Fischer, Rico; Ensslin, Andreas; Rutten, Gemma Gerarda Petronella M.; Fischer, Markus; Schellenberger Costa, David; Kleyer, Michael; Hemp, Andreas; Paulick, Sebastian; Huth, Andreas (2015). Simulating Carbon Stocks and Fluxes of an African Tropical Montane Forest with an Individual-Based Forest Model. PLoS ONE, 10(4), e0123300. Public Library of Science 10.1371/journal.pone.0123300
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Tropical forests are carbon-dense and highly productive ecosystems. Consequently, they play an important role in the global carbon cycle. In the present study we used an individual-based forest model (FORMIND) to analyze the carbon balances of a tropical forest. The main processes of this model are tree growth, mortality, regeneration, and competition. Model parameters were calibrated using forest inventory data from a tropical forest at Mt. Kilimanjaro. The simulation results showed that the model successfully reproduces important characteristics of tropical forests (aboveground biomass, stem size distribution and leaf area index). The estimated aboveground biomass (385 t/ha) is comparable to biomass values in the Amazon and other tropical forests in Africa. The simulated forest reveals a gross primary production of 24 tcha-1yr-1. Modeling above- and belowground carbon stocks, we analyzed the carbon balance of the investigated tropical forest. The simulated carbon balance of this old-growth forest is zero on average. This study provides an example of how forest models can be used in combination with forest inventory data to investigate forest structure and local carbon balances.
Item Type: |
Journal Article (Original Article) |
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Division/Institute: |
08 Faculty of Science > Department of Biology > Institute of Plant Sciences (IPS) > Plant Ecology 08 Faculty of Science > Department of Biology > Institute of Plant Sciences (IPS) |
UniBE Contributor: |
Ensslin, Andreas, Rutten, Gemma, Fischer, Markus |
Subjects: |
500 Science > 580 Plants (Botany) |
ISSN: |
1932-6203 |
Publisher: |
Public Library of Science |
Language: |
English |
Submitter: |
Peter Alfred von Ballmoos-Haas |
Date Deposited: |
21 May 2015 11:20 |
Last Modified: |
02 Mar 2023 23:26 |
Publisher DOI: |
10.1371/journal.pone.0123300 |
Uncontrolled Keywords: |
forests, trees, ecosystems, simulation and modelling, leaves, carbon sink, carbon sequestration, climate change |
BORIS DOI: |
10.7892/boris.68554 |
URI: |
https://boris.unibe.ch/id/eprint/68554 |
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