Amazonian environments are being degraded by modern industrial and agricultural
activities at a pace far above anything previously known, imperiling its vast biodiversity …

The exceptional levels of biodiversity found today in the American tropics are the outcome of
tens of millions of years of evolution, shaped by the tumultuous geological history of the …

Tropical forests are on the front line of climate change and human sustainability challenges,
being key environments in discussions of the “Anthropocene” and some of the most …

Humans have been present in Amazonia throughout the Holocene, with the earliest
archaeological sites dating to 12 000 years ago. The earliest inhabitants began managing …

Humans have been modifying ecosystems since before the Holocene began ca. 12,000
years ago, even in Neotropical regions. The Amazon was once thought to be 'pristine'and …

A high-resolution paleoecological record provides a 2690 year-long fossil pollen and
charcoal history from Lake Ayauchi, Ecuador, in lowland Amazonia. The record begins with …

Amazonian forest plots are used to quantify biodiversity and carbon sequestration, and
provide the foundation for much of what is known about tropical ecology. Many plots are …

Background Fire is known to affect forest biodiversity, carbon storage, and public health
today; however, comparable fire histories from across forest regions in Amazonia are …

A pre-Columbian staple, Bactris gasipaes Kunth. is a palm tree domesticated around 4000
years ago, so appreciated that a Spanish chronicler wrote in 1545,“only their wives and …

South America is home to one of the most culturally diverse present-day native populations.
However, the dispersion pattern, genetic substructure, and demographic complexity within …