Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Wiley
Résumé : A standardized rapid inventory method providing information on both tree species diversity and aboveground carbon stocks in tropical forests will be an important tool for evaluating efforts to conserve biodiversity and to estimate the carbon emissions that result from deforestation and degradation (REDD). Herein, we contrast five common plot methods differing in shape, size, and effort requirements to estimate tree diversity and aboveground tree biomass (AGB). We simulated the methods across six Neotropical forest sites that represent a broad gradient in forest structure, tree species richness, and floristic composition, and we assessed the relative performance of methods by evaluating the bias and precision of their estimates of AGB and tree diversity. For a given sample of forest area, a several small' (<1ha) sampling strategy led to a smaller coefficient of variation (CV) in the estimate of AGB than a few large' one. The effort (person-days) required to achieve an accurate AGB estimate (<10% CV), however, was greater for the smallest plots (0.1ha) than for a compromise approach using 0.5ha modified Gentry plots, which proved to be the most efficient method to estimate AGB across all forest types. Gentry plots were also the most efficient at providing accurate estimates of tree diversity (<10% CV of Hill number). We recommend the use of the 0.5ha modified Gentry plot method in future rapid inventories, and we discuss a set of criteria that should inform any choice of inventory method.
ISSN: 0006-3606

hal-01032408
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032408
DOI : 10.1111/btp.12006

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier Masson
Résumé : Fire-free forest conversion with organic inputs as an alternative to slash-and-burn could improve agro-ecosystem sustainability. We assessed soil carbon mass changes in a sandy-clayey and well-drained soil in French Guiana after forest clearing by the chop-and-mulch method and crop establishment. At the experimental site of Combi, native forest was cut down in October 2008; woody biomass was chopped and incorporated into the top 20 cm of soil. After about one year of legume and grass cover, three forms of land management were compared: grassland (Urochloa ruziziensis), maize/soybean crop rotation with disk tillage and in direct seeding without tillage. There were four replicates. We measured 14.16 kg m(-2) of carbon in 2 mm-sieved soil down to 2 m depth for the initial forest. Forest clearing did not induce significant soil compaction; neither did any specific agricultural practice. In converted soils, C stocks were measured in the 0-30 cm layer after each crop for three years. Carbon mass changes for soil fractions <2 mm (soil C stock) and >2 mm (soil C pool) in the 0-5, 5-10, 10-20 and 20-30 cm soil layers were assessed on an equivalent soil mass basis. One year and 1.5 years after deforestation, higher C stocks (+0.64 to 1.16 kg C m(-2) yr(-1)) and C pools (+0.52 to 0.90 kg C m(-2) yr(-1)) were measured in converted soils, compared to those of the forest into the top 30 cm of soil. However, the masses of carbon in these converted soils declined later. The highest rates of carbon decrease were measured between 1.5 and 2 years after forest conversion in the <2 mm soil fraction, from 0.46 kg Cm-2 yr(-1) (in grassland soils) to 0.71 kg C m(-2) yr(-1) (in cropland under no tillage). The carbon pool declined during the third year at rates of 0.41 kg C m(-2) yr(-1) (cropland under disk tillage) to 0.76 kg C m(-2) yr(-1) (grassland soils). Three years after forest conversion, C masses in the top 30 cm of soils for grassland showed similar values than for forest. In comparison, the carbon stock in cropped soils managed under no tillage in direct seeding (without mulch) was significantly 17% and 16% lower than in forest and grassland soils, respectively. None of the studied agricultural practices succeeded in accumulating carbon from the chopped forest biomass.
ISSN: 0167-8809

hal-01032438
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032438
DOI : 10.1016/j.agee.2013.11.009

