Beyond species means – the intraspecific contribution to global wood density variation

Fabian Jörg Fischer; Jérôme Chave; Amy Zanne; Tommaso Jucker; Alex Fajardo; Adeline Fayolle; Renato Augusto Ferreira de Lima; Ghislain Vieilledent; Hans Beeckman; Wannes Hubau; Tom De Mil; Daniel Wallenus; Ana María Aldana; Esteban Alvarez‐Dávila; Luciana F. Alves; Deborah M.G. Apgaua; Fátima Arcanjo; Jean François Bastin; Andrii Bilous; Philippe Birnbaum; Volodymyr Blyshchyk; Joli Borah; Vanessa Boukili; Jesus Julio Camarero; Luisa Casas; Roberto Cazzolla Gatti; Jeffrey Q. Chambers; Ezequiel Chimbioputo Fabiano; Brendan Choat; Georgina Conti; Will Cornwell; Javid Ahmad Dar; Ashesh Kumar Das; Magnus Dobler; Dao Dougabka; David P. Edwards; Robert Evans; Daniel Falster; Philip Fearnside; Olivier Flores; Nikolaos Fyllas; Jean Gérard; Rosa C. Goodman; Daniel Guibal; L.F. Henao‐Diaz; Vincent Hervé; Peter Hietz; Jürgen Homeier; Thomas Ibanez; Jugo Ilic; Steven Jansen; Rinku Moni Kalita; Tanaka Kenzo; Liana Kindermann; Subashree Kothandaraman; Martyna Kotowska; Yasuhiro Kubota; Patrick Langbour; James Lawson; André Luiz Alves de Lima; Roman Mathias Link; Anja Linstädter; Rosana López; Cate Macinnis‐Ng; Luiz Fernando S. Magnago; Adam R. Martin; Ashley M. Matheny; James K. McCarthy; Regis B. Miller; Arun Jyoti Nath; Bruce Walker Nelson; Marco Njana; Euler Melo Nogueira; Alexandre Oliveira; Rafael Oliveira; Mark Olson; Yusuke Onoda; Keryn Paul; Daniel Piotto; Phil Radtke; Onja Razafindratsima; Tahiana Ramananantoandro; Jennifer Read; Sarah Richardson; Enrique G. de La Riva; Oris Rodríguez‐Reyes; Samir G. Rolim; Victor Rolo; Julieta A. Rosell; Roberto Salguero‐Gómez; Nadia S. Santini; Bernhard Schuldt; Luitgard Schwendenmann; Arne Sellin; Timothy Staples; Pablo R. Stevenson; Somaiah Sundarapandian; Masha T. van der Sande; Bernard Thibaut; David Yue Phin Tng; José Marcelo Domingues Torezan; Boris Villanueva; Aaron Weiskittel; Jessie Wells; S.J. Wright; Kasia Zieminska

doi:10.1111/nph.70860

Beyond species means – the intraspecific contribution to global wood density variation

