A global database of <scp>C</scp><sub>4</sub> photosynthesis in grasses

Osborne, Colin P.; Salomaa, Anna; Kluyver, Thomas; Visser, Vernon; Kellogg, Elizabeth A.; Morrone, Osvaldo; Vorontsova, Maria S.; Clayton, W. D.; Simpson, David A.

doi:10.1111/nph.12942

Cited by 125 publications

(100 citation statements)

References 35 publications

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“…In these communities, composition is mostly dominated by the fire-adapted C 4 lineage Andropogoneae (Heteropogon, Themeda, Cymbopogon, Dichanthium, Bothriochloa) [50,53,55,57,58]. In eastern Indochina, the grass layer of these savannahs is dominated by the herbaceous bamboo genus Vietnamosasa [66], a C 3 grass [67], which resprouts and flowers following fire. Deciduous broadleaf savannahs can support frequent fire, although annual fire is probably only due to human management of these landscapes [68].…”

Section: (A) Deciduous Broadleaf Savannahsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Savannahs of Asia: antiquity, biogeography, and an uncertain future

Ratnam

Tomlinson

Rasquinha

et al. 2016

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B

157

200

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The savannahs of Asia remain locally unrecognized as distinctive ecosystems, and continue to be viewed as degraded forests or seasonally dry tropical forests. These colonial-era legacies are problematic, because they fail to recognize the unique diversity of Asian savannahs and the critical roles of fire and herbivory in maintaining ecosystem health and diversity. In this review, we show that: the palaeo-historical evidence suggests that the savannahs of Asia have existed for at least 1 million years, long before widespread landscape modification by humans; savannah regions across Asia have levels of C 4 grass endemism and diversity that are consistent with area-based expectations for non-Asian savannahs; there are at least three distinct Asian savannah communities, namely deciduous broadleaf savannahs, deciduous fine-leafed and spiny savannahs and evergreen pine savannahs, with distinct functional ecologies consistent with fire-and herbivory-driven community assembly. Via an analysis of savannah climate domains on other continents, we map the potential extent of savannahs across Asia. We find that the climates of African savannahs provide the closest analogues for those of Asian deciduous savannahs, but that Asian pine savannahs occur in climates different to any of the savannahs in the southern continents. Finally, we review major threats to the persistence of savannahs in Asia, including the mismanagement of fire and herbivory, alien woody encroachment, afforestation policies and future climate uncertainty associated with the changing Asian monsoon. Research agendas that target these issues are urgently needed to manage and conserve these ecosystems.This article is part of the themed issue 'Tropical grassy biomes: linking ecology, human use and conservation'.

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Section: (A) Deciduous Broadleaf Savannahsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Savannahs of Asia: antiquity, biogeography, and an uncertain future

Ratnam

Tomlinson

Rasquinha

et al. 2016

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B

157

200

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“…Africa supports the largest extent of grassy biomes dominated by C4 grasses in the world [1]. They cover some 70% of the continent and are the dominant vegetation between latitudes 308 south and north of the equator.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The deforestation story: testing for anthropogenic origins of Africa's flammable grassy biomes

Bond

Zaloumis

2016

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B

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Africa has the most extensive C4 grassy biomes of any continent. They are highly flammable accounting for greater than 70% of the world's burnt area. Much of Africa's savannas and grasslands occur in climates warm enough and wet enough to support closed forests. The combination of open grassy systems and the frequent fires they support have long been interpreted as anthropogenic artefacts caused by humans igniting frequent fires. True grasslands, it was believed, would be restricted to climates too dry or too cold to support closed woody vegetation. The idea that higher-rainfall savannas are anthropogenic and that fires are of human origin has led to initiatives to 'reforest' Africa's open grassy systems paid for by carbon credits under the assumption that the net effect of converting these system to forests would sequester carbon, reduce greenhouse gases and mitigate global warming. This paper reviews evidence for the antiquity of African grassy ecosystems and for the fires that they sustain. Africa's grassy biomes and the fires that maintain them are ancient and there is no support for the idea that humans caused large-scale deforestation. Indicators of old-growth grasslands are described. These can help distinguish secondary grasslands suitable for reforestation from ancient grasslands that should not be afforested.This article is part of the themed issue 'The interaction of fire and mankind'.

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“…Estes dados estão de acordo com Osborne et al (2014), segundo os quais a maioria das gramíneas tropicais apresenta via fotossintética C4. As plantas C3 ocorrem preferencialmente em ambientes úmidos ou sombreados (ACIESP 1997), em todas as latitudes, ao passo que as plantas C4 são comuns em ambientes semiáridos e quentes, preferencialmente nas áreas tropicais e subtropicais (Chapman & Peat 1992).…”

Section: Resultsunclassified

Poaceae em uma planície de inundação no Brasil: distribuição espacial e conservação

et al. 2018

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ResumoAiming to improve the botanical and ecological knowledge of the area and therefore contribute to its conservation, we studied the distribution pattern of the grasses of PIAP and its environs. For the grasses of PIAP we considered: phytophysiognomy, light exposure, photosynthetic pathway, water condition of the substrate where they preferably occur, classification of the morphovegetation, and the absolute and relative frequencies. The results show that the species are distributed according to the geomorphological configuration of the PIAP, which are presented here in two schematic profiles.

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A global database of C₄ photosynthesis in grasses

Cited by 125 publications

References 35 publications

Savannahs of Asia: antiquity, biogeography, and an uncertain future

Savannahs of Asia: antiquity, biogeography, and an uncertain future

The deforestation story: testing for anthropogenic origins of Africa's flammable grassy biomes

Poaceae em uma planície de inundação no Brasil: distribuição espacial e conservação

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A global database of C4 photosynthesis in grasses

Cited by 125 publications

References 35 publications

Savannahs of Asia: antiquity, biogeography, and an uncertain future

Savannahs of Asia: antiquity, biogeography, and an uncertain future

The deforestation story: testing for anthropogenic origins of Africa's flammable grassy biomes

Poaceae em uma planície de inundação no Brasil: distribuição espacial e conservação

Contact Info

Product

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A global database of C₄ photosynthesis in grasses