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Wiley
Résumé : International audience
1. Estimating forest above-ground biomass (AGB), or carbon (AGC), in tropical forests has become a majorconcern for scientists and stakeholders. However, AGB assessment procedures are not fully standardized andeven more importantly the uncertainty associated with AGB estimates is seldom assessed.2. Here, we present an R package designed to compute both AGB/AGC estimate and its associated uncertaintyfrom forest plot datasets, using a Bayesian inference procedure. The package builds upon previous work onpantropical and regional biomass allometric equations and published datasets by default but it can alsointegrate unpublished or complementary datasets in many steps.3. BIOMASS performs a number of standard tasks on input forest tree inventories: i) tree speciesidentification, if available, is automatically corrected; ii) wood density is estimated from tree species identity;iii) if height data are available, a local height-diameter allometry may be built; else height is inferred frompantropical or regional models; iv) finally, AGB/AGC are estimated by propagating the errors associated withall the calculation steps up to the final estimate. R code is given in the paper and in the appendix forillustration purpose.4. The BIOMASS package should contribute to improved standards for AGB calculation for tropical foreststands, and will encourage users to report the uncertainties associated with stand-level AGB/AGC estimatesin future studies.
ISSN: 2041-210X

hal-01558180
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01558180
DOI : 10.1111/2041-210X.12753

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Résumé : The natural 15N abundance method for estimating symbiotic biological N2-fixation was tested on legume trees from two rain forests on contrasting soils (oxisols and spodosols) in French Guiana. When possible, the significance of N2-fixing species in the plant community was evaluated in terms of density, biomass and contribution of N2-fixation to the building up of the total nitrogen mass in the leaves. Of the two sites, the rain forest on spodosols was the less favourable for application of the [delta]15N method: the available soil nitrogen was isotopically similar to fixed-N2. Hence, the results showed that a reliable estimate of N2-fixation could not be obtained. A substantial contribution of fixed-N2 to the nitrogen nutrition of legumes was found on oxisols, with an average value of 54 % Ndfa (Nitrogen derived from the atmosphere). The contribution of the N2-fixing legumes to the biomass of the stand was estimated to be 2 t ha[minus sign]1 for the leaf biomass and 136 t ha[minus sign]1 for the total above-ground plant biomass. With 7.5 % of trees in the stand able to fix N2 (462 out of 6156), N2-fixation was estimated to be 7 kg ha[minus sign]1 y[minus sign]1. These results are the first use of the [delta]15N method to estimate nitrogen input by N2-fixing legumes to a natural rain forest. The inter-site variability observed in the [delta]15N of the non-fixing plants suggested different nitrogen-cycling processes in the two soils. The [delta]15N of the non-N2-fixing plants could be related to the soil nitrogen availability and be used as an indicator of efficient or non-efficient nitrogen-cycling rain forests. The spatial variability of the [delta]15N in the plant-available soil nitrogen pool and the nitrogen balance in tropical rain forests are discussed.
ISSN: 0266-4674

hal-01032201
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032201
DOI : 10.1017/S0266467499000644

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD American Association for the Advancement of Science
Résumé :  
Amazon forests are a key but poorly understood component of the global carbon cycle. If, as anticipated, they dry this century, they might accelerate climate change through carbon losses and changed surface energy balances. We used records from multiple long-term monitoring plots across Amazonia to assess forest responses to the intense 2005 drought, a possible analog of future events. Affected forest lost biomass, reversing a large long-term carbon sink, with the greatest impacts observed where the dry season was unusually intense. Relative to pre-2005 conditions, forest subjected to a 100-millimeter increase in water deficit lost 5.3 megagrams of aboveground biomass of carbon per hectare. The drought had a total biomass carbon impact of 1.2 to 1.6 petagrams (1.2 × 1015 to 1.6 × 1015 grams). Amazon forests therefore appear vulnerable to increasing moisture stress, with the potential for large carbon losses to exert feedback on climate change.
ISSN: 0036-8075

hal-01032111
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032111
DOI : 10.1126/science.1164033

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Wiley
Résumé :  
1. Relationships between tropical rain forest biomass and environmental factors have been determined at regional scales, e.g. the Amazon Basin, but the reasons for the high variability in forest biomass at local scales are poorly understood. Interactions between topography, soil properties, tree growth and mortality rates, and treefalls are a likely reason for this variability. 2. We used repeated measurements of permanent plots in lowland rain forest in French Guiana to evaluate these relationships. The plots sampled topographic gradients from hilltops to slopes to bottomlands, with accompanying variation in soil waterlogging along these gradients. Biomass was calculated for >175 tree species in the plots, along with biomass productivity and recruitment rates. Mortality was determined as standing dead and treefalls. 3. Treefall rates were twice as high in bottomlands as on hilltops, and tree recruitment rates, radial growth rates and the abundance of light-demanding tree species were also higher. 4. In the bottomlands, the mean wood density was 10% lower than on hilltops, the basal area 29% lower and the height:diameter ratio of trees was lower, collectively resulting in a total woody biomass that was 43% lower in bottomlands than on hilltops. 5. Biomass productivity was 9% lower in bottomlands than on hilltops, even though soil Olsen P concentrations were higher in bottomlands. 6. Synthesis. Along a topographic gradient from hilltops to bottomlands there were higher rates of treefall, which decreased the stand basal area and favoured lower allocation to height growth and recruitment of light-demanding species with low wood density. The resultant large variation in tree biomass along the gradient shows the importance of determining site characteristics and including these characteristics when scaling up biomass estimates from stand to local or regional scales.
ISSN: 0022-0477

