About a dozen companies are contributing to a novel conservation plan that pays Ecuador to protect part of the Amazon rainforest in return for barring oil drilling, the head of the initiative said
We present a unique proxy for the reconstruction of variation in precipitation over the Amazon: oxygen isotope ratios in annual rings in tropical cedar (Cedrela odorata). A century-long record from northern Bolivia shows that tree rings preserve the signal of oxygen isotopes in precipitation during the wet season, with weaker influences of temperature and vapor pressure. Tree ring δ18O correlates strongly with δ18O in precipitation from distant stations in the center and west of the basin, and with Andean ice core δ18O showing that the signal is coherent over large areas.
A wide range of evidences indicate climate change as one the greatest threats to biodiversity in the 21st century. The impacts of these changes, which may have already resulted in several recent species extinction, are species-specific and produce shifts in species phenology, ecological interactions, and geographical distributions.
An update to one of the most comprehensive maps of the Amazon basin shows that forest cover across the world's largest rainforest declined by about six percent between 2000 and 2010.
From regulating climate systems to offering food and medicines, to being home to many plants, animals, and indigenous people, rainforests are not only a local ecosystem but their benefits extend gl
Two of the world's last uncontacted tribes are under threat from oil exploration deep into the heart of the Amazon forest in Ecuador, according to conservationists, who say this may indirectly add
Hydrological processes in the humid tropics differ from other regions in having greater energy inputs and faster rates of change. In this Review it is argued that understanding of the key hydrological interactions there remains limited, and a vision of future research designed to address these shortcomings is outlined.
Brazil's Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered work on the controversial Belo Monte dam in the Amazon to resume, overturning a lower court order that suspended the project less than two weeks ago.
The rate of deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon has plummeted by 77% in the past seven years, but annual carbon emissions associated with deforestation have not fallen nearly as much, says a Brazilian study that combines satellite data and biomass maps to model the change. The difference is in large part due to a natural lag as carbon stocks slowly decay and make their way into the atmosphere as carbon dioxide.
