enhanced during interglacials, allowing the progressive development of lowland forests. The development of rain and pioneer forests during glacial Heinrich stadials suggests an enhancement of water availability in tropical Africa associated with these high latitude events. However, no augmentation of wind activity, described by previous studies, is evidenced by our pollen record. Similar vegetation successions during glacial/interglacial transitions suggest the diachronous and stepped intervention of CO2 (emphasizing the influence of temperature on plant ecosystems) and water availability.
Geobios (0016-6995) (Elsevier France-editions Scientifiques Medicales Elsevier), 2014-07 , Vol. 47 , N. 4 , P. 183-198

Droits : 2014 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00199/31031/29436.pdf
DOI:10.1016/j.geobios.2014.06.002
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00199/31031/

Éditeur(s) : Université des Antilles AREBio Groupe de recherche BIOSPHERES : BIOlogie, Sciences Physiques & Humaines pour les énergies Renouvelables, l
Extrait de : 1er colloque international BIOSPHERES, du 18 au 20 juin 2019. Université des Antilles
Description : Antarctica is a continent of enigmas. Stunning geographic beauty belies its inhospitable climate. Covered a mile thick in ice, it is the world's largest desert. Fossil ferns found in its mountains speak of its prehistory as a tropical rainforest, but now is largely devoid of life. Its most famous inhabitant, the penguin, is thought of as a flightless bird, but soars underwater much as a falcon glides the sky. Perhaps one of the greatest enigmas is the contrast between the terrestrial and marine environments. On land, monochromatic snow and ice support little life, yet the sea teams with life, life that expresses itself with the full rainbow of colors. Color is but one manifestation of chemical ecology. The Antarctic benthos supports an extensive community of predators and prey, competitors and facilitators. A harsh geographic history has contributed to marine diversification and enhanced what we now recognize as a rich flora and fauna, commensurate in some instances with temperate kelp forests and even approaching the richness of tropical marine environments. Not surprisingly, Antarctic benthic ecology is highly dependent on chemical mediation of interspecific interactions, interweaving chemodiversity with biodiversity in a classical yin and yang feedback loop. The evolution of selective chemical defenses facilitates drug discovery research, producing suites of metabolites that inform structure-activity studies and add breadth to bioactivity profiles. This presentation will focus on recent and contextual research from our lab which has demonstrated the potential for new biomedical lead molecules and scaffolds from these difficult to access biological resources.

Droits : CC-BY-NC-ND - Attribution - Pas d'utilisation commerciale - Pas de modification
Permalien : http://www.manioc.org/fichiers/V19067
V19067

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : Vegetation phenology is the study of the timing of seasonal events that are considered to be the result of adaptive responses to climate variations on short and long time scales. In the field of remote sensing of vegetation phenology, phenological metrics are derived from time series of optical data. For that purpose, considerable effort has been specifically focused on developing noise reduction and cloud-contaminated data removal techniques to improve the quality of remotely-sensed time series. Comparative studies between time series composed of satellite data acquired under clear and cloudy conditions and from radiometric data obtained with high accuracy from ground-based measurements constitute a direct and effective way to assess the operational use and limitations of remote sensing for predicting the main plant phenological events. In the present paper, we sought to explicitly evaluate the potential use of MODerate resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) remote sensing data for monitoring the seasonal dynamics of different types of vegetation cover that are representative of the major terrestrial biomes, including temperate deciduous forests, evergreen forests, African savannah, and crops. After cloud screening and filtering, we compared the temporal patterns and phenological metrics derived from in situ NDVI time series and from MODIS daily and 16-composite products. We also evaluated the effects of residual noise and the influence of data gaps in MODIS NDVI time series on the identification of the most relevant metrics for vegetation phenology monitoring. The results show that the inflexion points of a model fitted to a MODIS NDVI time series allow accurate estimates of the onset of greenness in the spring and the onset of yellowing in the autumn in deciduous forests (RMSE <= one week). Phenological metrics identical to those provided with the MODIS Global Vegetation Phenology product (MDC12Q2) are less robust to data gaps, and they can be subject to large biases of approximately two weeks or more during the autumn phenological transitions. In the evergreen forests, in situ NDVI time series describe the phenology with high fidelity despite small temporal changes in the canopy foliage. However, MODIS is unable to provide consistent phenological patterns. In crops and savannah, MODIS NDVI time series reproduce the general temporal patterns of phenology, but significant discrepancies appear between MODIS and ground-based NDVI time series during very localized periods of time depending on the weather conditions and spatial heterogeneity within the MODIS pixel. In the rainforest, the temporal pattern exhibited by a MODIS 16-day composite NDVI time series is more likely due to a pattern of noise in the NDVI data structure according to both rainy and dry seasons rather than to phenological changes. More investigations are needed, but in all cases, this result leads us to conclude that MODIS time series in tropical rainforests should be interpreted with great caution. (C) 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
ISSN: 0034-4257

hal-01032407
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032407
DOI : 10.1016/j.rse.2013.01.010

