Josep Peñuelas

150.3k total citations · 72 hit papers
1.4k papers, 87.1k citations indexed

About

Josep Peñuelas is a scholar working on Global and Planetary Change, Plant Science and Ecology. According to data from OpenAlex, Josep Peñuelas has authored 1.4k papers receiving a total of 87.1k indexed citations (citations by other indexed papers that have themselves been cited), including 560 papers in Global and Planetary Change, 512 papers in Plant Science and 437 papers in Ecology. Recurrent topics in Josep Peñuelas's work include Plant Water Relations and Carbon Dynamics (422 papers), Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics (301 papers) and Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies (254 papers). Josep Peñuelas is often cited by papers focused on Plant Water Relations and Carbon Dynamics (422 papers), Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics (301 papers) and Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies (254 papers). Josep Peñuelas collaborates with scholars based in Spain, China and United States. Josep Peñuelas's co-authors include Jordi Sardans, Iolanda Filella, Joan Llusià, Romà Ogaya, Alistair S. Jump, John A. Gamon, Marc Estiarte, Ivan A. Janssens, Christopher B. Field and Philippe Ciais and has published in prestigious journals such as Nature, Science and Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

In The Last Decade

Josep Peñuelas

1.3k papers receiving 84.6k citations

Hit Papers

A narrow-waveband spectra... 1992 2026 2003 2014 1992 2005 2013 2010 2018 500 1000 1.5k
What are hit papers?

Hit papers significantly outperform the citation benchmark for their cohort. A paper qualifies if it has ≥500 total citations, achieves ≥1.5× the top-1% citation threshold for papers in the same subfield and year (this is the minimum needed to enter the top 1%, not the average within it), or reaches the top citation threshold in at least one of its specific research topics.

