Based
on measurements of 45,000 individual plants from 3,680 species, and using high - tech statistical mapping protocols, the team created global maps of plant traits including leaf nitrogen concentration, leaf phosphorus concentration, and specific leaf area (a measure of area displayed to intercept
light per unit investment in leaf
biomass).
It's not clear boreal feedbacks are even necessary to
lighting off tropical
biomass (fire once again), but they'll certainly speed the process way up; if that does happen in turn we're
on our way to a hyperthermal (with some lag since the oceans have to warm enough to trigger a self - sustaining loss of shallow methane hydrates).