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Public Library of Science
Résumé : Climate models predict a range of changes in tropical forest regions, including increased average temperatures, decreased total precipitation, reduced soil moisture and alterations in seasonal climate variations. These changes are directly related to the increase in anthropogenic greenhouse gas concentrations, primarily CO2. Assessing seasonal forest growth responses to climate is of utmost importance because woody tissues, produced by photosynthesis from atmospheric CO2, water and light, constitute the main component of carbon sequestration in the forest ecosystem. In this paper, we combine intra-annual tree growth measurements from published tree growth data and the corresponding monthly climate data for 25 pan-tropical forest sites. This meta-analysis is designed to find the shared climate drivers of tree growth and their relative importance across pan-tropical forests in order to improve carbon uptake models in a global change context. Tree growth reveals significant intra-annual seasonality at seasonally dry sites or in wet tropical forests. Of the overall variation in tree growth, 28.7% was explained by the site effect, i.e. the tree growth average per site. The best predictive model included four climate variables: precipitation, solar radiation (estimated with extrasolar radiation reaching the atmosphere), temperature amplitude and relative soil water content. This model explained more than 50% of the tree growth variations across tropical forests. Precipitation and solar radiation are the main seasonal drivers of tree growth, causing 19.8% and 16.3% of the tree growth variations. Both have a significant positive association with tree growth. These findings suggest that forest productivity due to tropical tree growth will be reduced in the future if climate extremes, such as droughts, become more frequent.
ISSN: 1932-6203

hal-01268529
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01268529
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01268529/document
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01268529/file/journal.pone.0092337.PDF
DOI : 10.1371/journal.pone.0092337

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Wiley
Résumé :
How Quaternary climatic and geological disturbances influenced the composition of Neotropical forests is hotly debated. Rain fall and temperature changes during and/or immediately after the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) are thought to have strongly affected the geographical distribution and local abundance of tree species. The paucity of the fossil records in Neotropical forests prevents a direct reconstruction of such processes. To describe community-level historical trends in forest composition, we turned therefore to inferential methods based on the reconstruction of past demographic changes. In particular, we modelled the history of rainforests in the Eastern Guiana Shield over a time scale of several thousand generations, through the application of Approximate Bayesian Computation (ABC) and Maximum Likelihood (ML) methods to diversity data at nuclear and chloroplast loci in eight species or subspecies of rainforest trees. Depending on the species and on the method applied, we detected population contraction, expansion or stability, with a general trend in favour of stability or expansion, with changes presumably having occurred during or after the LGM. These findings suggest that Guiana Shield rain forests have globally persisted, while expanding, through the Quaternary, but that different species have experienced different demographic events, with a trend towards the increase in frequency of light-demanding, disturbance-associated species.
ISSN: 0962-1083

hal-01512150
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01512150
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01512150/document
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01512150/file/Barthe_et_al-_%7B0B6A8C5E-DDFF-4C4E-822C-4E7BC22A6C9B%7D.pdf
DOI : 10.1111/mec.13949

