The importance of tropical tree-ring chronologies for global change research

Tropical forests are vital to global carbon and water cycles, yet the effects of climate change on these systems remain poorly understood due to limited long-term data. This study compiles 492 tropical tree-ring chronologies to assess their potential in reconstructing climate variability and understanding the climate sensitivity of woody productivity. The analysis reveals that while tree-ring studies have expanded rapidly, they remain biased toward high-elevation and drier regions, with significant gaps in wetter climates and among angiosperms. The strongest climate signals are found in cooler, drier sites. Species-distribution modeling identifies untapped regions for future research. These findings highlight the value of tropical dendrochronology in global change science, offering insights into climate extremes, vegetation dynamics, and model validation.


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Authors

Groenendijk, P.,Babst, F.,Trouet, V.,Fan, Z.-X.,Granato-Souza, D.,Locosselli, G.M.,Mokria, M.,Panthi, S.,Pumijumnong, N.,Abiyu, A.,Acuña-Soto, R.,Adenesky-Filho, E.,Alfaro-Sánchez, R.,Anholetto Junior, C.R.,Aragão, J.R.V.,Assis-Pereira, G.,Astudillo-Sánchez, C.C.,Carolina Barbosa, A.,Barreto, N.D.O.,Battipaglia, G.,Beeckman, H.,Botosso, P.C.,Bourland, N.,Bräuning, A.,Brienen, R.,Brookhouse, M.,Buajan, S.,Buckley, B.M.,Camarero, J.J.,Carrillo-Parra, A.,Ceccantini, G.,Centeno-Erguera, L.R.,Cerano-Paredes, J.,Cervantes-Martínez, R.,Chanthorn, W.,Chen, Y.-J.,Cintra, B.B.L.,Cornejo-Oviedo, E.H.,Cortés-Cortés, O.,Costa, C.M.,Couralet, C.,Crispin-DelaCruz, D.B.,D'Arrigo, R.,David, D.A.,De Ridder, M.,Del Valle, J.I.,Díaz-Carrillo, O.A.,Dobner, Jr, M.,Doucet, J.-L.,Dünisch, O.,Enquist, B.J.,Esemann-Quadros, K.,Esquivel-Arriaga, G.,Fayolle, A.,Fenilli, T.A.B.,Ferrero, M.E.,Fichtler, E.,Finnegan, P.M.,Fontana, C.,Francisco, K.S.,Fu, P.-L.,Galvão, F.,Gebrekirstos, A.,Giraldo, J.A.,Gloor, E.,Godoy-Veiga, M.,Guerra, A.,Haneca, K.,Harley, G.L.,Heinrich, I.,Helle, G.,Hernández-Díaz, J.C.,Hornink, B.,Hubau, W.,Inga, J.G.,Islam, M.,Jiang, Y.-M.,Kaib, M.,Hassan, Khamisi, Z.,Koprowski, M.,Layme, E.,Leffler, A.J.,Ligot, G.,Lisi, C.S.,Loader, N.J.,Lobo, F.D.A.,Longhi-Santos, T.,Lopez, L.,López-Hernández, M.I.,Lousada, J.L.P.C.,Manzanedo, R.D.,Marcon, A.K.,Maxwell, J.T.,Mendivelso, H.A.,Mendoza-Villa, O.N.,Menezes, Í.R.N.,Montóia, V.R.,Moors, E.,Moreno, M.,Muñiz-Castro, M.A.,Nabais, C.,Nathalang, A.,Ngoma, J.,Nogueira Jr., F.D.C.,Oliveira, J.M.,Olmedo, G.M.,Ortega-Rodriguez, D.R.,Ortíz, C.E.R.,Pagotto, M.A.,Paredes-Villanueva, K.,Pérez-De-Lis, G.,Ponce Calderón, L.P.,Portal-Cahuana, L.A.,Pucha-Cofrep, D.A.,Quadri, P.,Rahman, M.,Ramírez, J.A.,Requena-Rojas, E.J.,Reyes-Flores, J.,Ribeiro, A.D.S.,Robertson, I.,Roig, F.A.,Roquette, J.G.,Rubio-Camacho, E.A.,Sánchez-Salguero, R.,Sass-Klaassen, U.,Schöngart, J.,Scipioni, M.C.,Sheppard, P.R.,Silva, L.C.R.,Slotta, F.,Soria-Díaz, L.,Sousa, L.K.V.S.,Speer, J.H.,Therrell, M.D.,Ticse-Otarola, G.,Tomazello-Filho, M.,Torbenson, M.C.A.,Tor-Ngern, P.,Touchan, R.,Van Den Bulcke, J.,Vázquez-Selem, L.,Velázquez-Pérez, A.H.,Venegas-González, A.,Villalba, R.,Villanueva-Diaz, J.,Vlam, M.,Vourlitis, G.,Wehenkel, C.,Wils, T.,Zavaleta, E.S.,Zewdu, E.A.,Zhang, Y.-J.,Zhou, Z.-K.,Zuidema, P.A.

Publication year

2025

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