Fabian Jörg Fischer, Jérôme Chave, Amy Zanne, Tommaso Jucker, Alex Fajardo, Adeline Fayolle, Renato Augusto Ferreira de Lima, Ghislain Vieilledent, Hans Beeckman, Wannes Hubau, Tom De Mil, Daniel Wallenus, Ana María Aldana, Esteban Alvarez‐Dávila, Luciana F. Alves, Deborah M.G. Apgaua, Fátima Arcanjo, Jean François Bastin, Andrii Bilous, Philippe BirnbaumVolodymyr Blyshchyk, Joli Borah, Vanessa Boukili, Jesus Julio Camarero, Luisa Casas, Roberto Cazzolla Gatti, Jeffrey Q. Chambers, Ezequiel Chimbioputo Fabiano, Brendan Choat, Georgina Conti, Will Cornwell, Javid Ahmad Dar, Ashesh Kumar Das, Magnus Dobler, Dao Dougabka, David P. Edwards, Robert Evans, Daniel Falster, Philip Fearnside, Olivier Flores, Nikolaos Fyllas, Jean Gérard, Rosa C. Goodman, Daniel Guibal, L.F. Henao‐Diaz, Vincent Hervé, Peter Hietz, Jürgen Homeier, Thomas Ibanez, Jugo Ilic, Steven Jansen, Rinku Moni Kalita, Tanaka Kenzo, Liana Kindermann, Subashree Kothandaraman, Martyna Kotowska, Yasuhiro Kubota, Patrick Langbour, James Lawson, André Luiz Alves de Lima, Roman Mathias Link, Anja Linstädter, Rosana López, Cate Macinnis‐Ng, Luiz Fernando S. Magnago, Adam R. Martin, Ashley M. Matheny, James K. McCarthy, Regis B. Miller, Arun Jyoti Nath, Bruce Walker Nelson, Marco Njana, Euler Melo Nogueira, Alexandre Oliveira, Rafael Oliveira, Mark Olson, Yusuke Onoda, Keryn Paul, Daniel Piotto, Phil Radtke, Onja Razafindratsima, Tahiana Ramananantoandro, Jennifer Read, Sarah Richardson, Enrique G. de La Riva, Oris Rodríguez‐Reyes, Samir G. Rolim, Victor Rolo, Julieta A. Rosell, Roberto Salguero‐Gómez, Nadia S. Santini, Bernhard Schuldt, Luitgard Schwendenmann, Arne Sellin, Timothy Staples, Pablo R. Stevenson, Somaiah Sundarapandian, Masha T. van der Sande, Bernard Thibaut, David Yue Phin Tng, José Marcelo Domingues Torezan, Boris Villanueva, Aaron Weiskittel, Jessie Wells, S.J. Wright, Kasia Zieminska

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Academic › peer-review

Abstract

Wood density is central for estimating vegetation carbon storage and a plant functional trait of great ecological and evolutionary importance. However, the global extent of wood density variation is unclear, especially at the intraspecific level. We assembled the most comprehensive wood density collection to date, including 109 626 records from 16 829 plant species across woody life forms and biomes (GWDD v.2, available here: doi: 10.5281/zenodo.16919509). Using the GWDD v.2, we explored the sources of wood density variation within individuals, within species and across environmental gradients. Intraspecific variation accounted for c. 15% of overall wood density variation (SD = 0.068 g cm−3). Variance was 50% smaller in sapwood than heartwood, and 30% smaller in branchwood than trunkwood. Individuals in extreme environments (dry, hot and acidic soils) had higher wood density than conspecifics elsewhere (+0.02 g cm−3, c. 4% of the mean). Intraspecific environmental effects strongly tracked interspecific patterns (r = 0.83) but were 70–80% smaller and varied considerably among taxa. Individual plant wood density was difficult to predict (root mean square error > 0.08 g cm−3; single-measurement R2 = 0.59). We recommend (1) systematic sampling of multiple individuals and tissues for local applications, and (2) expanded taxonomic coverage combined with integrative models for robust estimates across ecological scales.

Original language	English
Number of pages	22
Journal	New Phytologist
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.70860
Publication status	E-pub ahead of print - 16 Jan 2026

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10.1111/nph.70860Licence: CC BY