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier Masson
Résumé : In French Guiana, the population growth will result in an increase in demand for agricultural products and thus, will lead to an increase in the amount of tropical forests converted into cropland or pasture. Impacts of different agricultural systems on greenhouse gas (GHG) fluxes have not been studied in French Guiana. In this context, the fire-free chop-and-mulch method was used to convert a tropical forest site to agriculture. This study focused on soil nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions and we compared four land uses: (1) the undisturbed tropical forest, (2) recently converted grassland and recently converted croplands (fertilized soybean/maize rotation) with either (3) disk tillage or (4) no tillage.N2O measurements were obtained through the chamber technique and conducted over a 1-year period (measurements began 19 months after the forest was cleared). N2O fluxes were related to soil parameters measured at each sampling date: nitrate and ammonium contents, gravimetric water content (GWC) and temperature.Through the entire period, the mean (±standard error) and median N2O fluxes were 3.8 ± 0.5 and 2.7 g N ha−1 day−1, respectively for undisturbed tropical forest and 2.4 ± 0.9 and 0.8 g N ha−1 day−1, respectively for grassland (mowed Brachiaria ruziziensis). For croplands, no significant difference was found for N2O emissions between both agricultural practices. The mean (±standard error) and median N2O fluxes were 8.5 ± 1.2 and 4.0 g N ha−1 day−1, respectively for disk tillage plots and 8.5 ± 1.3 and 3.6 g N ha−1 day−1, respectively for no tillage plots. Nitrogen inputs (due to the application of fertilizer or due to the mineralization of crop residues) led to higher N2O fluxes, resulting in significantly higher mean N2O emissions from croplands compared to the forest, when only considering land use effect on N2O fluxes in a statistical model. The soil nitrate content, GWC and temperature had a significant positive effect on N2O fluxes. Taking into account these soil parameters in another statistical model, N2O emissions from croplands were not higher than the natural N2O emissions from tropical forest soils. Our results suggest that, if more forest will have to be converted in the course of the expected population growth in French Guiana, it could have low impact on the soil N2O fluxes (similar to natural fluxes from forest) with the improving of farming techniques (for example modification of the splitting of N-fertilizer) in the cropping plots.
ISSN: 0167-8809

hal-01204228
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01204228
DOI : 10.1016/j.agee.2015.04.004
PRODINRA : 307607

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Society for Range Management
Résumé : Grasslands and agroecosystems occupy one-third of the terrestrial area, but their contribution to the global carbon cycle remains uncertain. We used a set of 316 site-years of CO(2) exchange measurements to quantify gross primary productivity, respiration, and light-response parameters of grasslands, shrublands/savanna, wetlands, and cropland ecosystems worldwide. We analyzed data from 72 global flux-tower sites partitioned into gross photosynthesis and ecosystem respiration with the use of the light-response method (Gilmanov, T. G., D. A. Johnson, and N. Z. Saliendra. 2003. Growing season CO(2) fluxes in a sagebrushsteppe ecosystem in Idaho: Bowen ratio/energy balance measurements and modeling. Basic and Applied Ecology 4:167-183) from the RANGEFLUX and WORLDGRASSAGRIFLUX data sets supplemented by 46 sites from the FLUXNET La Thuile data set partitioned with the use of the temperature-response method (Reichstein, M., E. Falge, D. Baldocchi, D. Papale, R. Valentini, M. Aubinet, P. Berbigier, C. Bernhofer, N. Buchmann, M. Falk, T. Gilmanov, A. Granier, T. Grunwald, K. Havrankova, D. Janous, A. Knohl, T. Laurela, A. Lohila, D. Loustau, G. Matteucci, T. Meyers, F. Miglietta, J.M. Ourcival, D. Perrin, J. Pumpanen, S. Rambal, E. Rotenberg, M. Sanz, J. Tenhunen, G. Seufert, F. Vaccari, T. Vesala, and D. Yakir. 2005. On the separation of net ecosystem exchange into assimilation and ecosystem respiration: review and improved algorithm. Global Change Biology 11: 1.424-1439). Maximum values of the quantum yield (alpha = 75 mmol.mol(-1)), photosynthetic capacity (A(max) = 3.4 mg CO(2) . m(-2).s-1), gross photosynthesis (P(g,max) = 1.16 g CO(2) . m(-2).d(-1)), and ecological light-use efficiency (epsilon(ecol) = 59 mmol . mol(-1)) of managed grasslands and high-production croplands exceeded those of most forest ecosystems, indicating the potential of nonforest ecosystems for uptake of atmospheric CO(2). Maximum values of gross primary production (8 600 g CO(2) . m(-2).yr(-1)), total ecosystem respiration (7 900 g CO(2) . m(-2).yr(-1)), and net CO(2) exchange (2 400 g CO(2) . m(-2).yr(-1)) were observed for intensively managed grasslands and high-yield crops, and are comparable to or higher than those for forest ecosystems, excluding some tropical forests. On average, 80% of the nonforest sites were apparent sinks for atmospheric CO(2), with mean net uptake of 700 g CO(2) . m(-2).yr(-1) for intensive grasslands and 933 g CO(2) . m(-2).d(-1) for croplands. However, part of these apparent sinks is accumulated in crops and forage, which are carbon pools that are harvested, transported, and decomposed off site. Therefore, although agricultural fields may be predominantly sinks for atmospheric CO(2), this does not imply that they are necessarily increasing their carbon stock.
ISSN: 1550-7424

hal-01190754
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01190754
DOI : 10.2111/rem-d-09-00072.1
PRODINRA : 214043

