Juniper from Ethiopia contains a large-scale precipitation signal

Most semiarid regions are facing an increasing scarcity of woody vegetation due mainly to anthropogenic deforestation aggravated by climate changes. However, there is insufficient information to reconstruct past changes in climate and to evaluate the implications of future climate changes on the vegetation. Tree-ring analysis is a powerful tool for studying tree age, population dynamics, growth behavior, and climate-growth relationships among tropical tree species and for gaining information about the environmental forces driving growth change as well as for developing proxies for climate reconstruction. Wood anatomical and dendrochronological methods were used on Juniperus procera trees from two Ethiopian highland forests to check (i) whether tree-ring series of juniper are cross-datable and hence suitable for building tree-ring chronologies, and if so, (ii) which climate factors mainly drive wood formation in juniper from this region. Visible growth layers of the juniper wood were shown to be annual rings. Tree-ring sequences could be cross-dated between trees growing at the same site and between trees growing at sites 350 km apart. Evidence was found that annual growth of junipers is mainly controlled by one climatic factor, precipitation. This strong precipitation influence proves the potential of African juniper chronologies for accurate climate reconstruction and points out the relevance of building a network of juniper chronologies across East Africa

Highly seasonal climate and reproductive phenology in the Mayombe forest: contribution of historical data from the Luki Reserve in the Democratic Republic of Congo

peer reviewedEn Afrique, la phénologie reproductive des arbres tropicaux, majoritairement annuelle, semble présenter une certaine régularité. Cette étude documente les variations intra- et interannuelles de la phénologie reproductive des arbres de la forêt du Mayombe à partir des données historiques de la Réserve de Luki (République démocratique du Congo). Le diamètre de reproduction des espèces exploitées pour le bois, encore largement méconnu, a été également examiné pour les espèces suffisamment représentées dans les données. Le suivi phénologique de 3 642 arbres appartenant à 158 espèces et 39 familles a été réalisé tous les 10 jours de 1948 à 1957. Les statistiques circulaires ont été utilisées pour tester le synchronisme de la phénologie entre arbres, à l’échelle de la communauté, pour la forêt dans son ensemble, et individuellement pour 87 espèces, dont 35 espèces bien représentées (n ≥ 20 arbres), 16 espèces commerciales et 36 autres espèces. Des régressions logistiques ont permis de déterminer le diamètre de fructification (minimum et régulier) de ces espèces. Pour la majorité des espèces, la floraison était régulière, annuelle et largement saisonnière (81,6 %, 71 espèces). Les pics étaient plus marqués pour la floraison que pour la fructification, plus étalée dans le temps, bien que significativement agrégée temporellement. La majorité des arbres et des espèces fleurissaient entre décembre et février, pendant la petite saison sèche, bien que des fleurs et des fruits étaient observables toute l’année à l’échelle de la communauté. Seules 13 espèces ont montré une relation significative entre le diamètre et la reproduction, parmi lesquelles sept espèces de canopée, cinq de sous-bois et une héliophile. Pour ces espèces, la moyenne du diamètre minimum de reproduction était de 17,3 cm

Variation in Onset of Leaf Unfolding and Wood Formation in a Central African Tropical Tree Species

A diversity of phenological strategies has been reported for tropical tree species. Defoliation and seasonal dormancy of cambial activity inform us on how trees cope with water stress during the dry season, or maximize the use of resources during the rainy season. Here, we study the matching between leaf phenology (unfolding and shedding) and cambial activity for Prioria balsamifera, a key timber species in the Democratic Republic of Congo. In particular, we (i) evaluated the seasonality of cambial activity and synchrony of phenology among trees in response to climate and (ii) identified the seasonality of leaf phenology and its relation with cambial phenology. The study was conducted in the Luki Man and Biosphere Reserve, located in the Mayombe forest at the southern margin of the Congo Basin. Historic defoliation data were collected every ten days using weekly crown observations whereas recent observations involved timelapse cameras. Cambial pinning was performed on ten trees during 20 months and radius dendrometers were installed on three trees during 13 months. Tree rings were measured on cores from 13 trees and growth synchrony was evaluated. We found that P. balsamifera defoliates annually with a peak observed at the end of the dry season and the beginning of the rainy season. The new leaves unfolded shortly after shedding of the old leaves. The peak defoliation dates varied across years from September 12 to November 14 and the fraction of number of trees that defoliated at a given time was found to be negatively correlated with annual rainfall and temperature; during the dry season, when precipitation and temperatures are the lowest. Wood formation (radial growth), was found to be highly seasonal, with cambial dormancy occurring during the dry season and growth starting at the beginning of the rainy season. Individual ringwidth series did not cross date well. The within species variability of leaf phenology and cambial rhythms provides indication about resistance of the population against climatic changes