https://edepot.wur.nl/708237Licence: CC BY

Global Wood Density Database v.2 (GWDD v.2)
Fischer, F. J. (Creator), Chave, J. (Creator), Zanne, A. (Creator), Jucker, T. (Creator), Fajardo, A. (Creator), Fayolle, A. (Creator), Ferreira de Lima, R. A. (Creator), Vieilledent, G. (Creator), Beeckman, H. (Creator), Hubau, W. (Creator), De Mil, T. (Creator), Wallenus, D. (Creator), Aldana, A. M. (Creator), Alvarez-Davila, E. (Creator), Alves, L. (Creator), Apgaua, D. M. G. (Creator), Arcanjo, F. (Creator), Bastin, J.-F. (Creator), Bilous, A. (Creator), Birnbaum, P. (Creator), Blyshchyk, V. (Creator), Borah, J. (Creator), Boukili, V. (Creator), Camarero, J. J. (Creator), Casas Caro, L. F. (Creator), Cazzolla Gatti, R. (Creator), Chambers, J. Q. (Creator), Chimbioputo Fabiano, E. (Creator), Choat, B. (Creator), Conti, G. (Creator), Cornwell, W. (Creator), Dar, J. A. (Creator), Das, A. K. (Creator), Dobler, M. (Creator), Dougabka, D. (Creator), Edwards, D. (Creator), Evans, R. (Creator), Falster, D. (Creator), Fearnside, P. (Creator), Flores, O. (Creator), Fyllas, N. (Creator), Gerard, J. (Creator), Goodman, R. (Creator), Guibal, D. (Creator), Henao-Diaz, L. F. (Creator), Hervé, V. (Creator), Hietz, P. (Creator), Homeier, J. (Creator), Ibanez, T. (Creator), Ilic, H. (Creator), Jansen, S. (Creator), Kalita, R. M. (Creator), Kenzo, T. (Creator), Kindermann, L. (Creator), Kothandaraman, S. (Creator), Kotowska, M. (Creator), Kubota, Y. (Creator), Langbour, P. (Creator), Lawson, J. (Creator), de Lima, A. L. A. (Creator), Link, R. M. (Creator), Linstädter, A. (Creator), López, R. (Creator), Macinnis-Ng, C. (Creator), Magnago, L. (Creator), Martin, A. R. (Creator), Matheny, A. M. (Creator), McCarthy, J. (Creator), Miller, R. B. (Creator), Nath, A. J. (Creator), Nelson, B. (Creator), Njana, M. (Creator), Nogueira, E. M. (Creator), Oliveira, A. (Creator), Oliveira, R. (Creator), Olson, M. (Creator), Onoda, Y. (Creator), Paul, K. (Creator), Piotto, D. (Creator), Radtke, P. (Creator), Razafindratsima, O. (Creator), Ramananantoandro, T. (Creator), Read, J. (Creator), Richardson, S. (Creator), de la Riva, E. G. (Creator), Rodriguez Reyes, O. (Creator), Rolim, S. (Creator), Rolo, V. (Creator), Rosell, J. A. (Creator), Salguero-Gomez, R. (Creator), Santini, N. (Creator), Schuldt, B. (Creator), Schwendenmann, L. (Creator), Sellin, A. (Creator), Staples, T. (Creator), Stevenson, P. R. (Creator), Sundarapandian, S. (Creator), van der Sande, M. (Creator), Thibaut, B. (Creator), Tng, D. (Creator), Torezan, J. M. (Creator), Villanueva, B. (Creator), Weiskittel, A. (Creator), Wells, J. (Creator), Wright, S. J. (Creator) & Zieminska, K. (Creator), University of Bristol, 15 Jan 2026
DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.16919509
Dataset

Cite this

Fischer, F. J., Chave, J., Zanne, A., Jucker, T., Fajardo, A., Fayolle, A., de Lima, R. A. F., Vieilledent, G., Beeckman, H., Hubau, W., De Mil, T., Wallenus, D., Aldana, A. M., Alvarez‐Dávila, E., Alves, L. F., Apgaua, D. M. G., Arcanjo, F., Bastin, J. F., Bilous, A., ... Zieminska, K. (2026). Beyond species means – the intraspecific contribution to global wood density variation. New Phytologist. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.70860

@article{63d9a22977ee45d8bc2574ce03313ebe,

title = "Beyond species means – the intraspecific contribution to global wood density variation",

abstract = "Wood density is central for estimating vegetation carbon storage and a plant functional trait of great ecological and evolutionary importance. However, the global extent of wood density variation is unclear, especially at the intraspecific level. We assembled the most comprehensive wood density collection to date, including 109 626 records from 16 829 plant species across woody life forms and biomes (GWDD v.2, available here: doi: 10.5281/zenodo.16919509). Using the GWDD v.2, we explored the sources of wood density variation within individuals, within species and across environmental gradients. Intraspecific variation accounted for c. 15\% of overall wood density variation (SD = 0.068 g cm−3). Variance was 50\% smaller in sapwood than heartwood, and 30\% smaller in branchwood than trunkwood. Individuals in extreme environments (dry, hot and acidic soils) had higher wood density than conspecifics elsewhere (+0.02 g cm−3, c. 4\% of the mean). Intraspecific environmental effects strongly tracked interspecific patterns (r = 0.83) but were 70–80\% smaller and varied considerably among taxa. Individual plant wood density was difficult to predict (root mean square error > 0.08 g cm−3; single-measurement R2 = 0.59). We recommend (1) systematic sampling of multiple individuals and tissues for local applications, and (2) expanded taxonomic coverage combined with integrative models for robust estimates across ecological scales.",