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Ecological Society of America
Résumé : Although niche-based and stochastic processes, including dispersal limitation and demographic stochasticity, can each contribute to community assembly, it is difficult to quantify the relative importance of each process in natural vegetation. Here, we extend Shipley's maxent model (Community Assembly by Trait Selection, CATS) for the prediction of relative abundances to incorporate both trait-based filtering and dispersal limitation from the larger landscape and develop a statistical decomposition of the proportions of the total information content of relative abundances in local communities that are attributable to trait-based filtering, dispersal limitation, and demographic stochasticity. We apply the method to tree communities in a mature, species-rich, tropical forest in French Guiana at 1-, 0.25- and 0.04-ha scales. Trait data consisted of species' means of 17 functional traits measured over both the entire meta-community and separately in each of nine 1-ha plots. Trait means calculated separately for each site always gave better predictions. There was clear evidence of trait-based filtering at all spatial scales. Trait-based filtering was the most important process at the 1-ha scale (34%), whereas demographic stochasticity was the most important at smaller scales (37-53%). Dispersal limitation from the meta-community was less important and approximately constant across scales (similar to 9%), and there was also an unresolved association between site-specific traits and meta-community relative abundances. Our method allows one to quantify the relative importance of local niche-based and meta-community processes and demographic stochasticity during community assembly across spatial and temporal scales.
ISSN: 0012-9658

hal-01032424
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032424

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Wiley
Résumé : White-sand forests represent natural laboratories of evolution over their long history throughout Amazonia and the Guiana Shield and pose significant physiological challenges to the plants and animals they host. The study of diversification in plant lineages comprising species endemic to white-sand forest can therefore give insights into processes of evolution and community assembly in tropical forests. In this article, we synthesize recent studies of white-sand forests to integrate patterns of plant species distribution with processes of lineage diversification and community assembly in the white-sand flora. We contrast lineages that have radiated uniquely in these habitats (e.g., Pagamea, Rubiaceae), with cosmopolitan lineages comprising specialists to white-sand forests and other habitats that may have arisen via ecological speciation across habitat gradients (e.g., Protium, Burseraceae). In both cases, similar suites of functional traits have evolved, including investment in dense, long-lived tissues that are well-defended structurally and chemically. White-sand endemics, therefore, play an important role in biodiversity conservation because they represent unique combinations of functional and phylogenetic diversity. Furthermore, white-sand endemics may respond differently than other tropical forest plant species to contemporary global changes because they comprise resilient functional types that may better withstand increased drought, temperature, and invasions of exotic pests in these regions.
ISSN: 0006-3606

hal-01531635
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01531635
DOI : 10.1111/btp.12301
PRODINRA : 353397

Résumé : En 2013, Le Groupe d'experts Intergouvernemental sur l'Evolution du Climat (GIEC) publie son cinquième rapport concernant les changements climatiques. Il y est souligné que le réchauffement climatique est sans équivoque, et que de nouvelles émissions de gaz à effet de serre impliqueront une poursuite du réchauffement et des changements affectant toutes les composantes du système climatique. En région tropicale, une hausse de la température, ainsi qu'une intensification des événements de sécheresse et de pluviométrie extrêmes sont à prévoir. C'est dans ce contexte que s'inscrit ce travail, dont le but est d'étudier la réponse de la forêt tropicale à ces changements climatiques prédits en Guyane Française. Pour ce faire, j'ai utilisé les données du dispositif de suivi forestier de Paracou pour construire un modèle de dynamique individuel basé sur les traits fonctionnels des arbres. Un modèle de mortalité a d'abord été réalisé puis couplé à un modèle de croissance.Le modèle couplé ainsi construit permet de modéliser la croissance et la mortalité des arbres sur un pas de temps de 2 ans tout en tenant compte de leur ontogénie et de leurs traits fonctionnels. Ce modèle a d'abord été appliqué aux essences commerciales de Guyane Française en forêt naturelle et exploitée en y ajoutant un indice de stress hydrique. Ceci permet de montrer que le stress hydrique fait baisser la croissance et augmenter la mortalité, tandis que l'exploitation a l'effet inverse. Malgré le signal commun, différentes réponses sont observées selon les espèces. Le modèle a ensuite été appliqué à la communauté en forêt naturelle pour identifier les drivers climatiques et les processus impactés. Il ressort que la croissance est impactée par le stress hydrique et la température, et que la mortalité est impactée par le stress hydrique et la pluviométrie totale.Ces résultats ont enfin permis de construire un modèle complet de dynamique forestière climat dépendant, et de simuler l'évolution d'une communauté pendant un siècle selon différents scénarios correspondant aux prédictions du GIEC. Les simulations mettent en évidence une très forte diminution de la croissance, ainsi qu'une plus faible diminution de la mortalité. Ceci entraine une diminution notable de la surface terrière, du diamètre quadratique et de la biomasse fraiche. Une analyse de sensibilité montre que ces changements sont principalement dus à l'augmentation sévère des températures prédites pour le siècle à venir. Des pistes de réflexion sur les enjeux de modélisation et les échelles considérées sont proposées en discussion de ce travail.
In 2013 the intergovernmental panel on climate change (ipcc) publishes its fifth report. This report underlines that an increase of temperature and a strengthening of drought and extreme rainfall are expected in tropical regions. This work was made in this context of climate changes, and aimed to study the response of the rainforest to predicted climate changes. To do this, i used the data from the study site of Paracou French Guiana to build an individual based dynamics model based on the functional traits of trees. This model was first applied to species with a commercial interest in French Guiana, in natural and logged forest and adding a water stress index as predictor. Water stress decreases growth and increases mortality, while logging had the opposite effect. The model was then applied to the community in natural forest for identifying potential climate drivers and impacted processes. Growth is impacted by the water stress and temperature and mortality is imp acted by the water stress and the total rainfall. These results allowed us to build a climate dependent model of forest dynamics and to run simulations of the evolution of a community under different scenarios for the next century. Simulations showed a decrease of growth and a small decrease of mortality. This resulted in a substantial decrease of basal area, squared diameter and fresh biomass.

