Forest carbon stocks increase with higher dominance of ectomycorrhizal trees in high latitude forests

• Published in: Nature communications Vol. 15; no. 1; pp. 5959 - 11
• Main Authors: Yan, Guoyong, Fan, Chunnan, Zheng, Junqiang, Liu, Guancheng, Yu, Jinghua, Guo, Zhongling, Cao, Wei, Wang, Lihua, Wang, Wenjie, Meng, Qingfan, Zhang, Junhui, Li, Yan, Zheng, Jinping, Cui, Xiaoyang, Wang, Xiaochun, Xu, Lijian, Sun, Yan, Zhang, Zhi, Lü, Xiao-Tao, Zhang, Ying, Shi, Rongjiu, Hao, Guangyou, Feng, Yue, He, Jinsheng, Wang, Qinggui, Xing, Yajuan, Han, Shijie
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 16-07-2024; Nature Publishing Group; Nature Portfolio
• Subjects: 49/47; 631/158/2445; 631/158/2454; 704/47/4113; Accumulation; Arbuscular mycorrhizas; Carbon; Carbon - metabolism; China; Climate Change; Climate prediction; Climatic conditions; Dominance; Ectomycorrhizas; Forest management; Forests; Humanities and Social Sciences; Indigenous species; Latitude; multidisciplinary; Mycorrhizae - physiology; Plant species; Predictive control; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Soil - chemistry; Species richness; Trees; Trees - metabolism; Trees - microbiology; China
• ISSN: 2041-1723; 2041-1723
• DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-50423-9

Understanding the mechanisms controlling forest carbon accumulation is crucial for predicting and mitigating future climate change. Yet, it remains unclear whether the dominance of ectomycorrhizal (EcM) trees influences the carbon accumulation of entire forests. In this study, we analyzed forest inventory data from over 4000 forest plots across Northeast China. We find that EcM tree dominance consistently exerts a positive effect on tree, soil, and forest carbon stocks. Moreover, we observe that these positive effects are more pronounced during unfavorable climate conditions, at lower tree species richness, and during early successional stages. This underscores the potential of increasing the dominance of native EcM tree species not only to enhance carbon stocks but also to bolster resilience against climate change in high-latitude forests. Here we show that forest managers can make informed decisions to optimize carbon accumulation by considering various factors such as mycorrhizal types, climate, successional stages, and species richness.
New study shows forests with ectomycorrhizal strategies accumulate more carbon stocks than forests dominated by arbuscular mycorrhizal or mixed mycorrhizal strategies in high-latitude.