Science Stats Ecosystems

Earth’s dry zones support a surprising number of trees

New study boosts estimate of forested area in parched zones by at least 40 percent

open baobab forest in Senegal

COUNTING TREES  Researchers analyzed Google Earth imagery of dryland forest plots (one example of an open baobab forest in Senegal, shown) to reveal millions of forest hectares not previously reported.

FAO/Faidutti
 

By Beth Geiger

- More than 2 years ago

Earth’s dry regions have more trees than once thought — a hopeful note in the fight against climate change.