http://www.theses.fr/2014AGUY0802/document

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Public Library of Science
Résumé : Climate models for the coming century predict rainfall reduction in the Amazonian region, including change in water availability for tropical rainforests. Here, we test the extent to which climate variables related to water regime, temperature and irradiance shape the growth trajectories of neotropical trees. . We developed a diameter growth model explicitly designed to work with asynchronous climate and growth data. Growth trajectories of 205 individual trees from 54 neotropical species censused every 2 months over a 4-year period were used to rank 9 climate variables and find the best predictive model. . About 9% of the individual variation in tree growth was imputable to the seasonal variation of climate. Relative extractable water was the main predictor and alone explained more than 60% of the climate effect on tree growth, i.e. 5.4% of the individual variation in tree growth. Furthermore, the global annual tree growth was more dependent on the diameter increment at the onset of the rain season than on the duration of dry season. . The best predictive model included 3 climate variables: relative extractable water, minimum temperature and irradiance. The root mean squared error of prediction (0.035 mm.d(-1)) was slightly above the mean value of the growth (0.026 mm.d(-1)). . Amongst climate variables, we highlight the predominant role of water availability in determining seasonal variation in tree growth of neotropical forest trees and the need to include these relationships in forest simulators to test, in silico, the impact of different climate scenarios on the future dynamics of the rainforest.
ISSN: 1932-6203

hal-01268350
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01268350
DOI : 10.1371/journal.pone.0034074
PRODINRA : 215438
PUBMED : 22506012

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Oxford University Press (OUP)
Résumé : Architectural analyses of temperate tree species using a chronological approach suggest that the expression of epicormic branches is closely related to low growth rates in the axes that make up the branching system. Therefore, sole consideration of epicormic criteria may be sufficient to identify trees with low secondary growth levels or with both low primary and secondary growth levels. In a tropical tree such as Dicorynia guianensis (basralocus), where chronological studies are difficult, this relationship could be very useful as an easily accessible indicator of growth potentials. A simple method of architectural tree description was used to characterize the global structure of more than 1650 basralocus trees and to evaluate their growth level. Measurements of simple growth characters [height, basal diameter, internode length of submittal part (top of the main axis of the tree)] and the observation of four structural binary descriptors on the main stem (presence of sequential branches and young epicormic branches, state of the submittal part, global orientation), indicated that epicormic branch formation is clearly related to a decrease in length of the successive growth units of the main stem. Analysis of height vs. diameter ratios among different tree subgroups, with and without epicormic branching, suggested that trees with epicormic branches generally have a low level of secondary growth compared with primary growth.
ISSN: 0305-7364

hal-01032037
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032037
DOI : 10.1093/aob/mcg119

