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Villegas P, Gili T, Caldarelli G, Gabrielli A. Evidence of scale-free clusters of vegetation in tropical rainforests. Phys Rev E 2024; 109:L042402. [PMID: 38755841 DOI: 10.1103/physreve.109.l042402] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2023] [Accepted: 02/09/2024] [Indexed: 05/18/2024]
Abstract
Tropical rainforests exhibit a rich repertoire of spatial patterns emerging from the intricate relationship between the microscopic interaction between species. In particular, the distribution of vegetation clusters can shed much light on the underlying process that regulates the ecosystem. Analyzing the distribution of vegetation clusters at different resolution scales, we show the first robust evidence of scale-invariant clusters of vegetation, suggesting the coexistence of multiple intertwined scales in the collective dynamics of tropical rainforests. We use field data and computational simulations to confirm our hypothesis, proposing a predictor that could be particularly interesting to monitor the ecological resilience of the world's "green lungs."
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Affiliation(s)
- Pablo Villegas
- 'Enrico Fermi' Research Center (CREF), Via Panisperna 89A, 00184 - Rome, Italy
- Instituto Carlos I de Física Teórica y Computacional, Universidad de Granada, Granada E-18071, Spain
| | - Tommaso Gili
- Networks Unit, IMT Scuola Alti Studi Lucca, Piazza San Francesco 15, 55100- Lucca, Italy
| | - Guido Caldarelli
- DMSN, Ca' Foscari University of Venice, Via Torino 155, 30172 - Venice, Italy
- European Centre for Living Technology (ECLT), Dorsoduro 3911, 30123 - Venice, Italy
- Institute for Complex Systems (ISC), CNR, UoS Sapienza, Piazzale Aldo Moro 2, 00185 - Rome, Italy
- London Institute for Mathematical Sciences (LIMS), W1K2XF London, United Kingdom
| | - Andrea Gabrielli
- 'Enrico Fermi' Research Center (CREF), Via Panisperna 89A, 00184 - Rome, Italy
- Institute for Complex Systems (ISC), CNR, UoS Sapienza, Piazzale Aldo Moro 2, 00185 - Rome, Italy
- Dipartimento di Ingegneria Civile, Informatica e delle Tecnologie Aeronautiche, Università degli Studi 'Roma Tre', Via Vito Volterra 62, 00146 - Rome, Italy
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