Animals and the zoogeochemistry of the carbon cycle
Open accessAbstract
Predicting and managing the global carbon cycle requires scientific understanding of ecosystem processes that control carbon uptake and storage. It is generally assumed that carbon cycling is sufficiently characterized in terms of uptake and exchange between ecosystem plant and soil pools and the atmosphere. We show that animals also play an important role by mediating carbon exchange between ecosystems and the atmosphere, at times turning ecosystem carbon sources into sinks, or vice versa. Animals also move across landscapes, creating a dynamism that shapes landscape-scale variation in carbon exchange and storage. Predicting and measuring carbon cycling under such dynamism is an important scientific challenge. We explain how to link analyses of spatial ecosystem functioning, animal movement, and remote sensing of animal habitats with carbon dynamics across landscapes.
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Large herbivores influence ecosystem structure and function through physical impacts such as trampling or pushing over trees.
“Large herbivores also influence ecosystem structure and function through physical impacts such as trampling or pushing over trees (122).”
From Restoring Degraded Lands (2021) · cites this paper as [122]
Animals have an essential role in shaping habitat structure, ecosystem productivity, and nutrient cycling.
“These discussions mostly neglect the role of animals, despite their essential role in shaping habitat structure, ecosystem productivity, and nutrient cycling (122).”
From Restoring Degraded Lands (2021) · cites this paper as [122]
Tree cover increased in Serengeti National Park following the recovery of the wildebeest population after the eradication of rinderpest.
“Tree cover was observed to increase in the Serengeti National Park following the recovery of the wildebeest population after the eradication of rinderpest (122).”
From Restoring Degraded Lands (2021) · cites this paper as [122]
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- Authors
- Schmitz, O. J., Wilmers, C. C., Leroux, S. J., Doughty, C. E., Atwood, T. B., Galetti, M., Davies, A. B., & Goetz, S. J.
- Affiliations
- Yale University (US)
- University of California, Santa Cruz (US)
- Memorial University of Newfoundland (CA)
- Northern Arizona University (US)
- Utah State University (US)
- Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp) (BR)
- Carnegie Institution for Science (US)
- Corresponding author
- Schmitz, Oswald J.
- ORCID
- Venue
- Science
- Published
- 2018-12-07
- Volume
- 362
- Issue
- 6419
- ISSN
- 0036-8075 (ISSN-L)
- 1095-9203
- OpenAlex
- W2902743507
- Cited by
- 372
- References
- 12
- Citations by year
- 2026: 55 · 2025: 59 · 2024: 69 · 2023: 55 · 2022: 43 · 2021: 43 · 2020: 31 · 2019: 17
- FWCI
- 2.26
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- hdl.handle.net
- Licence
- other-oa
- Locations
- Science (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- UNESP Institutional Repository (São Paulo State University) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Soil Science › Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Global and Planetary Change › Land Use and Ecosystem Services
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Ecology › Wildlife Ecology and Conservation
- Keywords
- carbon cycle, carbon sinks and sources, animal movement, ecosystem carbon exchange, carbon storage
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Atmosphere, Soil, Ecosystem, Animal Migration, Carbon Cycle
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