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Wiley
Résumé : Seasonal variations in environmental conditions influence the functioning of the whole ecosystem of tropical rain forests, but as yet little is known about how such variations directly influence the leaf gas exchange and transpiration of individual canopy tree species. We examined the influence of seasonal variations in relative extractable water in the upper soil layers on predawn leaf water potential, saturated net photosynthesis, leaf dark respiration, stomatal conductance, and tree transpiration of 13 tropical rain forest canopy trees (eight species) over 2yr in French Guiana. The canopies were accessed by climbing ropes attached to the trees and to a tower. Our results indicate that a small proportion of the studied trees were unaffected by soil water depletion during seasonal dry periods, probably thanks to efficient deep root systems. The trees showing decreased tree water status (i.e., predawn leaf water potential) displayed a wide range of leaf gas exchange responses. Some trees strongly regulated photosynthesis and transpiration when relative extractable water decreased drastically. In contrast, other trees showed little variation, thus indicating good adaptation to soil drought conditions. These results have important applications to modeling approaches: indeed, precise evaluation and grouping of these response patterns are required before any tree-based functional models can efficiently describe the response of tropical rain forest ecosystems to future changes in environmental conditions.
ISSN: 0006-3606

hal-01032411
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032411
DOI : 10.1111/j.1744-7429.2012.00902.x

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Springer Verlag
Résumé : International audience
Disentangling the autotrophic and heterotrophic components of soil CO2 efflux is critical to understanding the role of soil system in terrestrial carbon (C) cycling. In this study, we combined a stable C-isotope natural abundance approach with the trenched plot method to determine if root exclusion significantly affected the isotopic composition (δ13C) of soil CO2 efflux (RS). This study was performed in different forest ecosystems: a tropical rainforest and two temperate broadleaved forests, where trenched plots had previously been installed. At each site, RS and its δ13C (δ13CRs) tended to be lower in trenched plots than in control plots. Contrary to RS, δ13CRs differences were not significant. This observation is consistent with the small differences in δ13C measured on organic matter from root, litter and soil. The lack of an effect on δ13CRs by root exclusion could be from the small difference in δ13C between autotrophic and heterotrophic soil respirations, but further investigations are needed because of potential artefacts associated with the root exclusion technique.
ISSN: 0032-079X

bioemco-00353850
https://hal-bioemco.ccsd.cnrs.fr/bioemco-00353850
DOI : 10.1007/s11104-008-9844-5

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Wiley
Résumé : Tank bromeliads form a conspicuous, yet neglected freshwater habitat in Neotropical forests. Recent studies driven by interests in medical entomology, fundamental aspects of bromeliad ecology and experimental research on food webs have, however, prompted increasing interest in bromeliad aquatic ecosystems. As yet, there is nothing in the literature about the life histories and environmental drivers of invertebrate population dynamics in tank bromeliads. Based on fortnightly samples taken over oneyear, size frequency plots and individual dry masses allowed us to establish the life cycles and growth rates of the dominant aquatic invertebrates in a common bromeliad species of French Guiana. Linear mixed-effect models and Mantel tests were used to predict changes in density, biomass, and growth rates in relation to temperature, rainfall, humidity and detrital resources. Annual variations in invertebrate densities and biomasses could be described according to three types of distribution: unimodal, bimodal or almost constant. Despite seasonal variations, precipitation, temperature, relative humidity and detritus concentration accounted significantly for changes in density and biomass, but we found no significant responses in growth rates of most invertebrate species. Species rather displayed non-seasonal life cycles with overlapping cohorts throughout the year. There was also a trend for delayed abundance peaks among congeneric species sharing similar functional traits, suggesting temporal partitioning of available resources. Beyond novel knowledge, quantitative information on life histories is important to predict food-web dynamics under the influence of external forcing and self-organisation. Our results suggest that changes in species distribution that will affect population dynamics through biotic interactions in space and/or time could have greater effects on food webs and ecosystem functioning than changes in environmental factors per se.
ISSN: 0046-5070

hal-01607779
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01607779
DOI : 10.1111/fwb.12862
PRODINRA : 407311

