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This study finds that native tree extinctions and alien naturalizations are pushing forests towards fast-growing, resource-demanding species. This global shift could affect carbon storage and ecosystem stability, highlighting the need to protect slow-growing trees.

Analysis combining multiple global tree databases reveals that whether a location is invaded by non-native tree species depends on anthropogenic factors, but the severity of the invasion depends on the native species diversity.

Tree species may be vulnerable to multiple global change factors. Here, the authors find that more than 17 thousand tree species are exposed to increasing anthropogenic threats, including many species classified as data-deficient in the IUCN Red List.

Species’ traits and environmental conditions determine the abundance of tree species across the globe. Here, the authors find that dominant tree species are taller and have softer wood compared to rare species and that these trait differences are more strongly associated with temperature than water availability.

A comparison of alpha diversity (number of plant species) and dark diversity (species that are currently absent from a site despite being ecologically suitable) demonstrates the negative effects of regional-scale anthropogenic activity on plant diversity.

Wood density is an important plant trait. Data from 1.1 million forest inventory plots and 10,703 tree species show a latitudinal gradient in wood density, with temperature and soil moisture explaining variation at the global scale and disturbance also having a role at the local level.

Warming temperatures and interactions between plants are the main drivers of changes in Arctic plant communities in response to climate change, and there is no evidence of overall biotic homogenization.

Analysis of ground-sourced and satellite-derived models reveals a global forest carbon potential of 226 Gt outside agricultural and urban lands, with a difference of only 12% across these modelling approaches.

Examining drivers of the latitudinal biodiversity gradient in a global database of local tree species richness, the authors show that co-limitation by multiple environmental and anthropogenic factors causes steeper increases in richness with latitude in tropical versus temperate and boreal zones.

Analysing >14,000 pairs of plots over 10 years, the authors show that forest understorey plant communities increase their average temperature affiliations by 0.1 °C each decade. This increase was caused by the extinction of cold-adapted species, but with no visible effect on community heterogeneity.

Combining global-scale data on species’ edaphoclimatic niches, phylogeny and hydraulic traits for >44,000 woody plant species, the authors map areas of hydraulic risk and show that local assemblages at greater hydraulic risk have a higher probability of drought-induced mortality.

Species that are evolutionary distinct and have geographically narrow or isolated distributions may be in particular need of conservation. Here, the authors identify global patterns of tree phylogenetic endemism and their linkages with climate and land use, and estimate future trends.

Integrating inventory data with machine learning models reveals the global composition of tree types—needle-leaved evergreen individuals dominate, followed by broadleaved evergreen and deciduous trees—and climate change risks.

Chatbots powered by artificial intelligence, such as ChatGPT, are ready to speed up monotonous coding tasks and teach you new skills. We highlight, with worked examples, some advantages and limitations of using generative artificial intelligence for scientific coding and argue that if you are willing to debug, you can get a head start on more challenging tasks.

Alternative stable states in forests have implications for the biosphere. Here, the authors combine forest biodiversity observations and simulations revealing that leaf types across temperate regions of the NH follow a bimodal distribution suggesting signatures of alternative forest states.

A spatially explicit global map of tree symbioses with nitrogen-fixing bacteria and mycorrhizal fungi reveals that climate variables are the primary drivers of the distribution of different types of symbiosis.