hal-01032100
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032100

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Montpellier : CIRAD
Résumé : This article presents the effects of logging on the dynamics of above-ground biomass from the results of the post-logging study within two forests: Cikel in Eastern Para, Brazil and Paracou in French Guiana. The main objective is to compare the impact of commercial logging on the regeneration of the above-ground biomass in these forests whose characteristics differ in terms of structure and growth. In both sites, the intensity of exploitation is a key factor in determining the loss of biomass and the time required for its regeneration. In Paracou, the regeneration of biomass lost during conventional logging of 10 trees per hectare takes 45 years and more than 100 years when operating with higher intensity (21 trees/ha). In Cikei the forest biomass regenerates after 49 years harvesting 6 trees/ha and that takes 87 years after removal of 8 trees/ha. This regeneration needs similar time on both sites but with lower logging intensity at Cikel, in which felled trees are larger with a greater biomass than those of Paracou. This post-logging study has established a direct correlation of the dynamics of the biomass with the initial structure of the forest, as well as with the parameters of forest dynamics: mortality, growth and recruitment. The accumulation of biomass by the tree growth of the two remaining stands is a key parameter for the net carbon storage, while the contribution of recruitment in Paracou becomes significant only after 10 years after felling. Therefore in view to improve the growth of residual trees, it is compulsory to apply adequate silvicultural treatments such as selective thinning or removal of vines. While the two forests are geographically close enough, their regenerative abilities differ and because of the significant difference in size of the trees, the forest could tolerate more intensive harvesting in French Guiana
ISSN: 0006-579X

hal-01032427
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032427

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : While around 20% of the Amazonian forest has been cleared for pastures and agriculture, one fourth of the remaining forest is dedicated to wood production [1] . Most of these production forests have been or will be selectively harvested for commercial timber, but recent studies show that even soon after logging, harvested stands retain much of their tree-biomass carbon and biodiversity [2,3] . Comparing species richness of various animal taxa among logged and unlogged forests across the tropics, Burivalova et al. [4] found that despite some variability among taxa, biodiversity loss was generally explained by logging intensity (the number of trees extracted). Here, we use a network of 79 permanent sample plots (376 ha total) located at 10 sites across the Amazon Basin [5] to assess the main drivers of time-to-recovery of post-logging tree carbon ( Table S1 ). Recovery time is of direct relevance to policies governing management practices (i.e., allowable volumes cut and cutting cycle lengths), and indirectly to forest-based climate change mitigation interventions.
ISSN: 0960-9822

hal-01536542
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01536542
DOI : 10.1016/j.cub.2015.07.034
PRODINRA : 343217
PUBMED : 26394096