  1. A narrow-waveband spectral index that tracks diurnal changes in photosynthetic efficiency
    1992 1.7k citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  2. Running to stand still: adaptation and the response of plants to rapid climate change
    2005 1.2k citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  3. Human-induced nitrogen–phosphorus imbalances alter natural and managed ecosystems across the globe
    2013 1.1k citations Josep Peñuelas, Jordi Sardans et al. profile →
  4. Responses of terrestrial ecosystems to temperature and precipitation change: a meta‐analysis of experimental manipulation
    2010 1.1k citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  5. Climate change and interconnected risks to sustainable development in the Mediterranean
    2018 1.0k citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  6. The application of ecological stoichiometry to plant–microbial–soil organic matter transformations
    2015 911 citations Sophie Zechmeister‐Boltenstern, Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  7. Relationships Between NDVI, Canopy Structure, and Photosynthesis in Three Californian Vegetation Types
    1995 888 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  8. The reflectance at the 950–970 nm region as an indicator of plant water status
    1993 878 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  9. Reflectance indices associated with physiological changes in nitrogen- and water-limited sunflower leaves
    1994 871 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  10. Declining global warming effects on the phenology of spring leaf unfolding
    2015 730 citations Shilong Piao, Shushi Peng et al. profile →
  11. Estimation of plant water concentration by the reflectance Water Index WI (R900/R970)
    1997 729 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  12. Visible and near-infrared reflectance techniques for diagnosing plant physiological status
    1998 723 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  13. Global patterns of foliar nitrogen isotopes and their relationships with climate, mycorrhizal fungi, foliar nutrient concentrations, and nitrogen availability
    2009 715 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  14. Phenology Feedbacks on Climate Change
    2009 699 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  15. Responses to a Warming World
    2001 697 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  16. The red edge position and shape as indicators of plant chlorophyll content, biomass and hydric status.
    1994 667 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  17. Widespread crown condition decline, food web disruption, and amplified tree mortality with increased climate change-type drought
    2011 645 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences profile →
  18. A global change‐induced biome shift in the Montseny mountains (NE Spain)
    2003 571 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  19. Assessment of photosynthetic radiation‐use efficiency with spectral reflectance
    1995 571 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  20. Assessment of global health risk of antibiotic resistance genes
    2022 570 citations Zhenyan Zhang, Qi Zhang et al. profile →
  21. Changed plant and animal life cycles from 1952 to 2000 in the Mediterranean region
    2002 563 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  22. BVOCs and global change
    2010 551 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  23. The C:N:P stoichiometry of organisms and ecosystems in a changing world: A review and perspectives
    2011 551 citations Jordi Sardans, Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  24. Rapid climate change‐related growth decline at the southern range edge of Fagus sylvatica
    2006 547 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  25. Asymmetric effects of daytime and night-time warming on Northern Hemisphere vegetation
    2013 528 citations Shushi Peng, Shilong Piao et al. profile →
  26. The photochemical reflectance index (PRI) and the remote sensing of leaf, canopy and ecosystem radiation use efficienciesA review and meta-analysis
    2010 509 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  27. Semi-empirical indices to assess carotenoids/chlorophyll alpha ratio from leaf spectral reflectance
    1995 470 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  28. The human‐induced imbalance between C, N and P in Earth's life system
    2011 467 citations Josep Peñuelas, Jordi Sardans et al. profile →
  29. Leaf onset in the northern hemisphere triggered by daytime temperature
    2015 463 citations Shilong Piao, Philippe Ciais et al. profile →
  30. Precipitation manipulation experiments – challenges and recommendations for the future
    2012 429 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  31. Potassium: a neglected nutrient in global change
    2015 412 citations Jordi Sardans, Josep Peñuelas profile →
  32. Forest management in southern China generates short term extensive carbon sequestration
    2020 391 citations Philippe Ciais, Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  33. Nutrient availability as the key regulator of global forest carbon balance
    2014 374 citations Jordi Sardans, Philippe Ciais et al. profile →
  34. Microbial carbon limitation: The need for integrating microorganisms into our understanding of ecosystem carbon cycling
    2019 364 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  35. Summer soil drying exacerbated by earlier spring greening of northern vegetation
    2020 362 citations Shilong Piao, Philippe Ciais et al. profile →
  36. Global patterns of phosphatase activity in natural soils
    2017 354 citations Jordi Sardans, Philippe Ciais et al. profile →
  37. Alteration of the phenology of leaf senescence and fall in winter deciduous species by climate change: effects on nutrient proficiency
    2014 345 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  38. Accelerating the energy transition towards photovoltaic and wind in China
    2023 341 citations Rong Wang, Philippe Ciais et al. profile →
