Contrasting pathways to tree longevity in gymnosperms and angiosperms

Authors

• Roel J. Brienen, University of Leeds
• Giuliano Maselli Locosselli, University of São Paulo
• Stefan Krottenthaler, University of Passau
• Emanuel Gloor, University of Leeds
• Robyn Wrigley, University of Leeds
• Steve L. Voelker, Michigan Technological UniversityFollow
• Jan Altman, Institute of Botany of the Czech Academy of Sciences
• Nela Altmanova, Institute of Botany of the Czech Academy of Sciences
• Leander D. Anderegg, University of California Santa Barbara
• Michele Baliva, Università della Tuscia
• Deepak Barua, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research
• Vaclav Bazant, Czech University of Life Sciences
• Bryan Black, University of Arizona
• Peter M Brown, Rocky Mountain Tree-Ring Research
• Gregorio Ceccantini, University of São Paulo
• R Justin DeRose, Utah State University
• Jose Villanueva Diaz, Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Forestales, Agricolas y Pecuarias
• Alfredo Di Filippo, Università della Tuscia
• Jiri Dolezal, Institute of Botany of the Czech Academy of Sciences
• Louis Duchesne, Ministère des Ressources naturelles et des Forêts
• Christopher Earle, Gymnosperm Database
• Pavel Fibich, Institute of Botany of the Czech Academy of Sciences
• Hardy Griesbauer, British Columbia Ministry of Forests
• Samuli Helama, Natural Resources Institute Finland
• Stefan Klesse, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research
• Kirill Korznikov, Institute of Botany of the Czech Academy of Sciences
• David Lindenmayer, The Australian National University
• Shuhui Liu, Beijing Forestry University
• Lidio Lopez, Laboratorio de Dendrocronología e Historia Ambiental
• Maurizio Mencuccini, Centre for Ecological Research and Forestry Applications (CREAF)
• Thomas A. Nagel, University of Ljubljana

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

12-19-2025

Department

College of Forest Resources and Environmental Science

Abstract

Tree longevity is thought to increase in growth-limiting, adverse environments, but a quantitative assessment of drivers of global variation in tree longevity is lacking. We assemble a global database of maximum longevity for 739 tree species and analyse associations between longevity and climate, soil, and species' functional traits. Our results show two primary pathways towards long lifespans. The first is slow growth in resource-limited environments, consistent with the "adversity begets longevity" paradigm. The second pathway is through relief from abiotic constraints in productive environments. Despite notable exceptions, long-lived gymnosperms tend to follow the first path through slow growth in cold environments, whereas long-lived angiosperms tend to follow the second ("productivity") path reaching maximum longevity generally in humid environments. For angiosperms, we identify two mechanisms for increased longevity under humid conditions. First, higher water availability increases species' maximum tree height which is associated with greater longevities. Secondly, greater water availability increases stand density and inter-tree competition, limiting growth which may increase tree lifespan. The documented differences between gymnosperm and angiosperm longevity are likely rooted in intrinsic differences in hydraulic architecture that provide fitness advantages for gymnosperms under high abiotic stress, and for angiosperms under increased productivity or competition.

Publisher's Statement

© The Author(s) 2025. Publisher’s version of record: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-67619-2

Publication Title

Nature communications

Recommended Citation

Brienen, R. J., Locosselli, G. M., Krottenthaler, S., Gloor, E., Wrigley, R., Voelker, S., Altman, J., Altmanova, N., Anderegg, L. D., Baliva, M., Barua, D., Bazant, V., Black, B., M Brown, P., Ceccantini, G., DeRose, R. J., Villanueva Diaz, J., Di Filippo, A., Dolezal, J., Duchesne, L., Earle, C., Fibich, P., Griesbauer, H., Helama, S., Klesse, S., Korznikov, K., Lindenmayer, D., Liu, S., Lopez, L., Mencuccini, M., & Nagel, T. A. (2025). Contrasting pathways to tree longevity in gymnosperms and angiosperms. Nature communications. http://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-67619-2
Retrieved from: https://digitalcommons.mtu.edu/michigantech-p2/2263

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Version

Publisher's PDF