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Updated: Feb 26, 2026

A Method for Quantifying Foliage-Dwelling Arthropods
Published on: October 20, 2019
Tree functional types simplify forest carbon stock estimates induced by carbon concentration variations among species
Huili Wu1,2, Wenhua Xiang3,4, Xi Fang1,2
1Faculty of Life Science and Technology, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha, Hunan, 410004, China.
Abstract:
Forests contain one of the world's largest carbon (C) pools and represent opportunities for cost-effective climate change mitigation through programmes such as the United Nations-led "Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation" Programme (REDD). Generic estimates for the conversion of forest biomass into C stock are not sufficiently accurate for assessing the utility of harvesting forest to offset carbon dioxide emissions, currently under consideration by the REDD Programme. We examined the variation in C concentration among tree species and tree functional types (classified based on leaf morphological and phenological traits) in a subtropical forest and evaluated the effects of these variations on stand-level estimations of C stock. This study was conducted in the Paiyashan Forest State Farm and the Dashanchong Forest Park, Hunan Province, China. C concentrations differed significantly among tree species (P < 0.0001) and were significantly higher in gymnosperm than angiosperm species. Estimations of stand C stocks were similar using either functional types or species- and tissue-specific C concentrations. The use of functional type classification to estimate stand C stock is an effective tool for implementing C sequestration trade and C credit programmes and the UN-REDD Programme in subtropical forests.
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