More abundant tree species unlikely to return after droughts

Researchers around the world have found an alarming lack of natural replacement of dominant tree species after droughts.

Forests are experiencing growing risks of drought-induced deaths in a heating world yet the dynamics of these ecosystems following drought deaths remain largely unknown. This is a major limitation to understanding the ecological consequences of the climate crisis and the impact on humanity.

A team of researchers from across the globe have studied these issues and provide an emerging picture of post-drought ecological trajectories based on field indicators of forest dynamics.

Writing in the journal, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, in November 2020, the team found, alarmingly, that replacement pattern…