Carbon balance of Ghanaian forests: carbon stocks and turnover of trees and lianas based on long-term forest inventories
PhD opportunity in tropical forest ecology 2008
School of Geography, University of Leeds
EU citizen can apply for a NERC Studentship
Closing date 20-Feb-2008
Supervisors: Oliver Phillips, Ted Feldpausch, Simon Lewis, Tim Baker
For further details, contact Ted Feldpausch (T.R.Feldpausch@leeds.ac.uk)
The Guinean forest of West Africa, extending for an estimated 1,300,000 km2, has been reduced to just 15% of its original vegetation. The forests represent a significant carbon stock, with potential to offset some of the effects of global warming through carbon sequestration (1,2,3). However, with little long-term monitoring the carbon balance of these forests is uncertain. Understanding carbon stocks and sequestration rates is particularly important as tropical forests are a critical component of the global carbon cycle, storing approximately 40% of terrestrial carbon. Furthermore, the abundance and productivity of large lianas seems to be increasing in undisturbed neotropical forests (4). While causes for this increase remain elusive, there is evidence that increasing CO2 concentrations under climate change may provide a competitive advantage for lianas (5), but other factors such as changes in seasonal drought regimes may play a role.
This project will use long-term forest inventories to measure how the carbon balance of the forests of Ghana is changing and if there has been an associated change in liana abundance. This will be the longest geographically extensive study of tree and liana dynamics in W. Africa, and provide a first test of the hypothesis that tree biomass and lianas are increasing not only in South America, but across the tropics.
This is an exciting opportunity for a talented young ecologist keen on tropical fieldwork and interested in developing a scientific career in ecology, forestry, or carbon management. The project will involve substantial fieldwork in Ghana and data analysis. The successful applicant will work with an international research team at the Univ. of Leeds and develop partnerships with African researchers. The candidate will lead assessment of tree diversity, biomass and liana infestation through recensus of 20 year-old permanent plots in Ghana.
If you are an EU citizen you can apply for a NERC Studentship to pay for your fees and living costs (£12,900/year) or other University of Leeds scholarships. Visit the School of Geography website for more funding info:
References
1. T. R. Baker et al., Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London Series B-Biological Sciences 359, 353 (Mar 29, 2004).
2. S. L. Lewis, Y. Malhi, O. L. Phillips, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London Series B-Biological Sciences 359, 437 (Mar 29, 2004).
3. O. L. Phillips et al., Science 282, 439 (Oct 16, 1998).
4. O. L. Phillips et al., Nature 418, 770 (Aug, 2002).
5. J. Granados, C. Korner, Global Change Biology 8, 1109 (Nov, 2002).
6. S. L. Lewis, O. L. Phillips, T. R. Baker, Trends in Ecology & Evolution 21, 173 (Apr, 2006).
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