Overview

• Long-term monitoring across 20 Queensland sites shows trunks and branches now emit about 0.9 tonnes of carbon per hectare per year compared with gains of about 0.6 tonnes before the early 2000s.
• The analysis draws on records dating back to 1971 that track roughly 11,000 trees, providing rare multi-decade evidence of a sustained sink‑to‑source shift that began about 25 years ago.
• Authors attribute the change primarily to rising temperatures, drier air and more frequent droughts linked to human-caused climate change, which have increased tree mortality faster than regrowth.
• The study identifies tropical cyclones as a recurring disturbance that suppresses woody biomass uptake and could further weaken forests as cyclone severity expands under warming.
• The findings cover above‑ground woody biomass only and exclude roots and soils, prompting calls for broader, whole‑ecosystem tests to gauge implications for global carbon budgets and models.