author = "Fischer, \{Fabian J{\"o}rg\} and J{\'e}r{\^o}me Chave and Amy Zanne and Tommaso Jucker and Alex Fajardo and Adeline Fayolle and \{de Lima\}, \{Renato Augusto Ferreira\} and Ghislain Vieilledent and Hans Beeckman and Wannes Hubau and \{De Mil\}, Tom and Daniel Wallenus and Aldana, \{Ana Mar{\'i}a\} and Esteban Alvarez‐D{\'a}vila and Alves, \{Luciana F.\} and Apgaua, \{Deborah M.G.\} and F{\'a}tima Arcanjo and Bastin, \{Jean Fran{\c c}ois\} and Andrii Bilous and Philippe Birnbaum and Volodymyr Blyshchyk and Joli Borah and Vanessa Boukili and Camarero, \{Jesus Julio\} and Luisa Casas and \{Cazzolla Gatti\}, Roberto and Chambers, \{Jeffrey Q.\} and Fabiano, \{Ezequiel Chimbioputo\} and Brendan Choat and Georgina Conti and Will Cornwell and Dar, \{Javid Ahmad\} and Das, \{Ashesh Kumar\} and Magnus Dobler and Dao Dougabka and Edwards, \{David P.\} and Robert Evans and Daniel Falster and Philip Fearnside and Olivier Flores and Nikolaos Fyllas and Jean G{\'e}rard and Goodman, \{Rosa C.\} and Daniel Guibal and L.F. Henao‐Diaz and Vincent Herv{\'e} and Peter Hietz and J{\"u}rgen Homeier and Thomas Ibanez and Jugo Ilic and Steven Jansen and Kalita, \{Rinku Moni\} and Tanaka Kenzo and Liana Kindermann and Subashree Kothandaraman and Martyna Kotowska and Yasuhiro Kubota and Patrick Langbour and James Lawson and \{Alves de Lima\}, \{Andr{\'e} Luiz\} and Link, \{Roman Mathias\} and Anja Linst{\"a}dter and Rosana L{\'o}pez and Cate Macinnis‐Ng and Magnago, \{Luiz Fernando S.\} and Martin, \{Adam R.\} and Matheny, \{Ashley M.\} and McCarthy, \{James K.\} and Miller, \{Regis B.\} and Nath, \{Arun Jyoti\} and Nelson, \{Bruce Walker\} and Marco Njana and Nogueira, \{Euler Melo\} and Alexandre Oliveira and Rafael Oliveira and Mark Olson and Yusuke Onoda and Keryn Paul and Daniel Piotto and Phil Radtke and Onja Razafindratsima and Tahiana Ramananantoandro and Jennifer Read and Sarah Richardson and \{de La Riva\}, \{Enrique G.\} and Oris Rodr{\'i}guez‐Reyes and Rolim, \{Samir G.\} and Victor Rolo and Rosell, \{Julieta A.\} and Roberto Salguero‐G{\'o}mez and Santini, \{Nadia S.\} and Bernhard Schuldt and Luitgard Schwendenmann and Arne Sellin and Timothy Staples and Stevenson, \{Pablo R.\} and Somaiah Sundarapandian and \{van der Sande\}, \{Masha T.\} and Bernard Thibaut and Tng, \{David Yue Phin\} and \{Domingues Torezan\}, \{Jos{\'e} Marcelo\} and Boris Villanueva and Aaron Weiskittel and Jessie Wells and S.J. Wright and Kasia Zieminska",

