Valleys are a potential refuge for the Amazon lowland forest in the face of increased risk of drought

The Amazon rainforest is home to an incredible variety of plant and animal species and plays a crucial role in regulating the Earth’s climate. Climate change and human activities are putting this important ecosystem at risk. In particular, increasing droughts are making it harder for certain organis...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Communications earth & environment 2023-12, Vol.4 (1), p.198-10, Article 198
Main Authors: Pohl, Marius J., Lehnert, Lukas W., Thies, Boris, Seeger, Konstantin, Berdugo, Mónica B., Gradstein, S. Robbert, Bader, Maaike Y., Bendix, Jörg
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal species
Atmospheric moisture
Biodiversity
Climate change
Drought
Drought index
Ecosystems
Environmental risk
Fog
Forest ecosystems
Lowlands
Microclimate
Moisture effects
Rainforests
Refugia
Resilience
River valleys
Rivers
Terrestrial ecosystems
Valleys
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Summary:The Amazon rainforest is home to an incredible variety of plant and animal species and plays a crucial role in regulating the Earth’s climate. Climate change and human activities are putting this important ecosystem at risk. In particular, increasing droughts are making it harder for certain organisms to survive. Here we analyse a satellite-based data set of fog/low-stratus (FLS) frequency and a spatio-temporal drought index. We show that vulnerable organisms may find refuge in river valleys where FLS provides a source of moisture. We find that these favourable microclimates exist throughout the Amazon basin, with the highest occurrence and stability in steep river valleys. We suggest that protecting these hygric climate change refugia could help preserve the biodiversity and functioning of the Amazon ecosystem in the face of future droughts. This would also help stabilise atmospheric moisture recycling, making the region more resilient to climate change.
ISSN:2662-4435
2662-4435
DOI:10.1038/s43247-023-00867-6