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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Sep 8, 2025

A Simple Planting Technique for Re-establishing Trees Where Frequent Inundation Occurs

A Simple Planting Technique for Re-establishing Trees Where Frequent Inundation Occurs

Published on: January 26, 2018

Seed dispersal disruption limits tropical forest regrowth.

Evan C Fricke¹, Susan C Cook-Patton², Charles F Harvey¹

¹Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America

|July 24, 2025

Summary

Seed-dispersing animals are crucial for tropical forest carbon storage. Disrupting this vital ecological process due to biodiversity loss significantly reduces forests

Keywords:

animal biodiversity biodiversity loss climate change seed dispersal tropical forests

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Area of Science:

Ecology
Climate Change Science
Conservation Biology

Background:

Interconnectedness of biodiversity loss and climate change requires integrated solutions.
The role of seed-dispersing animals in forest carbon storage is understudied.
Tropical forests are significant carbon sinks, vulnerable to biodiversity declines.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the impact of seed dispersal disruption by animals on tropical forest carbon accumulation.
To quantify the reduction in carbon sequestration potential due to diminished animal diversity and movement.
To highlight the importance of conserving seed-dispersing fauna for climate change mitigation.

Main Methods:

Synthesized data on animal biodiversity, movement, and seed dispersal across thousands of species.
Developed a seed dispersal disruption index.
Modeled the relationship between this index and carbon accumulation in 3,026 tropical regrowth plots.

Main Results:

81% of tropical trees depend on animals for seed dispersal.
Areas with the lowest seed dispersal disruption showed 4x higher carbon accumulation rates.
Current dispersal disruption reduces local carbon accumulation potential by an average of 57% in reforestation areas.

Conclusions:

Biodiversity loss, specifically impacting seed-dispersing animals, severely hampers tropical forest carbon sequestration.
Conserving animal biodiversity is essential for maintaining the climate mitigation potential of tropical regrowth forests.
Addressing biodiversity loss and climate change concurrently is critical for effective conservation and climate action.