year = "2026",

month = jan,

day = "16",

doi = "10.1111/nph.70860",

language = "English",

journal = "New Phytologist",

issn = "0028-646X",

publisher = "Wiley",

}

Fischer, FJ, Chave, J, Zanne, A, Jucker, T, Fajardo, A, Fayolle, A, de Lima, RAF, Vieilledent, G, Beeckman, H, Hubau, W, De Mil, T, Wallenus, D, Aldana, AM, Alvarez‐Dávila, E, Alves, LF, Apgaua, DMG, Arcanjo, F, Bastin, JF, Bilous, A, Birnbaum, P, Blyshchyk, V, Borah, J, Boukili, V, Camarero, JJ, Casas, L, Cazzolla Gatti, R, Chambers, JQ, Fabiano, EC, Choat, B, Conti, G, Cornwell, W, Dar, JA, Das, AK, Dobler, M, Dougabka, D, Edwards, DP, Evans, R, Falster, D, Fearnside, P, Flores, O, Fyllas, N, Gérard, J, Goodman, RC, Guibal, D, Henao‐Diaz, LF, Hervé, V, Hietz, P, Homeier, J, Ibanez, T, Ilic, J, Jansen, S, Kalita, RM, Kenzo, T, Kindermann, L, Kothandaraman, S, Kotowska, M, Kubota, Y, Langbour, P, Lawson, J, Alves de Lima, AL, Link, RM, Linstädter, A, López, R, Macinnis‐Ng, C, Magnago, LFS, Martin, AR, Matheny, AM, McCarthy, JK, Miller, RB, Nath, AJ, Nelson, BW, Njana, M, Nogueira, EM, Oliveira, A, Oliveira, R, Olson, M, Onoda, Y, Paul, K, Piotto, D, Radtke, P, Razafindratsima, O, Ramananantoandro, T, Read, J, Richardson, S, de La Riva, EG, Rodríguez‐Reyes, O, Rolim, SG, Rolo, V, Rosell, JA, Salguero‐Gómez, R, Santini, NS, Schuldt, B, Schwendenmann, L, Sellin, A, Staples, T, Stevenson, PR, Sundarapandian, S, van der Sande, MT, Thibaut, B, Tng, DYP, Domingues Torezan, JM, Villanueva, B, Weiskittel, A, Wells, J, Wright, SJ & Zieminska, K 2026, 'Beyond species means – the intraspecific contribution to global wood density variation', New Phytologist. https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.70860

TY - JOUR

T1 - Beyond species means – the intraspecific contribution to global wood density variation

AU - Fischer, Fabian Jörg

AU - Chave, Jérôme

AU - Zanne, Amy

AU - Jucker, Tommaso

AU - Fajardo, Alex

AU - Fayolle, Adeline

AU - de Lima, Renato Augusto Ferreira

AU - Vieilledent, Ghislain

AU - Beeckman, Hans

AU - Hubau, Wannes

AU - De Mil, Tom

AU - Wallenus, Daniel

AU - Aldana, Ana María

AU - Alvarez‐Dávila, Esteban

AU - Alves, Luciana F.

AU - Apgaua, Deborah M.G.

AU - Arcanjo, Fátima

AU - Bastin, Jean François

AU - Bilous, Andrii

AU - Birnbaum, Philippe

AU - Blyshchyk, Volodymyr

AU - Borah, Joli

AU - Boukili, Vanessa

AU - Camarero, Jesus Julio

AU - Casas, Luisa

AU - Cazzolla Gatti, Roberto

AU - Chambers, Jeffrey Q.

AU - Fabiano, Ezequiel Chimbioputo

AU - Choat, Brendan

AU - Conti, Georgina

AU - Cornwell, Will

AU - Dar, Javid Ahmad

AU - Das, Ashesh Kumar

AU - Dobler, Magnus

AU - Dougabka, Dao

AU - Edwards, David P.

AU - Evans, Robert

AU - Falster, Daniel

AU - Fearnside, Philip

AU - Flores, Olivier

AU - Fyllas, Nikolaos

AU - Gérard, Jean

AU - Goodman, Rosa C.

AU - Guibal, Daniel

AU - Henao‐Diaz, L.F.

AU - Hervé, Vincent

AU - Hietz, Peter

AU - Homeier, Jürgen

AU - Ibanez, Thomas

AU - Ilic, Jugo

AU - Jansen, Steven

AU - Kalita, Rinku Moni

AU - Kenzo, Tanaka

AU - Kindermann, Liana

AU - Kothandaraman, Subashree

AU - Kotowska, Martyna

AU - Kubota, Yasuhiro

AU - Langbour, Patrick

AU - Lawson, James

AU - Alves de Lima, André Luiz

AU - Link, Roman Mathias

AU - Linstädter, Anja

AU - López, Rosana

AU - Macinnis‐Ng, Cate

AU - Magnago, Luiz Fernando S.

AU - Martin, Adam R.

AU - Matheny, Ashley M.