  39. Drought impacts on terrestrial primary production underestimated by satellite monitoring
    2019 340 citations Benjamin D. Stocker, Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  40. Climate change effects on plant-soil feedbacks and consequences for biodiversity and functioning of terrestrial ecosystems
    2019 325 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  41. QMEC: a tool for high-throughput quantitative assessment of microbial functional potential in C, N, P, and S biogeochemical cycling
    2018 317 citations Yong‐Guan Zhu, Jordi Sardans et al. profile →
  42. Rhizosphere microorganisms can influence the timing of plant flowering
    2018 317 citations Zhenyan Zhang, Michael R. Gillings et al. profile →
  43. Potassium Control of Plant Functions: Ecological and Agricultural Implications
    2021 295 citations Jordi Sardans, Josep Peñuelas profile →
  44. Root exudate metabolomes change under drought and show limited capacity for recovery
    2018 267 citations Jordi Sardans, Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  45. Extension of the growing season increases vegetation exposure to frost
    2018 261 citations Shilong Piao, Shushi Peng et al. profile →
  46. Ozone affects plant, insect, and soil microbial communities: A threat to terrestrial ecosystems and biodiversity
    2020 254 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  47. Soil carbon sequestration by root exudates
    2022 245 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  48. Abundance of kinless hubs within soil microbial networks are associated with high functional potential in agricultural ecosystems
    2020 227 citations Manuel Delgado‐Baquerizo, Yong‐Guan Zhu et al. Environment International profile →
  49. Temporal trade-off between gymnosperm resistance and resilience increases forest sensitivity to extreme drought
    2020 213 citations Shilong Piao, Philippe Ciais et al. profile →
  50. Chlorophyll hormesis: Are chlorophylls major components of stress biology in higher plants?
    2020 212 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. The Science of The Total Environment profile →
  51. Anthropogenic global shifts in biospheric N and P concentrations and ratios and their impacts on biodiversity, ecosystem productivity, food security, and human health
    2020 205 citations Josep Peñuelas, Philippe Ciais et al. profile →
  52. The global nitrogen-phosphorus imbalance
    2022 189 citations Josep Peñuelas, Jordi Sardans profile →
  53. Rice paddy soils are a quantitatively important carbon store according to a global synthesis
    2021 177 citations Jordi Sardans, Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  54. The global cropland-sparing potential of high-yield farming
    2020 175 citations Philippe Ciais, Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  55. A better use of fertilizers is needed for global food security and environmental sustainability
    2023 166 citations Josep Peñuelas, Jordi Sardans et al. profile →
  56. Future reversal of warming-enhanced vegetation productivity in the Northern Hemisphere
    2022 149 citations Shilong Piao, Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  57. An earlier start of the thermal growing season enhances tree growth in cold humid areas but not in dry areas
    2022 142 citations Shilong Piao, Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  58. Increased drought effects on the phenology of autumn leaf senescence
    2022 127 citations Philippe Ciais, Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  59. Altered activities of extracellular soil enzymes by the interacting global environmental changes
    2023 122 citations Jordi Sardans, Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  60. Crop residue return sustains global soil ecological stoichiometry balance
    2023 116 citations Josep Peñuelas, Jordi Sardans et al. profile →
  61. Global variations in critical drought thresholds that impact vegetation
    2023 107 citations Shilong Piao, Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  62. Imbalance of global nutrient cycles exacerbated by the greater retention of phosphorus over nitrogen in lakes
    2022 105 citations Josep Peñuelas, Jordi Sardans et al. profile →
  63. Drought resistance enhanced by tree species diversity in global forests
    2022 101 citations Josep Peñuelas, Shilong Piao et al. profile →
  64. Soil ecological stoichiometry synchronously regulates stream nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations and ratios
    2023 98 citations Josep Peñuelas, Jordi Sardans et al. CATENA profile →
  65. Plant root mechanisms and their effects on carbon and nutrient accumulation in desert ecosystems under changes in land use and climate
    2024 86 citations Akash Tariq, Corina Graciano et al. profile →
  66. A global meta-analysis on the effects of organic and inorganic fertilization on grasslands and croplands
    2024 70 citations Josep Peñuelas, Jordi Sardans et al. profile →
  67. Global Responses of Soil Carbon Dynamics to Microplastic Exposure: A Data Synthesis of Laboratory Studies
    2024 70 citations Yangzhou Xiang, Matthias C. Rillig et al. Environmental Science & Technology profile →
  68. Impact of aridity rise and arid lands expansion on carbon‐storing capacity, biodiversity loss, and ecosystem services
    2024 66 citations Akash Tariq, Jordi Sardans et al. profile →
  69. Microbial diversity and keystone species drive soil nutrient cycling and multifunctionality following mangrove restoration
    2024 64 citations Jordi Sardans, Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  70. Declining precipitation frequency may drive earlier leaf senescence by intensifying drought stress and enhancing drought acclimation
    2025 15 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  71. Diverging responses of terrestrial ecosystems to water stress after disturbances
    2025 15 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →
  72. Planted Forests in China Have Higher Drought Risk Than Natural Forests
    2025 13 citations Josep Peñuelas et al. profile →

