Biodiversity protects forests from the effects of climate change. Having many different species of trees and plants, as well as soil teeming with organic life, helps forests better withstand droughts in particular.
This is what French, German and Chinese researchers demonstrated in two studies published this Monday March 18 in the international scientific journals Global Change Biology and PNAS. By conducting field experiments in five types of forests from northern to southern China, the researchers also demonstrated that high biodiversity ensures the decomposition of tree leaves.