Preprints
Filtering by Subject: Plant Sciences
Fixed-ground multisensor monitoring resolves longitudinal vegetation condition and fuel-state structure in Southern California chaparral and oak scenes
Published: 2026-10-03
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Environmental Monitoring, Environmental Sciences, Forest Sciences, Geography, Life Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Plant Sciences, Remote Sensing, Social and Behavioral Sciences, Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology
Wildfire-relevant vegetation and fuel conditions evolve through interacting changes in vegetation condition, three-dimensional fuel structure, thermal response, and atmospheric drying, yet these dimensions are commonly monitored separately. This study evaluated repeated fixed-ground multisensor monitoring at two fixed vegetation scenes in Placerita Canyon, California. Multispectral imaging, [...]
Multi-site evaluation of an improved SIF-based model for estimating canopy GPP
Published: 2026-10-01
Subjects: Agriculture, Earth Sciences, Physiology, Plant Sciences
Sun-induced chlorophyll fluorescence (SIF) offers a promising path to quantify gross primary productivity (GPP) across spatiotemporal scales. Recent studies have demonstrated the applicability of the SIF-based mechanistic light response (qMLR-SIF) model for estimating canopy GPP. However, the inadequate simulation of the key parameter qL (the fraction of open photosystem II reaction centers) [...]
Forecasting the moisture content of live forest fuels with a transformer machine learning model and Sentinel-2 satellite data
Published: 2026-09-29
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Environmental Monitoring, Forest Biology, Forest Sciences, Meteorology, Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Other Plant Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Planetary Hydrology, Planetary Sciences, Plant Sciences, Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology
Live fuel moisture content (LFMC) provides an indicator of vegetation flammability, the potential for canopy dieback from drought, and habitat quality for arboreal fauna. Recent advances in artificial intelligence have increased the potential in meteorological forecasts for Earth surface forecasting. Combining weather forecasts with remotely sensed LFMC offers a promising avenue for short and [...]
Valley forests as ecological bottlenecks: Topography and resource concentration structure herbivore use in the Western Ghats
Published: 2026-06-13
Subjects: Animal Sciences, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Forest Sciences, Life Sciences, Plant Sciences
Large-herbivore distributions in the Western Ghats are often interpreted through the perspective of protected areas, forest loss, and human disturbance. This perspective can undermine the ecological role of valley forests and riparian lowlands in steep, human-modified landscapes. Evidence from Asian elephants and other large herbivores indicates that habitat use is shaped by interacting filters [...]
Impacts of Potential Solar Radiation Modification: Systematic Review Reveals Challenges and Opportunities
Published: 2026-06-06
Subjects: Agriculture, Earth Sciences, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Environmental Sciences, Life Sciences, Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Planetary Sciences, Plant Sciences
Solar radiation modification (SRM) is a proposed temporary intervention to limit global warming while mitigation efforts continue. Understanding its potential consequences for human and natural systems is essential for informed deliberations. We conducted a systematic review of the peer-reviewed literature on SRM impacts published through May 2024, identifying 289 studies, including 261 primary [...]
Integrating climate projections and machine learning to predict survival of drought resistant trees for climate smart reforestation
Published: 2026-05-05
Subjects: Plant Sciences
Climate smart reforestation faces critical uncertainty about tree survival under future drought conditions. Predicting which trees will survive is essential for guiding species selection and management interventions. This study develops an explainable machine learning framework that integrates long term empirical forestry data with climate projections, functional traits, and management practices [...]
Water-efficient Indian rice cultivation boosts exports despite high carbon footprints
Published: 2026-03-02
Subjects: Agriculture, Earth Sciences, Environmental Sciences, Life Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Planetary Sciences, Plant Sciences
Most agricultural sustainability efforts adopt a national-scale view, masking regional trade-offs between crop yields and environmental footprints. To measure trade-offs, satellite remote sensing based life cycle assessment of rice agroecosystems across India from 2004 to 2021 was conducted revealing pivotal shifts of four cultivation typologies, termed as unsustainable, conventional, productive, [...]
