Deforestation amplifies climate change effects on warming and cloud level rise in African montane forests.

Autor: Abera TA; Department of Environmental Informatics, Faculty of Geography, Philipps-Universität Marburg, Deutschhausstraße 12, 35037, Marburg, Germany. temesgen.abera@geo.uni-marburg.de.; Department of Geosciences and Geography, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 68, FI-00014, Helsinki, Finland. temesgen.abera@geo.uni-marburg.de., Heiskanen J; Department of Geosciences and Geography, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 68, FI-00014, Helsinki, Finland.; Finnish Meteorological Institute, P.O. Box 503, FI-00101, Helsinki, Finland., Maeda EE; Department of Geosciences and Geography, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 68, FI-00014, Helsinki, Finland.; Finnish Meteorological Institute, P.O. Box 503, FI-00101, Helsinki, Finland., Muhammed MA; Department of Environmental Informatics, Faculty of Geography, Philipps-Universität Marburg, Deutschhausstraße 12, 35037, Marburg, Germany.; School of Earth Sciences, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia., Bhandari N; Department of Environmental Informatics, Faculty of Geography, Philipps-Universität Marburg, Deutschhausstraße 12, 35037, Marburg, Germany., Vakkari V; Finnish Meteorological Institute, P.O. Box 503, FI-00101, Helsinki, Finland.; Atmospheric Chemistry Research Group, Chemical Resource Beneficiation, North-West University, Potchefstroom, South Africa., Hailu BT; Department of Geosciences and Geography, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 68, FI-00014, Helsinki, Finland.; School of Earth Sciences, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia., Pellikka PKE; Department of Geosciences and Geography, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 68, FI-00014, Helsinki, Finland.; State Key Laboratory for Information Engineering in Surveying, Mapping and Remote Sensing, Wuhan University, Wuhan, 430079, China., Hemp A; Department of Plant Systematics, University of Bayreuth, 95440, Bayreuth, Germany., van Zyl PG; Atmospheric Chemistry Research Group, Chemical Resource Beneficiation, North-West University, Potchefstroom, South Africa., Zeuss D; Department of Environmental Informatics, Faculty of Geography, Philipps-Universität Marburg, Deutschhausstraße 12, 35037, Marburg, Germany.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: Nature communications [Nat Commun] 2024 Aug 14; Vol. 15 (1), pp. 6992. Date of Electronic Publication: 2024 Aug 14.
DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-51324-7
Abstrakt: Tropical montane forest ecosystems are pivotal for sustaining biodiversity and essential terrestrial ecosystem services, including the provision of high-quality fresh water. Nonetheless, the impact of montane deforestation and climate change on the capacity of forests to deliver ecosystem services is yet to be fully understood. In this study, we offer observational evidence demonstrating the response of air temperature and cloud base height to deforestation in African montane forests over the last two decades. Our findings reveal that approximately 18% (7.4 ± 0.5 million hectares) of Africa's montane forests were lost between 2003 and 2022. This deforestation has led to a notable increase in maximum air temperature (1.37 ± 0.58 °C) and cloud base height (236 ± 87 metres), surpassing shifts attributed solely to climate change. Our results call for urgent attention to montane deforestation, as it poses serious threats to biodiversity, water supply, and ecosystem services in the tropics.
(© 2024. The Author(s).)
Databáze: MEDLINE
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