Kolloquium: Laynara Lugli

Fine roots play a critical role in tropical forest ecosystems, influencing and responding to biogeochemical cycles in complex ways. They are essential for nutrient and water acquisition, carbon cycling, and biomass contribution, making them key components of ecosystem functioning. By examining fine root traits and dynamics, we gain valuable insights into plant resource allocation strategies, functional diversity, and ecosystem resilience. These traits also serve as indicators of how tropical forests may adapt to climate change, offering clues into phenotypic plasticity, drought response, and carbon storage potential. Furthermore, understanding fine root dynamics enhances our ability to model and predict forest responses to environmental changes, providing crucial information for conservation and management strategies in the face of global climate challenges. This talk will explore the bidirectional interactions between fine roots and biogeochemical cycles, highlighting their role in shaping—and being shaped by—the tropical forest environment. I aim to address these complex interactions and responses to climate change by first positioning tropical forest root functioning within a global context. I will then focus on observational data and large-scale manipulation experiments in the central Amazon, exploring how insights from these studies can inform dynamic vegetation models and improve our ability to accurately represent tropical forest ecosystems.