AU - McCarthy, James K.

AU - Miller, Regis B.

AU - Nath, Arun Jyoti

AU - Nelson, Bruce Walker

AU - Njana, Marco

AU - Nogueira, Euler Melo

AU - Oliveira, Alexandre

AU - Oliveira, Rafael

AU - Olson, Mark

AU - Onoda, Yusuke

AU - Paul, Keryn

AU - Piotto, Daniel

AU - Radtke, Phil

AU - Razafindratsima, Onja

AU - Ramananantoandro, Tahiana

AU - Read, Jennifer

AU - Richardson, Sarah

AU - de La Riva, Enrique G.

AU - Rodríguez‐Reyes, Oris

AU - Rolim, Samir G.

AU - Rolo, Victor

AU - Rosell, Julieta A.

AU - Salguero‐Gómez, Roberto

AU - Santini, Nadia S.

AU - Schuldt, Bernhard

AU - Schwendenmann, Luitgard

AU - Sellin, Arne

AU - Staples, Timothy

AU - Stevenson, Pablo R.

AU - Sundarapandian, Somaiah

AU - van der Sande, Masha T.

AU - Thibaut, Bernard

AU - Tng, David Yue Phin

AU - Domingues Torezan, José Marcelo

AU - Villanueva, Boris

AU - Weiskittel, Aaron

AU - Wells, Jessie

AU - Wright, S.J.

AU - Zieminska, Kasia

PY - 2026/1/16

Y1 - 2026/1/16

N2 - Wood density is central for estimating vegetation carbon storage and a plant functional trait of great ecological and evolutionary importance. However, the global extent of wood density variation is unclear, especially at the intraspecific level. We assembled the most comprehensive wood density collection to date, including 109 626 records from 16 829 plant species across woody life forms and biomes (GWDD v.2, available here: doi: 10.5281/zenodo.16919509). Using the GWDD v.2, we explored the sources of wood density variation within individuals, within species and across environmental gradients. Intraspecific variation accounted for c. 15% of overall wood density variation (SD = 0.068 g cm−3). Variance was 50% smaller in sapwood than heartwood, and 30% smaller in branchwood than trunkwood. Individuals in extreme environments (dry, hot and acidic soils) had higher wood density than conspecifics elsewhere (+0.02 g cm−3, c. 4% of the mean). Intraspecific environmental effects strongly tracked interspecific patterns (r = 0.83) but were 70–80% smaller and varied considerably among taxa. Individual plant wood density was difficult to predict (root mean square error > 0.08 g cm−3; single-measurement R2 = 0.59). We recommend (1) systematic sampling of multiple individuals and tissues for local applications, and (2) expanded taxonomic coverage combined with integrative models for robust estimates across ecological scales.

AB - Wood density is central for estimating vegetation carbon storage and a plant functional trait of great ecological and evolutionary importance. However, the global extent of wood density variation is unclear, especially at the intraspecific level. We assembled the most comprehensive wood density collection to date, including 109 626 records from 16 829 plant species across woody life forms and biomes (GWDD v.2, available here: doi: 10.5281/zenodo.16919509). Using the GWDD v.2, we explored the sources of wood density variation within individuals, within species and across environmental gradients. Intraspecific variation accounted for c. 15% of overall wood density variation (SD = 0.068 g cm−3). Variance was 50% smaller in sapwood than heartwood, and 30% smaller in branchwood than trunkwood. Individuals in extreme environments (dry, hot and acidic soils) had higher wood density than conspecifics elsewhere (+0.02 g cm−3, c. 4% of the mean). Intraspecific environmental effects strongly tracked interspecific patterns (r = 0.83) but were 70–80% smaller and varied considerably among taxa. Individual plant wood density was difficult to predict (root mean square error > 0.08 g cm−3; single-measurement R2 = 0.59). We recommend (1) systematic sampling of multiple individuals and tissues for local applications, and (2) expanded taxonomic coverage combined with integrative models for robust estimates across ecological scales.

U2 - 10.1111/nph.70860

DO - 10.1111/nph.70860

M3 - Article

SN - 0028-646X

JO - New Phytologist

JF - New Phytologist

ER -

Beyond species means – the intraspecific contribution to global wood density variation

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Global Wood Density Database v.2 (GWDD v.2)

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