Résumé : L'importance des forêts tropicales dans le cycle du carbone à l'échelle planétaire est majeure, tant en terme de stock qu’en terme de flux de CO2. Plusieurs études mettent en évidence des changements au sein des forêts tropicales au cours des 20 dernières années, notamment des changements de la dynamique forestière et une augmentation de la biomasse aérienne. Les déterminants de ces variations sont aujourd’hui discutés et nous proposons ici d’apporter une contribution à ce débat. Les données utilisées dans ce travail proviennent du dispositif de suivi forestier à long terme de Paracou, Guyane Française, mis en place en 1984 et qui recouvre plus de 120 ha de forêt tropicale humide. Les données météorologiques proviennent de la tour à flux du dispositif, Guyaflux. Les mesures de diamètre proviennent de la base Guyafor pour les données annuelles et bisannuelles, et des mesures de 260 arbres à proximité de la tour à flux pour les mesures diamétriques intra-annuelles.Cette thèse se divise en deux grandes parties. La première concerne l’analyse de la biomasse du dispositif de suivi forestier de Paracou en Guyane et l’implication des changements de structure de cette forêt sur le bilan de carbone. Cette partie est constituée de deux points. (i) Quelles échelles temporelles et spatiales sont pertinentes pour analyser les composantes de structure (biomasse, aire basale et nombre de tiges) et de dynamique (croissance, recrutement et mortalité) des forêts tropicales afin de minimiser les effets d’échantillonnage ? Nous avons établi une méthodologie permettant de relier les intervalles de temps et la surface de mesure aux coefficients de variation de chacune des variables de structure et de dynamique de la forêt. (ii) Quels processus démographiques sont prépondérants dans l’explication des variations de biomasse et comment se redistribue la biomasse accumulée dans le système ? L’augmentation de la biomasse observée sur le dispositif de Paracou serait liée à la rareté des évènements de mortalité des gros arbres qui portent une part très importante de la biomasse.La deuxième partie de la thèse concerne l’analyse de l’effet du climat à moyen terme, inter et intra-annuel, et les effets directs du climat dans les changements de dynamique de la forêt. Cette partie se divise en 3 points. (i) Comment quantifier le stress hydrique en forêt tropicale humide ? Nous avons réalisé un modèle journalier de réserve en eau du sol pour les arbres en forêt tropicale. (ii) Quelles variables sont explicatives de la croissance des arbres en forêt guyanaise ? Nous avons montré que l’eau dans le sol est le facteur le plus explicatif du déterminisme climatique parmi un panel de variables climatiques. (iii) Quels traits fonctionnels sont prédicteurs de la réponse des arbres aux variations climatique ? Nous avons déterminé que des traits spécifiques, densité du bois et la hauteur maximale, ainsi que le diamètre de l'arbre au moment de la mesure, modulent la croissance des arbres en réponse au climat.
At a global scale tropical forest play a major role in term of carbon stock as well as in term of CO2 fluxes. Several studies have highlighted changes in tropical forest functioning during the last 20 years including a faster turnover and an increase of above ground biomass. The drivers of these changes are discussed and throughout this thesis we propose to contribute to this debate. We use the data from the Paracou experimental site in French Guiana established in 1984 on 120 hectares of moist tropical forest. Meteorological data come from the flux tower of the site, Guyaflux. We use annual and bisannual diameter measurements from the Guyafor database, and intra-annual diameter increments from the measurements of 260 trees near the flux tower.This thesis has two main parts. In the first part we present the biomass analysis of the Paracou permanent plots and the impact of structural changes in this forest on the carbon budget. The first part is constituted by two points. (i) Which temporal and spatial scale used to analyze the structure (biomass, basal area and stem density) and dynamics (tree growth, recruitment and mortality)components of tropical forest in order to minimized sample bias ? We establish a simple method to rely measurement interval between census and surface of measurement to the coefficient of variation of forests structure and dynamic components (ii) Which demographic process are involved in the explanation of biomass variation and how the biomass is distributed in the system ? The observed increase of biomass at Paracou could be link to the rarity of big trees mortality events. These big trees represent the larger part of the biomass. In the second part, we present the analysis of intra and inter-annual climate variation effects on forest dynamic changes. This part is divided in two points. (i) How to model drought stress in moist tropical forest ? We built a daily water balance model for tropical trees. (ii) Which climate variables explain the tree growth in guianian forests? We shown that soil water availability is the determinant factor of tree growth among a panel of climate variables. (iii) Which functional traits are involved in the tropical tree growth responses to climate? In this analysis, we determined that wood specific gravity, maximum tree height and tree diameter modulate the tree growth response to climate variations.

