The UN-REDD+ strategy aims at protecting and enhancing biosphere carbon stocks, by conserving tropical rainforest systems, as a means to mitigate global climate change. Biodiversity is generally described as a potential ‘co-benefit’ of forest carbon sequestration, but components of forest biodiversity may overlap to different degrees, trade off with, or be largely independent from those that intervene in carbon storage potential. In general, biodiversity is positively (but rather weakly) associated with ecosystem carbon, but the association is geographically variable, and even reverses in some regions. Understanding the relationship between carbon stock and biodiversity is needed to maximize the UNREDD+ gains, to better address the risks of UN-REDD+ programs, and to avoid substantial biodiversity loss. Therefore, this study will focus on the local scale relation of carbon stock and biodiversity expressed in multiple diversity parameters over a range of taxa. We will use data from the first multi-taxon inventory in the central Congo basin conducted in the framework of the COBIMFO project (Congo basin integrated monitoring for forest carbon mitigation and biodiversity). The project started in 2010 and measured carbon as well as the diversity of 9 different taxa (eumycetozoa, lichens, trees, fungi, diptera, ants, termites, birds and mammals) in the Yangambi Biosphere Reserve In a first step we monitored the diversity of rodents and shrews in the Yangambi Biosphere Reserve. A total of 617 rodents and shrews were captured in several forest types between July 2013 and June 2014. The specimens were determined using DNA Barcoding. Species richness was generally higher in young-regrowth forests compared to old-growth forests.
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