The extent of forest in dryland biomes

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dc.contributor.authorBastin, J.
dc.contributor.authorBerrahmouni, N.
dc.contributor.authorGrainger, A.
dc.contributor.authorManiatis, D.
dc.contributor.authorMollicone, D.
dc.contributor.authorMoore, R.
dc.contributor.authorPatriarca, C.
dc.contributor.authorPicard, N.
dc.contributor.authorSparrow, B.
dc.contributor.authorAbraham, E.
dc.contributor.authorAloui, K.
dc.contributor.authorAtesoglu, A.
dc.contributor.authorAttorre, F.
dc.contributor.authorBassüllü, Ç.
dc.contributor.authorBey, A.
dc.contributor.authorGarzuglia, M.
dc.contributor.authorGarcía-Montero, L.
dc.contributor.authorGroot, N.
dc.contributor.authorGuerin, G.
dc.contributor.authorLaestadius, L.
dc.contributor.authoret al.
dc.date.issued2017
dc.description.abstractDryland biomes cover two-fifths of Earth's land surface, but their forest area is poorly known. Here, we report an estimate of global forest extent in dryland biomes, based on analyzing more than 210,000 0.5-hectare sample plots through a photo-interpretation approach using large databases of satellite imagery at (i) very high spatial resolution and (ii) very high temporal resolution, which are available through the Google Earth platform. We show that in 2015, 1327 million hectares of drylands had more than 10% tree-cover, and 1079 million hectares comprised forest. Our estimate is 40 to 47% higher than previous estimates, corresponding to 467 million hectares of forest that have never been reported before. This increases current estimates of global forest cover by at least 9%.
dc.description.statementofresponsibilityJean-François Bastin, Nora Berrahmouni, Alan Grainger, Danae Maniatis, Danilo Mollicone, Rebecca Moore, Chiara Patriarca, Nicolas Picard, Ben Sparrow, Elena Maria Abraham, Kamel Aloui, Ayhan Atesoglu, Fabio Attore, Çağlar Bassüllü, Adia Bey, Monica Garzuglia, Luis G. García-Montero, Nikée Groot, Greg Guerin, Lars Laestadius, Andrew J. Lowe, Bako Mamane, Giulio Marchi, Paul Patterson, Marcelo Rezende, Stefano Ricci, Ignacio Salcedo, Alfonso Sanchez-Paus Diaz, Fred Stolle, Venera Surappaeva, Rene Castro
dc.identifier.citationScience, 2017; 356(6338):635-638
dc.identifier.doi10.1126/science.aam6527
dc.identifier.issn0036-8075
dc.identifier.issn1095-9203
dc.identifier.orcidSparrow, B. [0000-0003-2566-1895]
dc.identifier.orcidGuerin, G. [0000-0002-2104-6695]
dc.identifier.orcidLowe, A. [0000-0003-1139-2516]
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/2440/107334
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherAmerican Association for the Advancement of Science
dc.rights© The Authors, some rights reserved; exclusive licensee American Association for the Advancement of Science.
dc.source.urihttps://doi.org/10.1126/science.aam6527
dc.subjectConservation of Natural Resources
dc.subjectEcosystem
dc.subjectGeographic Mapping
dc.subjectForests
dc.subjectEarth, Planet
dc.titleThe extent of forest in dryland biomes
dc.typeJournal article
pubs.publication-statusPublished

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