A study in Global Change Biology shows that just 15 to 25 tree species make up nearly half of the trees and carbon stocks in regrowing Amazon forests.While pioneer species grow quickly, experts warn that forests need a robust succession of stronger trees to avoid ecological decline over time.Understanding these forest dynamics may help Brazil meet its international pledge to restore 12 million hectares (30 million acres) of forest by 2030.
A few tree species are key to restoring biodiversity and carbon storage in deforested areas of the Brazilian Amazon, suggests an article published in June in Global Change Biology. Researchers examined 102 plots under natural regeneration in four municipalities in Pará state — Bragantina, Marabá, Paragominas and Santarém — and concluded that a range of 15 to 25 species accounted for nearly half of the trees present and half of the plots’ carbon stocks.
Among these species are the embaúba (Cecropia palmata), the tatapiririca (Tapirira guianensis), the ingá-vermelho (Inga alba), and the araticum-bravo (Annona exsucca).
This relatively short list of hyperdominant species could “guide assisted restoration and enrichment strategies” in the Amazon, the researchers said, and help Brazil meet the goal of restoring 12 million hectares (30 million acres) of forests by 2030, an area roughly the size of North Korea.
