Trait diversity enhances biomass gains via canopy packing in old-growth but not in disturbed Amazon forests

Abstract The existence of a causal link between biodiversity and forest productivity remains largely unexplored in natural systems, especially in hyper-diverse tropical forests. Canopy packing— greater crown complementarity, resulting in more densely packed canopies—has recently emerged as a key structural pathway through which diversity influences forest functioning, though evidence remains limited and sometimes contradictory.In this study, we used repeated airborne LiDAR acquisitions and long-term field monitoring from a tropical logging experiment in French Guiana to quantify canopy packing using the Shannon evenness of plant area density (PAD) and assess its role in mediating the relationship between trait diversity and biomass gains in old-growth and disturbed Amazonian forest stands.Our results show that, in undisturbed forests, functionally diverse communities promote greater canopy packing, which in turn enhances biomass gains. However, this effect was absent in previously logged stands, where forest structural diversity did not fully recover even after 40 years. Our findings indicate that logging reduces canopy structural complexity and disrupts the link between species composition, canopy packing, and productivity in these hyper-diverse, hyper-productive ecosystems. Significance Statement In this study, measurements from repeated airborne LiDAR acquisitions and long-term field monitoring from a tropical logging experiment in the Amazon forest are used to understand the causal link between biodiversity and forest productivity. The study shows that greater crown complementarity mediates diversity-productivity relationships, with functionally diverse communities promoting greater canopy packing, which in turn enhances biomass gains. However, this effect is lost in disturbed forests. These findings are relevant for understand the ecological mechanisms driving forest productivity and tropical forests response to disturbance and for forest carbon management strategies.