The assumption that tropical forest canopies offer protection from the effects of climate change is unfounded, says a researcher from the University of Cambridge. Tropical forests – crucial strongholds for biodiversity – are under threat as temperatures rise in the world’s most diverse terrestrial ecosystems, the new study published this week in the journal Nature Climate Change reveals. Conventional wisdom holds that the forest subcanopy and understorey – where direct sunlight is reduced – would be insulated from the worst climate change impacts by the shielding effect of the forest canopy. H…