Factors Affecting Aboveground Carbon Storage in Mixed Oak-Pine Forests: A Multiple Regression Analysis of Southeastern U.S. Forest Inventory Data
Published: 2025-11-02
Subjects: Applied Statistics, Climate, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Environmental Indicators and Impact Assessment, Environmental Sciences, Forest Biology, Forest Management, Multivariate Analysis, Natural Resources and Conservation, Plant Sciences, Statistical Models
This study investigated the factors affecting aboveground carbon storage in mixed oak-pine forests of the southeastern United States, with a particular focus on the influence of stand age. Using data from 946 Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) plots collected from 2009 to 2019, a multiple regression analysis was conducted to determine the relative importance of various forest and topographic [...]
A meta-analysis of the agronomic benefits of silicate rock powders in Brazil in the context of a novel classification
Published: 2025-09-02
Subjects: Agriculture, Food Science, Plant Sciences
Brazil has emerged as a global leader in the use of silicate agrominerals (ASi), silicate-rich rock powders that supply plant nutrients and improve soil properties. These materials could advance low-cost soil-sustaining crop production, particularly in the deeply weathered and nutrient-depleted soils of the tropics. However, the research landscape remains fragmented, and there is currently no [...]
Rethinking glacial retreat and postglacial expansion of the Netropical palm Mauritia
Published: 2025-08-24
Subjects: Plant Sciences
This paper presents an unconventional perspective on the glacial retraction and postglacial expansion of the lowland Neotropical palm Mauritia flexuosa during the last glacial cycle. The classical view holds that this palm was confined to multiple wet refugia during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), owing to purported Neotropical-wide arid climates. From these refugia, M. flexuosa is thought to [...]
Chiwi Kawi: Field Report 2025 - Chiricahua Sky Island
Published: 2025-06-07
Subjects: Environmental Sciences, Forest Sciences, Plant Sciences
This field report details the environmental dynamics of the Chiricahua Mountains in SE Arizona. Adding to the previous 2022-2023 field report, these observations begin with the impact of the 2023 summer monsoons and the extreme drought conditions leading into 2025. Extraordinary stories from 2024 include wildlife observations of blonde and ginger coati, a lone wolf, jaguar tracks, and a yearling [...]
MushBox: In Situ Biodegration of Municipal Solid Waste Through Mycoremediation via Mycelium and Cellulosic Waste Integration.
Published: 2025-05-29
Subjects: Life Sciences, Plant Sciences
Exponential buildup of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) in landfills accounting for 60% of the 292.4 million tons, presents a major environmental challenge. This leads to ecological disruptions, groundwater contamination, wildlife harm from microplastics, and contributes to climate change. MushBox deploys mycoremediation to decompose MSW, leveraging the unique capabilities of mycelium. This [...]
The Mesozoic Conundrum: Global Albedo Factors Resolve the Lack of Correlation Between Temperatures and CO2 Concentrations.
Published: 2025-05-23
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences, Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Plant Sciences
The "Mesozoic Conundrum" refers to the lack of correlation between CO₂ atmospheric concentration and global mean surface temperatures in Mesozoic climate reconstructions (Judd et al., 2024). Here, I show that Mesozoic forest cover, proxied by carbon burial flux (Nelsen et al., 2016), correlates strongly (R²=0.88, p<0.01) with GMST across the Mesozoic (252–66 Ma before present). The analysis [...]
Challenges in using modern pollen analogs for Cenozoic paleoecology: examples from the European Neogene
Published: 2025-05-05
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Plant Sciences
The use of modern pollen analogs in paleoecology is well established in Quaternary studies; however, the reliability of this approach decreases with increasing geological age due to evolutionary changes. Establishing a definitive chronological boundary beyond which modern pollen analogs remain reliable is currently unfeasible. This limitation affects not only paleoenvironmental reconstructions [...]
2027: Waking the AKU-- A Cosmic Hyperobject View of the Ancient Giant Palm Forest on Rapa Nui
Published: 2025-01-06
Subjects: Astrophysics and Astronomy, Earth Sciences, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Environmental Sciences, Forest Sciences, Other Astrophysics and Astronomy, Other Environmental Sciences, Other Plant Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Planetary Sciences, Plant Sciences, The Sun and the Solar System
Can a repeating climate event be termed as a cosmic hyperobject? Even if it is dynamically changing within hundreds of thousands of years? At the center of this paper is the science: observable data, 15,000 years of climate change on Rapa Nui. Reaching into the past however we begin with a much broader mathematical view from the eyes of Milankovitch theories of the cosmos that stretches a million [...]