The global spectrum of tree crown architecture

• Autores: Jucker, Tommaso; Fischer, Fabian Jörg; Chave, Jérôme; Coomes, David A.; Caspersen, John; Ali, Arshad; Loubota Panzou, Grace Jopaul; Feldpausch, Ted R.; Usoltsev, Vladimir A.; Peri, Pablo Luis; Zimmermann, Niklaus E.
• Año de publicación: 2025
• Idioma: inglés
• Tipo de recurso: artículo
• Fuente: Nature Communications 16 : e4876. (May 2025)
• Materia: Trees; Primary Forests; Crown Classes; Architecture; Tree Height; Water Availability; Árboles; Bosques Primarios; Clases de Copas; Arquitectura; Altura del Arbol; Disponibilidad del Agua; Light Competition; Plant Lineages; Tree Crown Architecture; Woody Ecosystems; Competencia por la Luz; Linaje de Plantas; Arquitectura de las Copas de los Arboles; Ecosistemas Leñosos
• Institución: Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria

Trees can differ enormously in their crown architectural traits, such as the scaling relationships between tree height, crown width and stem diameter. Yet despite the importance of crown architecture in shaping the structure and function of terrestrial ecosystems, we lack a complete picture of what drives this incredible diversity in crown shapes. Using data from 374,888 globally distributed trees, we explore how climate, disturbance, competition, functional traits, and evolutionary history constrain the height and crown width scaling relationships of 1914 tree species. We find that variation in height–diameter scaling relationships is primarily controlled by water availability and light competition. Conversely, crown width is predominantly shaped by exposure to wind and fire, while also covarying with functional traits related to mechanical stability and photosynthesis. Additionally, we identify several plant lineages with highly distinctive stem and crown forms, such as the exceedingly slender dipterocarps of Southeast Asia, or the extremely wide crowns of legume trees in African savannas. Our study charts the global spectrum of tree crown architecture and pinpoints the processes that shape the 3D structure of woody ecosystems.
EEA Santa Cruz, INTA
Fil: Jucker, Tommaso. University of Bristol. School of Biological Sciences; Reino Unido
Fil: Fischer, Fabian Jörg. University of Bristol. School of Biological Sciences; Reino Unido
Fil: Chave, Jérôme. Université de Toulouse. Centre de Recherche sur la Biodiversité et l’Environnement, CNRS, INPT, IRD; Francia
Fil: Coomes, David A. University of Cambridge. Conservation Research Institute; Reino Unido
Fil: Caspersen, John. University of Toronto. Institute of Forestry and Conservation; Canadá.
Fil: Ali, Arshad. Hebei University. College of Life Sciences. Forest Ecology Research Group; China.
Fil: Loubota Panzou, Grace Jopaul. Université DENIS SASSOU-N’GUESSO. Institut Supérieur des Sciences Géographiques, Environnementales et de l’Aménagement (ISSGEA); República del Congo
Fil: Loubota Panzou, Grace Jopaul. Université Marien NGOUABI. Faculté des Sciences et Techniques. Laboratoire de Biodiversité, de Gestion des Ecosystèmes et de l’Environnement (LBGE). Brazzaville; República del Congo
Fil: Feldpausch, Ted R. University of Exeter. Faculty of Environment, Science and Economy; Reino Unido
Fil: Falster, Daniel. University of New South Wales Sydney. Evolution & Ecology Research Centre; Australia.
Fil: Usoltsev, Vladimir A. Ural State Forest Engineering and Economic University. Department of Forest Mensuration and Management; Rusia.
Fil: Peri, Pablo Luis. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Santa Cruz; Argentina.
Fil: Peri, Pablo Luis. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia Austral; Argentina.
Fil: Peri, Pablo Luis. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina.
Fil: Zimmermann, Niklaus E. Swiss Federal Research Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL; Suiza