Hotter Temperatures Reduce the Diversity and Alter the Composition of Woody Plants in an Amazonian Forest

• Published in: Global change biology 2024-11, Vol.30 (11), p.e17555-n/a
• Main Authors: Fortier, Riley P., Kullberg, Alyssa T., Soria Ahuanari, Roy D., Coombs, Lauren, Ruzo, Andrés, Feeley, Kenneth J.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Air temperature; Biodiversity; Boiling; Climate Change; Community composition; Composition; Diversity; Forests; Global warming; Heated water; High temperature; Hot Temperature; Microclimate; Peru; Plant diversity; Plant layout; Plant species; Riparian forests; Rivers; Soil temperature; Species extinction; Temperature; Temperature gradients; Thermophilization; Trees; Trees - growth & development; Tropical environments; Tropical forest; Water temperature; Woody plants
• ISSN: 1354-1013; 1365-2486; 1365-2486
• DOI: 10.1111/gcb.17555

ABSTRACT Rapid warming and high temperatures are an immediate threat to global ecosystems, but the threat may be especially pronounced in the tropics. Although low‐latitude tree species are widely predicted to be vulnerable to warming, information about how tropical tree diversity and community composition respond to elevated temperatures remains sparse. Here, we study long‐term responses of tree diversity and composition to increased soil and air temperatures at the Boiling River—an exceptional and unique “natural warming experiment” in the central Peruvian Amazon. Along the Boiling River's course, geothermally heated water joins the river, gradually increasing water temperature and subsequently warming the surrounding forest. In the riparian forests along the Boiling River, mean annual and maximum air temperatures span gradients of 4°C and 11°C, respectively, over extremely short distances (