http://www.theses.fr/2011AGUY0481/document

Résumé : Les forêts tropicales contiennent dans leur biomasse aérienne un stock de carbone important à l’échelle de la planète. Mesurer ce stock et comprendre son fonctionnement permet de mieux saisir les enjeux liés à sa protection, sa destruction ou sa modification, ainsi que son rôle dans le cycle du carbone et les mécanismes climatiques globaux. Dans le cadre des problématiques économiques et écologiques liés au climat, les forêts sont progressivement prises en compte dans les programmes internationaux de mesures visant à réduire l’impact anthropique sur le climat (Protocole de Kyoto, 1998 ; Accord de Copenhague, 2009). L’intégration des forêts dans les mécanismes financiers liés au marché du carbone est clairement envisagée dans les années à venir (marché de carbone « d’origine forestière »).L’estimation de la biomasse aérienne d’une parcelle de forêt inventoriée nécessite l’utilisation successive de plusieurs modèles. Dans ces parcelles, le diamètre et l’espèce de chaque arbre sont renseignés. Ensuite, ces parcelles sont utilisées comme références pour l’extrapolation spatiale des valeurs de biomasse. Cette extrapolation repose souvent sur le traitement de signaux aériens (avions, satellites). Il est aussi possible d’utiliser covariables environnementales (climat, géologie, …).L’incertitude associée à l’estimation de la biomasse d’une région est le résultat de toutes les incertitudes associées à ces différents processus. Les connaissances actuelles ne nous permettent pas de quantifier cette incertitude. L’objectif de la thèse est de développer une méthodologie d’estimation de la biomasse qui permette la propagation des incertitudes ainsi que l’identification des sources de cette incertitude.Modèle de hauteur : Nous proposons un nouveau modèle de hauteur pour les forêts tropicales. Les paramètres de ce modèle ont un sens écologique et peuvent être prédits par des variables décrivant le peuplement sur lequel il est appliqué. Nous avons utilisé les données des projets Amalin et Bridge et sélectionné 42 parcelles réparties en Guyane dans lesquelles le diamètre et la hauteur de chaque arbre ont été mesurés.Modèle de densité de bois : Un modèle à été conçu pour associer à chaque espèce une distribution de densité de bois et non une valeur fixe. Nous avons utilisé les données du projet Bridge dans lequel la densité de bois a été mesurée sur 2504 arbres représentant 466 espèces.Modèle de biomasse: Nous avons montré par une analyse de sensibilité que les incertitudes des prédictions de hauteur et de densité de bois n’avaient qu’une part négligeable dans l’incertitude des prédictions de biomasse. L’amélioration de la précision de ces modèles n’est donc pas une priorité. En revanche, le modèle de hauteur peut être une source de biais.Modélisation spatiale : Les modèles développés ont été appliqués à différents réseaux de parcelles couvrant bien la zone littorale guyanaise : inventaires papetiers de l’ONF, réseau Guyafor, projet Amalin… Les prédictions de biomasse de ces parcelles sont utilisées dans un modèle spatiale. Nous produisons ainsi une carte de biomasse guyanaise associée à une carte de l’incertitude de cette estimation.
Tropical forest yield and important part of the aerial vegetation carbon stock on earth. Measuring and understanding this stock distribution is crucial for the management of the tropical forests facing the actual environmental challenges (REDD+, carbon market).Aerial Biomass estimation of forest census plots requires few models depending on the precision of the inventory: diameter models, height models, wood density models. Spatial extrapolation between census plots relies on aerial data (satellite measurements, images) or ground-based data (geology, altitude).The uncertainty of the estimation of a region’s biomass is the result of the uncertainty brought by all these models. The aim of the thesis is to develop models and methods to estimate the biomass of a region while propagating the uncertainties. This is applied to the neo-tropical forest of French Guiana (South America, Guianas Plateau).

http://www.theses.fr/2012AGUY0567/document

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Springer Verlag
Résumé : Growth defense tradeoff theory predicts that plants in low-resource habitats invest more energy in defense mechanisms against natural enemies than growth, whereas plants in high-resource habitats can afford higher leaf loss rates. A less-studied defense against herbivores involves the synchrony of leaf production, which can be an effective defense strategy if leaf biomass production exceeds the capacity of consumption by insects. The aim of this study was to determine whether leaf synchrony varied across habitats with different available resources and whether insects were able to track young leaf production among tree habitat specialists in a tropical forest of French Guiana. We predicted that high-resource habitats would exhibit more synchrony in leaf production due to the low cost and investment to replace leaf tissue. We also expected closer patterns of leaf synchrony and herbivory within related species, assuming that they shared herbivores. We simultaneously monitored leaf production and herbivory rates of five pairs of tree species, each composed of a specialist of terra firme or white-sand forests within the same lineage. Our prediction was not supported by the strong interaction of habitat and lineage for leaf synchrony within individuals of the same species; although habitat specialists differed in leaf synchrony within four of five lineages, the direction of the effect was variable. All species showed short time lags for the correlation between leaf production and herbivory, suggesting that insects are tightly tracking leaf production, especially for the most synchronous species. Leaf synchrony may provide an important escape defense against herbivores, and its expression appears to be constrained by both evolutionary history and environmental factors.
ISSN: 1385-0237

