Five decades of observations reveal regional features of synchronised masting across Southeast Asia

Abstract Southeast Asia's dominant rainforest tree species act in reproductive unison every two to ten years to flood forests with seeds, a phenomenon called masting. Until now, masting has been documented mainly at the site scale with no consistent unit of comparison. While individual trees within a site synchronise reproduction, it remains unclear if sites across the region also synchronise, and whether all sites participate in regional masting events. Here, we compile the first regional dataset of masting events for Southeast Asia through collaboration with ecologists, botanists, conservation scientists, and a literature review. We use the 5,853 site-months of observation from 26 sites across five decades to define masting states using a novel statistical thresholding approach. We show that Southeast Asian masts cluster in time forming discrete regional masting periods separated by years of quiescence, and that site onset timing varies in antiphase across the equator. Masting is therefore a regional phenomenon, but still varies geographically, suggesting large scale triggers with geographic and local climate interactions. Masting is therefore a regional phenomenon, not a set of independent events, and can be studied as such. Our dataset can be used to answer a plethora of scientific questions and inform conservation actions in one of Earth’s most important regions for biodiversity and carbon cycling.

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Publication Details

Journal
Research Square
Published
2026-11-11
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-11424367/v1
Primary Topic
Animal Ecology and Behavior Studies
Type
preprint
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preprint

Five decades of observations reveal regional features of synchronised masting across Southeast Asia

Francis Q. Brearley, Endro Setiawan, Jedediah F. Brodie, Badrul Azhar et al.
Research Square
Animal Ecology and Behavior Studies
preprint

Five decades of observations reveal regional features of synchronised masting across Southeast Asia

Francis Q. Brearley, Endro Setiawan, Jedediah F. Brodie, Badrul Azhar, Jayasilan Mohd‐Azlan, Vilma Bodos, Zoë E. Lieb, David F. R. P. Burslem, Jun Ying Lim, Akiko Satake, Lindsay F. Banin, Alys Granados, Shinya Numata, William Joseph McShea, Sui Peng Heon, Shoko Sakai, Michael J. O’Brien, Alex Sumadijaya, Gail Campbell‐Smith, Oliver R. Wearn, Kwek Yan Chong, Olivia G. Cosby, Heiko Wittmer, Karmele Sánchez, Matthew Luskin, Kim McConkey, Andrew Letten, Cheryl Knott, Andrew Marshall, Mark Harrison, Campbell Webb, Brooke Williams
preprint en

Abstract

Abstract Southeast Asia's dominant rainforest tree species act in reproductive unison every two to ten years to flood forests with seeds, a phenomenon called masting. Until now, masting has been documented mainly at the site scale with no consistent unit of comparison. While individual trees within a site synchronise reproduction, it remains unclear if sites across the region also synchronise, and whether all sites participate in regional masting events. Here, we compile the first regional dataset of masting events for Southeast Asia through collaboration with ecologists, botanists, conservation scientists, and a literature review. We use the 5,853 site-months of observation from 26 sites across five decades to define masting states using a novel statistical thresholding approach. We show that Southeast Asian masts cluster in time forming discrete regional masting periods separated by years of quiescence, and that site onset timing varies in antiphase across the equator. Masting is therefore a regional phenomenon, but still varies geographically, suggesting large scale triggers with geographic and local climate interactions. Masting is therefore a regional phenomenon, not a set of independent events, and can be studied as such. Our dataset can be used to answer a plethora of scientific questions and inform conservation actions in one of Earth’s most important regions for biodiversity and carbon cycling.

Research Square
Boston University (US), Manchester Metropolitan University (GB), Universiti Putra Malaysia (MY), Zoological Society of London (GB), National Parks Board (SG), National Science and Technology Development Agency (TH), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (ES), Kyushu University (JP), University of Alaska Fairbanks (US), Hong Kong Baptist University (HK), The University of Queensland (AU), National University of Singapore (SG), University of Aberdeen (GB), University of Exeter (GB), University of Michigan (US), Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (US), Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (MY), UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (GB), Forest Department Sarawak (MY), National Research and Innovation Agency (ID), Imperial College London (GB), University of Montana (US), Tokyo Metropolitan University (JP), University of Newcastle Australia (AU), National Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (TH)
Animal Ecology and Behavior Studies
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