Species-specific wood density improves biomass estimation in Congo Basin peatland forests

The central Congo Basin hosts the world's largest tropical peat swamp forest (PSF), covering 167 600 km² and storing approximately 29 Pg of carbon below ground. However, estimates of above ground biomass (AGB) remain limited, partly owing to reliance on global wood density (WD) databases that may not reflect local species characteristics. This study assessed the impact of species-specific WD on AGB estimation in five PSF sites of the northern Republic of Congo. Specific WD was collected in one site, and these data were then used to estimate AGB in four additional sites. We collected wood cores using an increment borer from 244 trees to measure the WD of the 20 most abundant species (93% of trees with diameters ≥10 cm). Using global WD values overestimated AGB by 24.7% (p < 0.05). The low average local WD (0.460 ± 0.12 g cm-3) explained this difference. The WD variation was primarily species-driven (58%) and associated with functional traits; pioneer and evergreen species had lower WD. These findings highlight the importance of locally measured WD for accurate biomass and carbon stock estimation in tropical peatland forests. A French translation of this abstract is available in the supplementary material. This article is part of the discussion meeting issue 'African tropical peatlands: function, value and vulnerability'.

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Journal
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences
Published
2026-08-20
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2024.0484
Primary Topic
Fire effects on ecosystems
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00

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article

Species-specific wood density improves biomass estimation in Congo Basin peatland forests

Mackline Mbemba, Dafydd Crabtree, Yannick E. Bocko, Yeto Emmanuel Wenina Mampouya et al.
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences
Fire effects on ecosystems
article

Species-specific wood density improves biomass estimation in Congo Basin peatland forests

Mackline Mbemba, Dafydd Crabtree, Yannick E. Bocko, Yeto Emmanuel Wenina Mampouya, Nicholas T. Girkin, Greta C. Dargie, Sofie Sjögersten, Matteo Sciumbata, Andy J. Baird, Bart Crezee, Simon L. Lewis, Donna Hawthorne, Selena Georgiou, Yannick Garcin, Pauline Gulliver, Dylan M. Young, Ian T. Lawson, Peter Cook, Jean Joël Loumeto, Grâce Jopaul Loubota Panzou, Eleanor Burke, Richard Betts, Enno Schefuß, S. Page, Sarah Chadburn, A. Jonay Jovani-Sancho, Jealphée Annice Bibi-Loumoni, Suspense A. Ifo, Arnoud Boom, Corneille E. N. Ewango, Paul J. Morris
article en

Abstract

The central Congo Basin hosts the world's largest tropical peat swamp forest (PSF), covering 167 600 km² and storing approximately 29 Pg of carbon below ground. However, estimates of above ground biomass (AGB) remain limited, partly owing to reliance on global wood density (WD) databases that may not reflect local species characteristics. This study assessed the impact of species-specific WD on AGB estimation in five PSF sites of the northern Republic of Congo. Specific WD was collected in one site, and these data were then used to estimate AGB in four additional sites. We collected wood cores using an increment borer from 244 trees to measure the WD of the 20 most abundant species (93% of trees with diameters ≥10 cm). Using global WD values overestimated AGB by 24.7% (p < 0.05). The low average local WD (0.460 ± 0.12 g cm-3) explained this difference. The WD variation was primarily species-driven (58%) and associated with functional traits; pioneer and evergreen species had lower WD. These findings highlight the importance of locally measured WD for accurate biomass and carbon stock estimation in tropical peatland forests. A French translation of this abstract is available in the supplementary material. This article is part of the discussion meeting issue 'African tropical peatlands: function, value and vulnerability'.

Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological SciencesVol. 381(1956)
Met Office (GB), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR), University of Leeds (GB), University of Nottingham (GB), University of Leicester (GB), Bangor University (GB), University of St Andrews (GB), University of Bremen (DE), University of Exeter (GB), Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'Environnement (FR), UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (GB), Centre de Recherche et d’Enseignement de Géosciences de l’Environnement (FR), Institut Supérieur de Statistique de Lubumbashi (CD), Scottish Universities Environmental Research Centre (GB), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (FR), University College London (GB), Université de Kisangani (CD), Marien Ngouabi University (CG), University of Glasgow (GB), Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (NL), University of Edinburgh (GB)
Natural Environment Research Council
Life in Land
Openalex Percentile: Top 12%
Fire effects on ecosystems
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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