hal-01204221
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01204221
DOI : 10.1007/s11258-013-0290-y
PRODINRA : 288500

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD
Résumé : International audience
Over the past decade, much attention has been devoted to the development of forest biomass estimation methods at a stand scale, leading to the establishment of allometric models (Chave et al., 2014). These allometric equations use a unique wood specific gravity value (WSG) per species, but neglect the within tree variations of WSG found by others (Wiemann & Williamson, 1989).The main objectives of this study are (1) to illustrate the diversity of radial (from pith to bark) and longitudinal (from bottom to top) patterns of WSG variation within and between species, (2) to highlight different trends of WSG radial variations and the possible misinterpretations of these trends due to the effect of heartwood and (3) to link these variations and patterns to the successional status of the species (from pioneer to sciaphilic species).We sampled 33 small trees (10 Wood sciences underpinning tropical ecology and management. International closing symposium of the XYLAREDD project.
Tervuren, Belgium

hal-01188894
https://hal-sde.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01188894

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Wiley
Résumé : International audience
Le but de cette étude est de relier les variations des descripteurs de structure (densité du peuplement, surface terrière, biomasse aérienne) et de dynamique (croissance des arbres, taux de mortalité et de recrutement, flux de biomasse) de la forêt tropicale à la surface des parcelles forestières et à l'intervalle de temps entre les inventaires forestiers. Un jeu de données provenant d'un large réseau de parcelles recensé tous les 2 ans sur une période de 16 ans a été utilisé pour développer et paramétrer un nouveau modèle statistique de prédictions des coefficients de variations pour chacun des descripteurs étudiés. Plus de 90 % de la variabilité de ces coefficients de variation est prédit par un modèle statistique qui inclut la taille de la parcelle et l'intervalle de temps entre les inventaires. Tous les descripteurs de structure de la forêt varient de moins de 10% pour des parcelles de taille supérieure à 2 ha. Parmi les descripteurs de la dynamique forestière, le flux sortant de biomasse aérienne est le plus variable. Cinq parcelles de 6.25 ha sont nécessaires pour estimer sa moyenne, sur une période 16 ans, avec une erreur de 20 % sur la moyenne. Ceci contraste avec un flux entrant de biomasse aérienne, via la croissance et le recrutement, relativement constant. La croissance des arbres est remarquablement bien estimée avec moins de 15 % de variabilité pour une parcelle de 2 ha recensée tous les 2 ans. Ce travail fournit une méthode facile de quantification des limitations des jeux de données utilisés pour estimer les descripteurs de structure et de dynamique forestière. Ceci est un prérequis indispensable à l'analyse des effets du changement global sur les forêts tropicales.
ISSN: 0006-3606

hal-01093212
https://hal-agroparistech.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01093212
DOI : 10.1111/j.1744-7429.2010.00644.x

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Résumé : The objective of this study was to analyse the factors explaining spatial variation in soil respiration over topographic transects in a tropical rain forest of French Guiana. The soil of 30 plots along six transects was characterized. The appearance of the 'dry to the touch' character at a depth of less than 1.2 m was used to discriminate soils exhibiting vertical drainage from soils exhibiting superficial lateral drainage and along with colour and texture, to define five classes from well-drained to strongly hydromorphic soils. Spatial variation in soil respiration was closely related to topographic position and soil type. Increasing soil water content and bulk density and decreasing root biomass and soil carbon content explained most of the decrease in soil respiration from the plateaux (vertically drained hypoferralic acrisol) to the bottomlands (haplic gleysol). These results will help to stratify further field experiments and to identify the underlying determinants of spatial variation in soil respiration to develop mechanistic models of soil respiration.
ISSN: 0266-4674

hal-01032046
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032046
DOI : 10.1017/S0266467406003415