Résumé : Les mécanismes à l’origine du maintien de la forte diversité locale des arbres des forêts tropicales humides constituent encore une énigme pour les scientifiques. Cette thèse a pour but d’étudier et de comprendre certains facteurs biotiques et abiotiques qui influencent l’assemblage des communautés des forêts tropicales humides d’Amazonie. A l’aide d’une approche empirique conduite dans les forêts tropicales de Guyane française et du Loreto au Pérou, de nombreuses expériences de terrain ont été mises en place dans le but d’apporter des éléments de réponse sur les mécanismes impliqués dans le maintien de la diversité des communautés d’arbres et d’insectes des forêts amazoniennes. Dans un premier temps, cette thèse permet de souligner l’importance des pressions biotiques exercées sur les communautés d’arbres. En effet, les communautés d’insectes peuvent influencer la composition des communautés d’arbres le long d’un gradient environnemental conduisant à des compromis entre la défense et la croissance. Ces compromis ou tradeoff permettent de maintenir la coexistence des espèces de forêts tropicales humides en favorisant la spécialisation des arbres à leur habitat (Chapitre 1, Annexe 3). Cependant, de nombreux facteurs peuvent engendrer des variations dans les compromis d’allocation exhibés par les plantes, ce qui peut compliquer la validité de ces résultats. Dans ce sens, nous avons souligné l’influence du rôle de la cascade trophique et l’existence chez certaines espèces d’arbres de stratégies d’évitement des insectes (Chapitre 2). Dans un second temps, nous avons montré que les filtres environnementaux et les distances géographiques favorisent un fort turnover de la composition des arthropodes des forêts tropicales (chapitre 3, Annexe 2). Les résultats de cette étude ont des implications fondamentales sur les mécanismes qui expliquent la structuration des communautés d’insectes herbivores. Nous avons souligné l’importance de l’interaction des communautés des insectes herbivores et de leurs plantes associées. De plus, des prédictions sont présentées sur le degré de spécialisation des insectes à leur plante-hôte (Annexe 3), notamment sur les implications possibles dans les compromis d’allocation chez les plantes. Finalement, des perspectives de recherche sont proposées en vue de poursuivre ces travaux de recherche, et notamment des extensions de mes expériences vers d’autres régions tropicales et tempérées et l’intégration de la phylogénie pour comprendre des mécanismes de coévolution entre communautés d’arbres et insectes. Nous proposons également une intégration des résultats de cette thèse dans les stratégies locales et régionales de conservation des forêts tropicales du bassin amazonien.
The mechanisms underlying the maintenance of local diversity of trees in tropical rainforests remain under debate. This dissertation aims to study and understand some biotic and abiotic factors that may influence both tree and insect community assembly in lowland tropical forests of Amazonia. I used an empirical approach to study communities of trees and insects in tropical forests of French Guiana and Peru, to address the extent to which insect herbivores contribute to the turnover of tree species across strong environmental gradients. In Chapter 1, I studied how herbivorous insect communities can influence the composition of tree communities along an environmental gradient by reinforcing tradeoffs between defense and growth that promote habitat specialization (Chapter 1, Appendix 3). The complicated variation in the patterns of growth and defense from this study led me to pursue further observations of an alternative plant defense strategy of time-avoidance of herbivores, which I examined in detail in Chapter 2. I found evidence for coordinated leaf production in some tree species that was consistent with the satiation of herbivores, suggesting that multiple interactions between plants and their herbivores may be responsible for patterns of habitat specialization in trees. In the second part of the dissertation, I examined insect herbivore communities in detail to test for turnover in species composition across geographic and environmental gradients. In Chapter 3, I present evidence for substantial beta-diversity in arthropod communities throughout lowland Amazonian forests. In the discussion I propose research perspectives to complete this research, including the extension of observations to compare tropical and temperate regions and the integration of molecular phylogenetics information to study coevolution of plant lineages and their insect herbivores. I conclude with suggestions for the integration of the results of this thesis in local and regional strategies for the preservation and conservation of tropical forests in the Amazon basin.

http://www.theses.fr/2013AGUY0582/document

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Wiley
Résumé : Proper estimates of decomposition are essential for tropical forests, given their key role in the global carbon (C) cycle. However, the current paradigm for litter decomposition is insufficient to account for recent observations and may limit model predictions for highly diverse tropical ecosystems. In light of recent findings from a nutrient-poor Amazonian rainforest, we revisit the commonly held views that: litter traits are a mere legacy of live leaf traits; nitrogen (N) and lignin are the key litter traits controlling decomposition; and favourable climatic conditions result in rapid decomposition in tropical forests. Substantial interspecific variation in litter phosphorus (P) was found to be unrelated to variation in green leaves. Litter nutrients explained no variation in decomposition, which instead was controlled primarily by nonlignin litter C compounds at low concentrations with important soil fauna effects. Despite near-optimal climatic conditions, tropical litter decomposition proceeded more slowly than in a climatically less favourable temperate forest. We suggest that slow decomposition in the studied rainforest results from a syndrome of poor litter C quality beyond a simple lignin control, enforcing energy starvation of decomposers. We hypothesize that the litter trait syndrome in nutrient-poor tropical rainforests may have evolved to increase plant access to limiting nutrients via mycorrhizal associations.
ISSN: 0028-646X

hal-01032400
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032400
DOI : 10.1111/j.1469-8137.2010.03483.x

