Biomass resilience of Neotropical secondary forests

This research paper analyzes aboveground biomass recovery across 45 forest sites and approximately 1,500 plots in the Neotropics, finding that secondary forests are highly productive and resilient, with recovery rates significantly exceeding those of old-growth forests.

• Secondary forests in the Neotropics exhibit high productivity and resilience. After 20 years, the average aboveground biomass recovery was 122 megagrams per hectare (Mg ha-1), which represents a net carbon uptake of 3.05 Mg C ha-1 yr-1, a rate 11 times higher than that of old-growth forests.
• The median time for aboveground biomass stocks to recover to 90% of old-growth values is 66 years.
• Biomass recovery after 20 years shows significant variation across sites, ranging from 20 to 225 Mg ha-1 (an 11.3-fold difference), and is positively correlated with water availability, specifically higher local rainfall and lower climatic water deficit.

APA

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (2025). Biomass resilience of Neotropical secondary forests. https://iai.int/es/pub_acad/biomass-resilience-of-neotropical-secondary-forests/

Chicago

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research. Biomass resilience of Neotropical secondary forests. 2025. https://iai.int/es/pub_acad/biomass-resilience-of-neotropical-secondary-forests/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research |title=Biomass resilience of Neotropical secondary forests |date=13 January 2025 |url=https://iai.int/es/pub_acad/biomass-resilience-of-neotropical-secondary-forests/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{interamericaninstituteforglobalchangeresearch2025biomass, author = {{Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}}, title = {{Biomass resilience of Neotropical secondary forests}}, institution = {Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}, year = {2025}, month = jan, url = {https://iai.int/es/pub_acad/biomass-resilience-of-neotropical-secondary-forests/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }