Abstract
Among the impacts of climate change, there is the intensification of phenomena such as the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) responsible for El Niño and La Niña. However, understanding their effects on the functional processes of forests is limited. Therefore, this study evaluated the effects of ENSO on litter stock and water holding capacity (WHC) in a successional forest in eastern Amazonia. Evaluations occurred in periods with the most rainfall in El Niño (2019) and least in La Niña (2021) years. Twelve permanent plots were used to sample litter. ENSO effects were evident for WHC, higher during El Niño. However, this influence was not clear for litter, as only in the rainy season effects were found. There was a positive correlation of WHC with precipitation and humidity, while litter stocks were negatively correlated with temperature and wind speed. Although the subject of this study requires long-term assessments, preliminary results suggests that, depending on the intensity of ENSO, forest functional processes can be strongly impacted and altered. The conclusion reinforces warnings by the scientific community about the impacts of climate change on the maintenance of litter stocks, decomposition and, consequently, the biogeochemical cycle and essential ecosystem services for the maintenance of Amazonia biodiversity. The need to develop long-term research to understand the effects of climatic change on litter stocks and water holding capacity is highlighted, especially in Amazonia.
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Acknowledgements
The Ecosystem and Watershed Management Laboratory of the Federal Rural University of the Amazonia processed data and samples. The Graduate Program in Forest Science is at the Federal Rural University of Amazonia. We are also grateful to three anonymous reviewers for their substantial contribution to improve the quality of this article.
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JIMR conceived the idea and designed the research; JIMR, WBRM, VPO and MSSW structured the manuscript and analyzed the data; JIMR and HBSJ collected the data; FAO assisted in the revision of the manuscript; all authors discussed the results and approved the latest version of the article.
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Project Funding: This study was funded in part by Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior Brazil (CAPES), Finance Code 001. A master’s scholarship was granted by CAPES to JIMR (Process 88887.716287/2022-00) and a doctoral scholarship to VPO (Process 88887.644953/2021-00).
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Rodrigues, J.I., Martins, W.B.R., de Oliveira, V.P. et al. ENSO impacts on litter stocks and water holding capacity in secondary forests in eastern Amazonia. J. For. Res. 35, 8 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11676-023-01665-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11676-023-01665-8