Peers — A (Enhanced Table)

Peers by citation overlap · career bar shows stage (early→late) cites · hero ref

Name h Career Trend Papers Cites
Josep Peñuelas Spain 142 32.9k 30.7k 29.6k 17.7k 16.2k 1.4k 87.1k
Robert B. Jackson United States 131 34.1k 1.0× 17.4k 0.6× 23.4k 0.8× 16.2k 0.9× 10.5k 0.6× 460 84.9k
Christopher B. Field United States 120 37.6k 1.1× 17.3k 0.6× 21.8k 0.7× 10.5k 0.6× 13.1k 0.8× 354 72.9k
F. Stuart Chapin United States 137 36.2k 1.1× 22.3k 0.7× 33.8k 1.1× 30.1k 1.7× 24.1k 1.5× 509 101.2k
Peter B. Reich United States 158 42.2k 1.3× 36.4k 1.2× 25.4k 0.9× 49.4k 2.8× 11.1k 0.7× 772 99.8k
Peter M. Vitousek United States 122 22.0k 0.7× 19.3k 0.6× 30.7k 1.0× 23.8k 1.3× 8.1k 0.5× 353 83.2k
Harold A. Mooney United States 107 32.3k 1.0× 19.6k 0.6× 23.2k 0.8× 23.2k 1.3× 7.1k 0.4× 376 73.1k
David Tilman United States 149 27.8k 0.8× 27.1k 0.9× 45.5k 1.5× 49.1k 2.8× 3.4k 0.2× 306 125.0k
Philippe Ciais France 146 60.6k 1.8× 8.6k 0.3× 24.5k 0.8× 10.3k 0.6× 28.4k 1.7× 1.1k 94.7k
Ernst‐Detlef Schulze Germany 111 23.4k 0.7× 17.6k 0.6× 10.0k 0.3× 13.4k 0.8× 9.2k 0.6× 626 48.6k
Christian Körner Switzerland 111 21.9k 0.7× 16.2k 0.5× 8.2k 0.3× 17.2k 1.0× 15.3k 0.9× 465 47.6k

Countries citing papers authored by Josep Peñuelas

Since Specialization
Citations

This map shows the geographic impact of Josep Peñuelas's research. It shows the number of citations coming from papers published by authors working in each country. You can also color the map by specialization and compare the number of citations received by Josep Peñuelas with the expected number of citations based on a country's size and research output (numbers larger than one mean the country cites Josep Peñuelas more than expected).

Fields of papers citing papers by Josep Peñuelas

Since Specialization
Physical SciencesHealth SciencesLife SciencesSocial Sciences

This network shows the impact of papers produced by Josep Peñuelas. Nodes represent research fields, and links connect fields that are likely to share authors. Colored nodes show fields that tend to cite the papers produced by Josep Peñuelas. The network helps show where Josep Peñuelas may publish in the future.

Co-authorship network of co-authors of Josep Peñuelas

This figure shows the co-authorship network connecting the top 25 collaborators of Josep Peñuelas. A scholar is included among the top collaborators of Josep Peñuelas based on the total number of citations received by their joint publications. Widths of edges represent the number of papers authors have co-authored together. Node borders signify the number of papers an author published with Josep Peñuelas. Josep Peñuelas is excluded from the visualization to improve readability, since they are connected to all nodes in the network.

