"Mathematical Limits: Forest Complexity Surpasses Expectations"

A study from the University of Bristol challenges the assumption that forests exhibit fractal patterns similar to individual trees, revealing that forest canopies are not fractal in nature. The research, published in the Journal of Ecology, used airborne laser scanning data from diverse forest sites in Australia to compare forest height maps to fractal patterns. The findings suggest that while forests do not display fractality, there are consistent deviations from it across different ecosystems, indicating potential organizing principles in biology and implications for monitoring forests in response to environmental changes.