Abstract
The challenge- Tropical forests are global hotspots of biodiversity, play key roles in the global carbon and water cycle and deliver crucial ecosystem services but are threatened by deforestation and global change. We focus on forests that regrow after complete forest removal for agriculture (“secondary forests”-SF), because they cover large areas, have great potential to recover biodiversity and carbon, and are the basis for ecosystem restoration. The key challenge is to quantify and understand forest resilience: to what extent are regrowing forests able to recover and deliver the same quality and services as old-growth forests? Aims- This study aims to 1) quantify the resilience of different forest attributes, 2) analyse the environmental and anthropogenic drivers and mechanisms of resilience, 3) analyse community assembly using a trait-based approach. Approach- A recent disciplinary breakthrough offers exciting opportunities for progress and novel insights. We will use a unique network of 45 sites with recovering forests across Latin America to quantify resilience for forests across the continent. Impact- This research will provide insight into the resilience of tropical forests and its underlying mechanisms at an unprecedented spatiotemporal scale. The results allow to make evidence-based decisions for managing secondary succession as the natural engine of forest restoration, and for designing effective forest restoration strategies.
Netherlands