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Biome.jl

🌱 A modular framework for climate-based biome prediction

Welcome to the documentation of Biome.jl a flexible, open-source modeling framework designed to simulate and analyze biome distributions under varying environmental conditions. We provide a modular and customizable engine to explore plant functional type (PFT) dynamics, equilibrium vegetation outcomes, and climate-driven biome classifications at global or regional scales.

The package integrates both climatic envelope schemes and mechanistic simulation approaches inspired by the BIOME4 model from Kaplan and Prentice (2001).

Biome.jl extends these classical frameworks by enabling:

  • Customization of PFT definitions and physiological parameters
  • User-defined competition rules and biome classification schemes
  • Integration with parameter estimation tools (e.g. Turing.jl)
  • High-resolution simulations and parallel processing on gridded landscapes
  • Scenario-based modeling (e.g. climate change, CO₂ concentration, soil constraints)

The goal of Biome.jl is to foster community-driven development of biome models that are reproducible, transparent, and extensible.

This documentation provides a comprehensive guide to:

  • Setting up and configuring models
  • Preparing input datasets
  • Defining custom PFTs and biomes
  • Running simulations across different schemes
  • Calibrating parameters and evaluating results

Start with the Getting Started guide to install and run your first Biome.jl model, or jump to the Model Configuration section for a deeper dive into custom simulations.

Credits

The following people are involved in the development of Biome.jl

All contributors are affiliated with the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow, and Landscape Research WSL