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Wiley
Résumé : Tropical forests contain an important proportion of the carbon stored in terrestrial vegetation, but estimated aboveground biomass (AGB) in tropical forests varies two-fold, with little consensus on the relative importance of climate, soil and forest structure in explaining spatial patterns. Here, we present analyses from a plot network designed to examine differences among contrasting forest habitats (terra firme, seasonally flooded, and white-sand forests) that span the gradient of climate and soil conditions of the Amazon basin. We installed 0.5-ha plots in 74 sites representing the three lowland forest habitats in both Loreto, Peru and French Guiana, and we integrated data describing climate, soil physical and chemical characteristics and stand variables, including local measures of wood specific gravity (WSG). We use a hierarchical model to separate the contributions of stand variables from climate and soil variables in explaining spatial variation in AGB. AGB differed among both habitats and regions, varying from 78 Mg ha−1 in white-sand forest in Peru to 605 Mg ha−1 in terra firme clay forest of French Guiana. Stand variables including tree size and basal area, and to a lesser extent WSG, were strong predictors of spatial variation in AGB. In contrast, soil and climate variables explained little overall variation in AGB, though they did co-vary to a limited extent with stand parameters that explained AGB. Our results suggest that positive feedbacks in forest structure and turnover control AGB in Amazonian forests, with richer soils (Peruvian terra firme and all seasonally flooded habitats) supporting smaller trees with lower wood density and moderate soils (French Guianan terra firme) supporting many larger trees with high wood density. The weak direct relationships we observed between soil and climate variables and AGB suggest that the most appropriate approaches to landscape scale modeling of AGB in the Amazon would be based on remote sensing methods to map stand structure.
ISSN: 1354-1013

hal-01374829
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01374829
DOI : 10.1111/j.1365-2486.2011.02432.x
PRODINRA : 183370

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : Guadua sarcocarpa and Guadua weberbaueri (Poaceae: Bambuseae) have a negative influence on tree regeneration and recruitment in bamboo-dominated forests of southwestern Amazonia. The lack of advanced regeneration and sparse canopy in this forest type present a considerable challenge for developing sustainable timber management plans. We conducted field studies in the Porto Dias Agroextractive Settlement Project in Acre, Brazil to assess influences of logging in bamboo-dominated forest sites. Taxonomic composition, stand structure, aboveground biomass, commercial timber volume, and commercial tree seedling and bamboo culm density were compared between five logged vs. unlogged sites in different landholdings, using modified 0.5 ha Gentry plots. No differences in taxonomic composition, aboveground biomass, adult and juvenile stem density, or woody seedling and bamboo culm density were detected between paired logged and unlogged sites. Commercial timber volume, however, was reduced by almost two-thirds in logged plots, suggesting that long-term timber management goals in this forest type are compromised since so few future crop trees remained onsite. Our findings indicate that in order to maximize local management objectives, community forest managers must approach logging in bamboo-dominated forests with caution. We suggest an integration of non-timber forest product extraction with low harvest intensity and low-impact logging, tending of natural regeneration, and diversification of commercial species.
ISSN: 0378-1127

hal-01204213
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01204213
DOI : 10.1016/j.foreco.2013.12.022
PRODINRA : 263103

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Nature Publishing Group
Résumé : While Amazonian forests are extraordinarily diverse, the abundance of trees is skewed strongly towards relatively few 'hyperdominant' species. In addition to their diversity, Amazonian trees are a key component of the global carbon cycle, assimilating and storing more carbon than any other ecosystem on Earth. Here we ask, using a unique data set of 530 forest plots, if the functions of storing and producing woody carbon are concentrated in a small number of tree species, whether the most abundant species also dominate carbon cycling, and whether dominant species are characterized by specific functional traits. We find that dominance of forest function is even more concentrated in a few species than is dominance of tree abundance, with only ≈1% of Amazon tree species responsible for 50% of carbon storage and productivity. Although those species that contribute most to biomass and productivity are often abundant, species maximum size is also influential, while the identity and ranking of dominant species varies by function and by region.
ISSN: 2041-1723

hal-01204225
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01204225
DOI : 10.1038/ncomms7857
PRODINRA : 305614
PUBMED : 25919449