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Wiley
Résumé : International audience
Mycoheterotrophic orchids have adapted to shaded forest understory by shifting to achlorophylly and receiving carbon from their mycorrhizal fungi. In temperate forests, they associate in a highly specific way with fungi forming ectomycorrhizas on nearby trees, and exploiting tree photosynthates. However, many rainforests lack ectomycorrhizal fungi, and there is evidence that some tropical Asiatic species associate with saprotrophic fungi. To investigate this in different geographic and phylogenetic contexts, we identified the mycorrhizal fungi supporting two tropical mycoheterotrophic orchids from Mascarene (Indian Ocean) and Caribbean islands. We tested their possible carbon sources by measuring natural nitrogen (15N) and carbon (13C) abundances. Saprotrophic basidiomycetes were found: Gastrodia similis associates with a wood-decaying Resinicium (Hymenochaetales); Wullschlaegelia aphylla associates with both litter-decaying Gymnopus and Mycena species, whose rhizomorphs link orchid roots to leaf litter. The 15N and 13C abundances make plausible food chains from dead wood to G. similis and from dead leaves to W. aphylla. We propose that temperature and moisture in rainforests, but not in most temperate forests, may favour sufficient saprotrophic activity to support development of mycoheterotrophs. By enlarging the spectrum of mycorrhizal fungi and the level of specificity in mycoheterotrophic orchids, this study provides new insights on orchid and mycorrhizal biology in the tropics. New Phytologist (2009)doi: 10.1111/j.1469-8137.2009.02987.x
ISSN: 0028-646X

hal-01199356
http://hal.univ-reunion.fr/hal-01199356
DOI : 10.1111/j.1469-8137.2009.02987.x

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD
Résumé : Neotropical forests shelter an astonishing and underrated biodiversity. The integrity and stability of these natural ecosystems are threatened by human-induced environmental changes. Therefore, highlighting the determinants of ecosystem functioning, be they natural or anthropogenic, is a daunting but paramount scientific challenge. The intrinsic complexity of highly diversified ecosystems arouses both conceptual and logistical difficulties, which we handle, by manipulating tiny ecosystems, the tank bromeliads. The leaves of tank bromeliads form wells that hold rainwater and intercept leaf litter, allowing for a simple invertebrate aquatic community to thrive. These plants can be exhaustively sampled, are naturally replicated, and widely distributed.From local to biogeographic scales, this thesis aims at understanding how these communities respond to the natural heterogeneity of Amazonian forests, and at predicting the impacts of human-induced disturbances on the structure and functioning of these communities, using in situ and lab experiments. Particular focus is attributed to the influence of some aspects of climate changes (e.g., warming, and various precipitations scenarios) on individual physiology, behavior, and trophic interactions.
Les forêts néotropicales accueillent une importante biodiversité encore méconnue. L’intégrité des écosystèmes naturels est menacée par les changements environnementaux (e.g., réchauffement climatique, destruction des habitats), par conséquent, identifier les facteurs structurants, naturels et anthropiques, du fonctionnement des écosystèmes, représente un défi scientifique crucial. L’inhérente complexité de ces milieux diversifiés pose de nombreux problèmes conceptuels et logistiques comme un échantillonnage exhaustif et/ou l’identification des espèces. Les broméliacées à réservoirs sont des écosystèmes miniatures adéquats pour pallier ces difficultés, car elles retiennent de l’eau de pluie et accumulent de la matière organique au creux de leurs feuilles, permettant ainsi de supporter des réseaux trophiques simples d’invertébrés aquatiques. Elles peuvent être échantillonnées exhaustivement, ont une forte abondance locale, et une large aire de répartition. De l’échelle locale à biogéographique, les travaux de cette thèse visent d’abord à comprendre comment ces communautés se structurent en réponse à l’hétérogénéité naturelle des forêts amazoniennes (e.g., ouverture de la canopée, fluctuations climatiques saisonnières), puis tente de prédire, par le biais d’expérimentations in situ et au laboratoire les réponses structurelles et fonctionnelles de ces communautés à divers scénarios de changement climatique. Une attention particulière a été portée sur l’impact de la température et des précipitations sur la physiologie et le comportement d’espèces clefs, et sur les interactions trophiques au sein des communautés.
https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-01405025

NNT : 2015YANE0003
tel-01405025
https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-01405025
https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-01405025/document
https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-01405025/file/These-DEZERALD-Diffusion.pdf

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD
Résumé :  
absent
33. European Geosciences Union General Assembly
Vienne, Austria

hal-01032070
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032070