Crown Exposure Regulates Aboveground Wood Productivity Responses to Soil Fertility in Lowland Tropical Forests
Issued Date
2025-12-01
Resource Type
ISSN
1461023X
eISSN
14610248
Scopus ID
2-s2.0-105024471252
Journal Title
Ecology Letters
Volume
28
Issue
12
Rights Holder(s)
SCOPUS
Bibliographic Citation
Ecology Letters Vol.28 No.12 (2025)
Suggested Citation
Medina-Vega J.A., Duque Á., Zuleta D., Castaño N., Valencia R., Aguilar S., Mitre D., Pérez R., Lum S.K.Y., Burslem D.F.R.P., O'Brien M.J., Reynolds G., Bunyavejchewin S., Pongpattananurak N., Phumsathan S., Ewango C.E.N., Makana J.R.M., Itoh A., Mohamad M.B., Tan S., Thompson J., Uriarte M., Zimmerman J.K., de Oliveira A.A., de Andrade A.C.S., da Silva J.B., Vicentini A., Brockelman W.Y., Nathalang A., Yao T.L., Ediriweera S., Novotny V., Weiblen G.D., Davies S.J. Crown Exposure Regulates Aboveground Wood Productivity Responses to Soil Fertility in Lowland Tropical Forests. Ecology Letters Vol.28 No.12 (2025). doi:10.1111/ele.70280 Retrieved from: https://repository.li.mahidol.ac.th/handle/123456789/113576
Title
Crown Exposure Regulates Aboveground Wood Productivity Responses to Soil Fertility in Lowland Tropical Forests
Author(s)
Medina-Vega J.A.
Duque Á.
Zuleta D.
Castaño N.
Valencia R.
Aguilar S.
Mitre D.
Pérez R.
Lum S.K.Y.
Burslem D.F.R.P.
O'Brien M.J.
Reynolds G.
Bunyavejchewin S.
Pongpattananurak N.
Phumsathan S.
Ewango C.E.N.
Makana J.R.M.
Itoh A.
Mohamad M.B.
Tan S.
Thompson J.
Uriarte M.
Zimmerman J.K.
de Oliveira A.A.
de Andrade A.C.S.
da Silva J.B.
Vicentini A.
Brockelman W.Y.
Nathalang A.
Yao T.L.
Ediriweera S.
Novotny V.
Weiblen G.D.
Davies S.J.
Duque Á.
Zuleta D.
Castaño N.
Valencia R.
Aguilar S.
Mitre D.
Pérez R.
Lum S.K.Y.
Burslem D.F.R.P.
O'Brien M.J.
Reynolds G.
Bunyavejchewin S.
Pongpattananurak N.
Phumsathan S.
Ewango C.E.N.
Makana J.R.M.
Itoh A.
Mohamad M.B.
Tan S.
Thompson J.
Uriarte M.
Zimmerman J.K.
de Oliveira A.A.
de Andrade A.C.S.
da Silva J.B.
Vicentini A.
Brockelman W.Y.
Nathalang A.
Yao T.L.
Ediriweera S.
Novotny V.
Weiblen G.D.
Davies S.J.
Author's Affiliation
Universidade de São Paulo
University of Minnesota Twin Cities
Columbia University
Göteborgs Universitet
University of Aberdeen
Osaka Metropolitan University
Kasetsart University
UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology
Universidad de Puerto Rico
Jihočeská Univerzita v Českých Budějovicích
Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Da Amazonia
Thailand National Science and Technology Development Agency
Universidad Nacional de Colombia Medellin
Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute
Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador
Institute of Entomology, Biology Centre of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic
Institut Penyelidikan Perhutanan Malaysia
Institute of Molecular Biosciences, Mahidol University
CSIC - Estación Experimental de Zonas Áridas (EEZA)
Asian School of the Environment
Uva Wellassa University
Université de Kisangani
Institute of Amazonian Research-Sinchi
Forest Department Sarawak
Southeast Asia Rainforest Research Partnership (SEARRP)
University of Minnesota Twin Cities
Columbia University
Göteborgs Universitet
University of Aberdeen
Osaka Metropolitan University
Kasetsart University
UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology
Universidad de Puerto Rico
Jihočeská Univerzita v Českých Budějovicích
Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Da Amazonia
Thailand National Science and Technology Development Agency
Universidad Nacional de Colombia Medellin
Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute
Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador
Institute of Entomology, Biology Centre of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic
Institut Penyelidikan Perhutanan Malaysia
Institute of Molecular Biosciences, Mahidol University
CSIC - Estación Experimental de Zonas Áridas (EEZA)
Asian School of the Environment
Uva Wellassa University
Université de Kisangani
Institute of Amazonian Research-Sinchi
Forest Department Sarawak
Southeast Asia Rainforest Research Partnership (SEARRP)
Corresponding Author(s)
Other Contributor(s)
Abstract
Understanding the drivers of aboveground wood productivity (AWP) in tropical forests is crucial for explaining ecosystem functioning and predicting their responses to environmental change. While climatic water availability is a well-established driver, the role of soil nutrients and their interaction with other resources remains uncertain. We investigated how soil nutrients and light interactions shape AWP in lowland tropical forests using fine-scale soil and tree (≥ 1 cm DBH) data from 15 large forest plots. Canopy-exposed trees are nutrient-limited, with AWP increasing more with phosphorus (P) than with potassium (K), indicating P's greater role in plant growth and productivity. Conversely, understory AWP declined in fertile areas, likely due to intensified size-asymmetric competition. At the population level (mean across canopy layers), no relationship between soil nutrients and AWP emerged because contrasting responses among layers offset any overall association. Our results suggest that fine-scale heterogeneity and canopy stratification drive nutrient effects on tropical forest productivity.