The Role of Deadwood in the Carbon Cycle: Implications for Models, Forest Management, and Future Climates

Baptiste J. Wijas, Steven D. Allison, Amy T. Austin, William K. Cornwell, J. C. Hans Cornelissen, Paul Eggleton, Shawn Fraver, Mark K.J. Ooi, Jeff R. Powell, Christopher W. Woodall, Amy E. Zanne

Research output: Contribution to JournalReview articleAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

Deadwood represents a significant carbon pool and unique biodiversity reservoir in forests and savannas but has been largely overlooked until recently. Storage and release of carbon from deadwood is controlled by interacting decomposition drivers including biotic consumers (animals and microbes) and abiotic factors (water, fire, sunlight, and freeze–thaw). Although previous research has focused mainly on forests, we synthesize deadwood studies across diverse ecosystems with woody vegetation. As changing climates and land-use practices alter the landscape, we expect accelerating but variable rates of inputs and outputs from deadwood pools. Currently, Earth system models implicitly represent only microbial consumers as drivers of wood decomposition; we show that many other factors influence deadwood pools. Forest management practices increasingly recognize deadwood as an important contributor to forest dynamics, biodiversity, and carbon budgets. Together, emerging knowledge from modeling and management suggests a growing need for additional research on deadwood contributions to carbon storage and greenhouse gas emissions.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)133-155
Number of pages23
JournalAnnual Review of Ecology, Evolution, and Systematics
Volume55
Early online date2 Aug 2024
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2024

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 Annual Reviews Inc.. All rights reserved.

Keywords

  • carbon cycle
  • deadwood
  • global change
  • land management
  • modeling
  • soil

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