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Ecological Society of America
Résumé :  
The expansion of selective logging in tropical forests may be an important source of global carbon emissions. However, the effects of logging practices on the carbon cycle have never been quantified over long periods of time. We followed the fate of more than 60 000 tropical trees over 23 years to assess changes in aboveground carbon stocks in 48 1.56-ha plots in French Guiana that represent a gradient of timber harvest intensities, with and without intensive timber stand improvement (TSI) treatments to stimulate timber tree growth. Conventional selective logging led to emissions equivalent to more than a third of aboveground carbon stocks in plots without TSI (85 Mg C/ha), while plots with TSI lost more than one-half of aboveground carbon stocks (142 Mg C/ha). Within 20 years of logging, plots without TSI sequestered aboveground carbon equivalent to more than 80% of aboveground carbon lost to logging (-70.7 Mg C/ha), and our simulations predicted an equilibrium aboveground carbon balance within 45 years of logging. In contrast, plots with intensive TSI are predicted to require more than 100 years to sequester aboveground carbon lost to emissions. These results indicate that in some tropical forests aboveground carbon storage can be recovered within half a century after conventional logging at moderate harvest intensities.
Ecological Applications

hal-01032171
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032171

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Wiley
Résumé :  
Positive aboveground biomass trends have been reported from old-growth forests across the Amazon basin and hypothesized to reflect a large-scale response to exterior forcing. The result could, however, be an artefact due to a sampling bias induced by the nature of forest growth dynamics. Here, we characterize statistically the disturbance process in Amazon old-growth forests as recorded in 135 forest plots of the RAINFOR network up to 2006, and other independent research programmes, and explore the consequences of sampling artefacts using a data-based stochastic simulator. Over the observed range of annual aboveground biomass losses, standard statistical tests show that the distribution of biomass losses through mortality follow an exponential or near-identical Weibull probability distribution and not a power law as assumed by others. The simulator was parameterized using both an exponential disturbance probability distribution as well as a mixed exponential-power law distribution to account for potential large-scale blowdown events. In both cases, sampling biases turn out to be too small to explain the gains detected by the extended RAINFOR plot network. This result lends further support to the notion that currently observed biomass gains for intact forests across the Amazon are actually occurring over large scales at the current time, presumably as a response to climate change.
ISSN: 1354-1013

hal-01032162
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032162
DOI : 10.1111/j.1365-2486.2009.01891.x

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Oxford University Press (OUP)
Résumé : Publication Inra prise en compte dans l'analyse bibliométrique des publications scientifiques mondiales sur les Fruits, les Légumes et la Pomme de terre. Période 2000-2012. http://prodinra.inra.fr/record/256699
Background and Aims Plastic tree-shelters are increasingly used to protect tree seedlings against browsing animals and herbicide drifts. The biomass allocation in young seedlings of deciduous trees is highly disturbed by common plastic tree-shelters, resulting in poor root systems and reduced diameter growth of the trunk. The shelters have been improved by creating chimney-effect ventilation with holes drilled at the bottom, resulting in stimulated trunk diameter growth, but the root deficit has remained unchanged. An experiment was set up to elucidate the mechanisms behind the poor root growth of sheltered Prunus avium trees. Methods Tree seedlings were grown either in natural windy conditions or in tree-shelters. Mechanical wind stimuli were suppressed in ten unsheltered trees by staking. Mechanical stimuli (bending) of the stem were applied in ten sheltered trees using an original mechanical device. Key Results Sheltered trees suffered from poor root growth, but sheltered bent trees largely recovered, showing that mechano-sensing is an important mechanism governing C allocation and the shoot-root balance. The use of a few artificial mechanical stimuli increased the biomass allocation towards the roots, as did natural wind sway. It was demonstrated that there was an acclimation of plants to the imposed strain. Conclusions This study suggests that if mechanical stimuli are used to control plant growth, they should be applied at low frequency in order to be most effective. The impact on the functional equilibrium hypothesis that is used in many tree growth models is discussed. The consequence of the lack of mechanical stimuli should be incorporated in tree growth models when applied to environments protected from the wind (e.g. greenhouses, dense forests).
ISSN: 0305-7364

hal-01032056
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032056
DOI : 10.1093/aob/mcn054