Variation in Tree Community Composition and Carbon Stock under Natural and Human Disturbances in Andean Forests, Peru

Kazuki Miyamoto,Edgar Arana Olivos,Christian Rohner Stornaiuolo,Gabriel Clostre Orellana,Tamotsu Sato

doi:10.3390/f9070390

Kazuki Miyamoto, Edgar Arana Olivos + Show 3 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/f9070390

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Abstract

Deforestation and forest degradation in Andean forests is influenced by natural and social environments including a wide elevation range and anthropogenic disturbance. Tree community composition is receiving attention as a key indicator of forest degradation. However, difference in factors affecting community composition at different elevation zones remains unclear. We aimed at elucidating factors (natural and human disturbances, and forest characteristics) that influence the variations in community composition in Andean forests. We conducted a ground-based survey setting 45 plots across a wide elevation range (ca. 600 to 3500 m a.s.l.) in Cusco region, Peru. Above ground biomass (AGB) decreased with increasing elevation. The generalized linear models for multivariate abundance data suggested that a factor affecting community composition was natural disturbance (erosion) at low elevation (<1000 m), while human disturbance (infrastructure such as sheds and trails) at high elevation (≥2400 m). Within each of the different elevation zones, the AGB affected community composition only at mid elevation (1000–2400 m), whereas mean tree height showed a consistent effect on community composition across the three elevations. Our results suggest that the effects of human disturbance on community composition were more prominent at higher elevation. The results also suggest that mean tree height may have a potential to be a key measure for evaluating variations in community composition in Andean forests.

Highlights

Deforestation and forest degradation are a main source of CO2 emissions in the ‘forestry and other land use’ sector that account for 12% of anthropogenic CO2 emissions [1], and the greatest driver of species extinction and biodiversity loss [2,3]
The REDD+ safeguards are intended to emphasize the importance of forest biodiversity conservation and to protect biodiversity against ‘side effects’ derived from REDD+ activities within a climate change mitigation framework [50]
In addition to this aspect of the safeguards, the present study suggested that under the influence of natural and human disturbances, the changes in community composition might be linked to the degradation of forest structure

Summary

Introduction

Deforestation and forest degradation are a main source of CO2 emissions in the ‘forestry and other land use’ sector that account for 12% of anthropogenic CO2 emissions [1], and the greatest driver of species extinction and biodiversity loss [2,3]. The mechanism for reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD+) has been primarily developed as a climate change mitigation option [4]. It has been expanded to include the roles of conserving and enhancing forest carbon stocks, and safeguarding biodiversity and local community life [5,6]. As conservation of forest carbon stocks can contribute to conservation of habitats for organisms through maintaining forest structure, REDD+ has a potential to provide co-benefits for climate change mitigation and biodiversity conservation [2,7,8]. While development of Forests 2018, 9, 390; doi:10.3390/f9070390 www.mdpi.com/journal/forests

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