Ecological Resilience and Carbon Dynamics in Tropical Dry Forests

Tropical dry forests occupy regions characterised by distinct wet and dry seasons and host ecosystems adapted to periodic water scarcity and anthropogenic pressure. Ecological resilience in these systems arises from species traits that withstand drought, fire and land‐use disturbance, while carbon dynamics hinge on the balance between biomass accumulation during wet seasons and carbon release during dry spells or following clearance. Seasonally dry tropical forests often maintain a mix of drought‐tolerant trees and deciduous shrubs that modulate productivity and facilitate rapid recovery after disturbance. Regeneration pathways, from secondary succession following agricultural abandonment to restoration interventions, govern long‐term carbon sequestration potential. However, thresholds in soil moisture, nutrient availability and disturbance intensity can alter successional trajectories, shifting forests towards shrublands or grass‐dominated states with lower carbon storage. Understanding interactions between climatic variability, soil properties and human disturbance is essential for predicting carbon fluxes and for devising management strategies that bolster resilience and mitigate greenhouse gas emissions.

Research from Nature Portfolio

Recent studies reveal that human disturbance rather than climatic conditions chiefly drives vegetation change in the Caatinga dry forest of South America, where less than 12 % of potential forest cover remains. Modelling of vertebrate habitat suitability against current land cover demonstrates that irreversible shifts to shrublands and agricultural mosaics have surpassed ecological thresholds for forest persistence. This work underscores the need for land‐use policies that limit deforestation and promote restoration to maintain carbon stocks. Foundational analyses of secondary forest carbon sequestration across tropical regions highlight that young regrowth (<20 years) can accumulate carbon several times faster than old‐growth stands, although regrowth rates vary widely with disturbance frequency and spatial context. Protection of expanding secondary stands could contribute substantially to national emissions reduction targets, provided that fire prevention and legal safeguarding measures are enforced.

Ecological Resilience and Carbon Dynamics in Tropical Dry Forests publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in ecological resilience and carbon dynamics in tropical dry forests across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Aboveground biomass: The total mass of living plant material above the soil surface, a key indicator of carbon storage.

Carbon sequestration: The process by which ecosystems capture and store atmospheric carbon dioxide in plant biomass and soils.

Ecological resilience: The capacity of an ecosystem to absorb disturbances and reorganise while undergoing change.

Secondary succession: Natural regeneration of vegetation on lands previously cleared or disturbed, leading to gradual ecosystem recovery.

Seasonally dry tropical forest: A forest ecosystem experiencing a pronounced dry season, characterised by deciduous vegetation and drought‐adapted species.

Threshold: A tipping point at which small changes in environmental conditions or disturbance intensity produce a rapid shift in ecosystem state.

References

1. Revealing the spatial variation in biomass uptake rates of Brazil’s secondary forests. ISPRS Journal of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (2024).
2. Human disturbance is the major driver of vegetation changes in the Caatinga dry forest region. Scientific Reports (2023).
3. Large carbon sink potential of secondary forests in the Brazilian Amazon to mitigate climate change. Nature Communications (2021).
4. Chronic human disturbance affects plant trait distribution in a seasonally dry tropical forest. Environmental Research Letters (2018).