@article{PAR00023343,
  title = {{H}igh aboveground carbon stock of {A}frican tropical montane forests},
  author = {{C}uni-{S}anchez, {A}. and {S}ullivan, {M}. {J}. {P}. and {P}latts, {P}. {J}. and {L}ewis, {S}. {L}. and {M}archant, {R}. and {I}mani, {G}. and {H}ubau, {W}. and {D}roissart, {V}incent and et al.},
  editor = {},
  language = {{ENG}},
  abstract = {{T}ropical forests store 40-50 per cent of terrestrial vegetation carbon(1). {H}owever, spatial variations in aboveground live tree biomass carbon ({AGC}) stocks remain poorly understood, in particular in tropical montane forests(2). {O}wing to climatic and soil changes with increasing elevation(3), {AGC} stocks are lower in tropical montane forests compared with lowland forests(2). {H}ere we assemble and analyse a dataset of structurally intact old-growth forests ({A}fri{M}ont) spanning 44 montane sites in 12 {A}frican countries. {W}e find that montane sites in the {A}fri{M}ont plot network have a mean {AGC} stock of 149.4 megagrams of carbon per hectare (95% confidence interval 137.1-164.2), which is comparable to lowland forests in the {A}frican {T}ropical {R}ainforest {O}bservation {N}etwork(4) and about 70 per cent and 32 per cent higher than averages from plot networks in montane(2,5,6) and lowland(7) forests in the {N}eotropics, respectively. {N}otably, our results are two-thirds higher than the {I}ntergovernmental {P}anel on {C}limate {C}hange default values for these forests in {A}frica(8). {W}e find that the low stem density and high abundance of large trees of {A}frican lowland forests(4) is mirrored in the montane forests sampled. {T}his carbon store is endangered: we estimate that 0.8 million hectares of old-growth {A}frican montane forest have been lost since 2000. {W}e provide country-specific montane forest {AGC} stock estimates modelled from our plot network to help to guide forest conservation and reforestation interventions. {O}ur findings highlight the need for conserving these biodiverse(9,10) and carbon-rich ecosystems. {T}he aboveground carbon stock of a montane {A}frican forest network is comparable to that of a lowland {A}frican forest network and two-thirds higher than default values for these montane forests.},
  keywords = {{AFRIQUE} ; {BURUNDI} ; {ETHIOPIE} ; {KENYA} ; {RWANDA} ; {TANZANIE} ; {OUGANDA} ; {ZIMBABWE} ; {CAMEROUN} ; {GUINEE} ; {MOZAMBIQUE} ; {NIGERIA} ; {ZONE} {TROPICALE} ; {REPUBLIQUE} {DEMOCRATIQUE} {DU} {CONGO}},
  booktitle = {},
  journal = {{N}ature},
  volume = {596},
  numero = {7873},
  pages = {536--542 + 13 p.},
  ISSN = {0028-0836},
  year = {2021},
  DOI = {10.1038/s41586-021-03728-4},
  URL = {https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/{PAR}00023343},
}