Climate seasonality limits leaf carbon assimilation and wood productivity in tropical forests

The seasonal climate drivers of the carbon cycle in tropical forests remain poorly known, although these forests account for more carbon assimilation and storage than any other terrestrial ecosystem. Based on a unique combination of seasonal pan-tropical data sets from 89 experimental sites (68 include aboveground wood productivity measurements and 35 litter productivity measurements), their associate canopy photosynthetic capacity (enhanced vegetation index, EVI) and climate, we ask how carbon assimilation and aboveground allocation are related to climate seasonality in tropical forests and how they interact in the seasonal carbon cycle. We found that canopy photosynthetic capacity seasonality responds positively to precipitation when rainfall is < 2000 mm.yr−1 (water-limited forests) and to radiation otherwise (light-limited forests); on the other hand, independent of climate limitations, wood productivity and litterfall are driven by seasonal variation in precipitation and evapotranspiration respectively. Consequently, light-limited forests present an asynchronism between canopy photosynthetic capacity and wood productivity. Precipitation first-order control indicates an overall decrease in tropical forest productivity in a drier climate.Peer reviewe

Climate seasonality limits leaf carbon assimilation and wood productivity in tropical forests

The seasonal climate drivers of the carbon cycle in tropical forests remain poorly known, although these forests account for more carbon assimilation and storage than any other terrestrial ecosystem. Based on a unique combination of seasonal pan-tropical data sets from 89 experimental sites (68 include aboveground wood productivity measurements and 35 litter productivity measurements), their associated canopy photosynthetic capacity (enhanced vegetation index, EVI) and climate, we ask how carbon assimilation and aboveground allocation are related to climate seasonality in tropical forests and how they interact in the seasonal carbon cycle. We found that canopy photosynthetic capacity seasonality responds positively to precipitation when rainfall is  < 2000 mm yr⁻¹ (water-limited forests) and to radiation otherwise (light-limited forests). On the other hand, independent of climate limitations, wood productivity and litterfall are driven by seasonal variation in precipitation and evapotranspiration, respectively. Consequently, light-limited forests present an asynchronism between canopy photosynthetic capacity and wood productivity. First-order control by precipitation likely indicates a decrease in tropical forest productivity in a drier climate in water-limited forest, and in current light-limited forest with future rainfall  < 2000 mm yr⁻¹

Combining dendrochronology and matrix modelling in demographic studies: An evaluation for Juniperus procera in Ethiopia

Tree demography was analysed by applying dendrochronological techniques and matrix modelling on a static data set of Juniperus procera populations of Ethiopian dry highland forests. Six permanent sample plots were established for an inventory of diameters and 11 stem discs were collected for dendrochronological analysis. J. procera was proved to form concentric annual growth layers in response to seasonal changes in precipitation. Uncertainty analysis for the matrix model revealed its robustness to variations in parameter estimates. The major outcome was that the population growth rate is very sensitive to changes in growth or survival of trees between 10 and 40 cm DBH. For forest management this implies that these intermediate sized individuals should be protected and less used for harvest. This study documents that interesting results can be achieved using a relatively simple approach that can easily be adopted for other areas or with other species. However, the matrix modelling requires more precise knowledge about the trees¿ fecundity and survival (especially for the smaller individuals) and more consistent inventories. For tree-ring analysis it can be concluded that J. procera from Ethiopia has potential to investigate the relationship between tree growth and precipitation with a high temporal resolutio

Species-specific growth responses to climate variations in understory trees of a Central African rain forest

Basic knowledge of the relationships between tree growth and environmental variables is crucial for understanding forest dynamics and predicting vegetation responses to climate variations. Trees growing in tropical areas with a clear seasonality in rainfall often form annual growth rings. In the understory, however, tree growth is supposed to be mainly affected by interference for access to light and other resources. In the semi-deciduous Mayombe forest of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the evergreen species Aidia ochroleuca, Corynanthe paniculata and Xylopia wilwerthii dominate the understory. We studied their wood to determine whether they form annual growth rings in response to changing climate conditions. Distinct growth rings were proved to be annual and triggered by a common external factor for the three species. Species-specific site chronologies were thus constructed from the cross-dated individual growth-ring series. Correlation analysis with climatic variables revealed that annual radial stem growth is positively related to precipitation during the rainy season but at different months. The growth was found to associate with precipitation during the early rainy season for Aidia but at the end of the rainy season for Corynanthe and Xylopia. Our results suggest that a dendrochronological approach allows the understanding of climate–growth relationships in tropical forests, not only for canopy trees but also for evergreen understory species and thus arguably for the whole tree community. Global climate change influences climatic seasonality in tropical forest areas, which is likely to result in differential responses across species with a possible effect on forest composition over tim