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Amazon tree dominance across forest strata.

Frederick C DraperFlavia R C CostaGabriel ArellanoOliver L PhillipsAlvaro DuqueManuel J MacíaHans Ter SteegeGregory P AsnerErika BerenguerJuliana SchiettiJacob B SocolarFernanda Coelho de SouzaKyle G DexterPeter Møller JørgensenJ Sebastian TelloWilliam E MagnussonTimothy R BakerCarolina V CastilhoAbel Monteagudo-MendozaPaul V A FineKalle RuokolainenEuridice N Honorio CoronadoGerardo AymardNállarett DávilaMauricio Sánchez SáenzMarcos A Rios ParedesJulien EngelClaire FortunelC E Timothy PaineJean-Yves GoretAurelie DourdainPascal PetronelliElodie AllieJuan E Guevara AndinoRoel J W BrienenLeslie Cayola PérezÂngelo Gilberto ManzattoNarel Y Paniagua ZambranaJean-François MolinoDaniel SabatierJerome ChaveSophie FausetRoosevelt Garcia VillacortaMaxime Réjou-MéchainPaul E BerryKarina MelgaçoTed R FeldpauschElvis Valderamma SandovalRodolfo Vasquez MartinezItalo MesonesAndré Braga JunqueiraKatherine H RoucouxJosé J de ToledoAna C AndradeJosé Luís CamargoJhon Del Aguila-PasquelFlavia Delgado SantanaWilliam F LauranceSusan G W LauranceThomas E LovejoyJames A ComiskeyDavid R GalbraithMichelle KalamandeenGilberto E Navarro AguilarJim Vega ArenasCarlos A Amasifuén GuerraManuel FloresGerardo Flores LlampazoLuis A Torres MontenegroRicardo Zarate GomezMarcelo Petratti PansonatoVictor Chama MoscosoJason VleminckxOscar J Valverde BarrantesJoost F DuivenvoordenSidney Araújo de SousaLuzmila ArroyoRicardo Oliveira PerdizJessica Soares CravoBeatriz S MarimonBen Hur Marimon JuniorFernanda Antunes CarvalhoGabriel DamascoMathias I DisneyMarcos Salgado VitalPablo R Stevenson DiazAlberto VicentiniHenrique NascimentoNiro HiguchiTinde R van AndelYadvinder MalhiSabina Cerruto RibeiroJohn W TerborghRaquel S ThomasFrancisco DallmeierAdriana PrietoRenato Richard HilárioRafael P SalomãoRicharlly da Costa SilvaLuisa F CasasIma C Guimarães VieiraAlejandro Araujo-MurakamiFredy Ramirez ArevaloHirma Ramírez-AnguloEmilio Vilanova TorreMaria C PeñuelaTimothy J KilleenGuido PardoEliana M JimenezWenderson CastroDarcy Galiano CabreraJohn PipolyThaiane Rodrigues de SousaMarcos SilveiraVincent Antoine VosDavid A NeillPercy Núñez VargasDilys M VelaLuiz E O C AragãoRicardo Keichi UmetsuRodrigo SierraOphelia WangKenneth R YoungNayane C C S PrestesKlécia G MassiJosé Reyna HuaymacariGermaine A Parada GutierrezAna M AldanaMiguel N AlexiadesFabricio Beggiato BaccaroCarlos CéronAdriane Esquivel MuelbertJulio M Grandez RiosAntonio S LimaJonathan L LloydNigel C A PitmanLuis Valenzuela GamarraCesar J Cordova OrocheAlfredo F FuentesWalter PalaciosSandra PatiñoArmando Torres-LezamaChristopher Baraloto
Published in: Nature ecology & evolution (2021)
The forests of Amazonia are among the most biodiverse plant communities on Earth. Given the immediate threats posed by climate and land-use change, an improved understanding of how this extraordinary biodiversity is spatially organized is urgently required to develop effective conservation strategies. Most Amazonian tree species are extremely rare but a few are common across the region. Indeed, just 227 'hyperdominant' species account for >50% of all individuals >10 cm diameter at 1.3 m in height. Yet, the degree to which the phenomenon of hyperdominance is sensitive to tree size, the extent to which the composition of dominant species changes with size class and how evolutionary history constrains tree hyperdominance, all remain unknown. Here, we use a large floristic dataset to show that, while hyperdominance is a universal phenomenon across forest strata, different species dominate the forest understory, midstory and canopy. We further find that, although species belonging to a range of phylogenetically dispersed lineages have become hyperdominant in small size classes, hyperdominants in large size classes are restricted to a few lineages. Our results demonstrate that it is essential to consider all forest strata to understand regional patterns of dominance and composition in Amazonia. More generally, through the lens of 654 hyperdominant species, we outline a tractable pathway for understanding the functioning of half of Amazonian forests across vertical strata and geographical locations.
Keyphrases
  • climate change
  • genetic diversity
  • physical activity
  • genome wide