A range of data relating to terrestrial biodiversity has been collected from tropical forests as part of the Human Modified Tropical Forest (HMTF) research programme, funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC). The programme aims to integrate experimental and observational data with models to understand the role of biodiversity in major forest biogeochemical cycles, explore the spatial correlations between ecosystem function in terms of biogeochemical cycles and the distribution of species that are of conservation concern, and develop new technological capabilities for sustainable long-term observations of biogeochemical cycling in forests.
Data have been collected within three research consortia: Biodiversity And Land-use Impacts on Tropical Ecosystem Function (BALI), Land-use Options for Maintaining BiOdiversity and eKosystem functions (LOMBOK), Biodiversity and ecosystem functioning in degraded and recovering Amazonian and Atlantic forests. (ECOFOR) and AFIRE (Assessing ENSO-induced Fire Impacts in tropical Rainforest Ecosystems).