All Works

20 of 20 papers shown
1.
Song, Zhaobin, Xiaoan Zuo, Xiangyun Li, et al.. (2025). Resource-enhancing global changes shift soil multifunctionality towards faster cycling in arid grasslands. Applied Soil Ecology. 208. 105987–105987. 1 indexed citations
2.
Xiang, Yangzhou, Matthias C. Rillig, Josep Peñuelas, et al.. (2025). Global Meta-Analysis Integrated with Machine Learning Assesses Context-Dependent Microplastic Effects on Soil Microbial Biomass Carbon and Nitrogen. Environmental Science & Technology. 59(49). 26568–26582.
3.
Cui, Yongxing, Shushi Peng, Matthias C. Rillig, et al.. (2025). Global patterns of nutrient limitation in soil microorganisms. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 122(20). e2424552122–e2424552122. 8 indexed citations
4.
Zhou, Xing, Liangliang Liu, Zhe Su, et al.. (2025). Plant Diversity Reduces the Risk of Antibiotic Resistance Genes in Agroecosystems. Advanced Science. 12(11). e2410990–e2410990. 6 indexed citations
5.
Tariq, Akash, Fanjiang Zeng, Corina Graciano, et al.. (2025). Dual impacts of long-term vegetation management practices on plant-soil ecological multifunctionality: Call for sustainable management in desert ecosystems. Journal of Environmental Management. 375. 124409–124409.
6.
Jin, Mingkang, Zhanfeng Liu, Tao Wang, et al.. (2024). Assembly and succession of the phyllosphere microbiome and nutrient-cycling genes during plant community development in a glacier foreland. Environment International. 187. 108688–108688. 4 indexed citations
7.
Wang, Qin, et al.. (2024). Decaying logs and gap positions jointly mediate the structure and function of soil bacterial community in the forest ecosystem. Forest Ecology and Management. 567. 122070–122070. 3 indexed citations
8.
Xue, Ting, Josep Peñuelas, Jordi Sardans, et al.. (2024). A novel rejuvenation approach to improve rooting capacity and its mechanism in Cunninghamia lanceolata. Forest Ecology and Management. 563. 121992–121992. 1 indexed citations
9.
Wang, Jianqing, Josep Peñuelas, Xiuzhen Shi, et al.. (2024). Tree species richness improves soil net nitrogen mineralization rates in a young biodiversity-ecosystem function experiment. CATENA. 243. 108178–108178. 1 indexed citations
10.
11.
Fu, Yuling, Josep Peñuelas, Guiyao Zhou, et al.. (2024). Fungi and bacteria trade-off mediates drought-induced reduction in wood decomposition. CATENA. 243. 108169–108169. 2 indexed citations
12.
Ye, Jian‐Sheng, Jiu-Ying Pei, Chao Fang, et al.. (2024). Initial soil condition, stand age, and aridity alter the pathways for modifying the soil carbon under afforestation. The Science of The Total Environment. 946. 174448–174448. 4 indexed citations
13.
14.
Kuang, Luhui, Zhijian Mou, Yue Li, et al.. (2023). Depth-driven responses of microbial residual carbon to nitrogen addition approaches in a tropical forest: Canopy addition versus understory addition. Journal of Environmental Management. 340. 118009–118009. 8 indexed citations
15.
Xu, Nuohan, Danyan Qiu, Zhenyan Zhang, et al.. (2023). A global atlas of marine antibiotic resistance genes and their expression. Water Research. 244. 120488–120488. 48 indexed citations
16.
Tie, Liehua, Shengzhao Wei, Josep Peñuelas, et al.. (2023). N and P combined addition accelerates the release of litter C, N, and most metal nutrients in a N-rich subtropical forest. The Science of The Total Environment. 881. 163491–163491. 8 indexed citations
17.
Lyu, Maokui, Josep Peñuelas, Jordi Sardans, et al.. (2023). Understory ferns removal downregulates microbial carbon use efficiency and carbon accrual in previously degraded lands. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology. 340. 109631–109631. 12 indexed citations
18.
Zhu, Yong‐Guan, Yi Zhao, Dong Zhu, et al.. (2019). Soil biota, antimicrobial resistance and planetary health. Environment International. 131. 105059–105059. 200 indexed citations
19.
Wang, Yilong, Philippe Ciais, Daniel S. Goll, et al.. (2018). GOLUM-CNP v1.0: a data-driven modeling of carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus cycles in major terrestrial biomes. Geoscientific model development. 11(9). 3903–3928. 34 indexed citations
20.
Peñuelas, Josep, et al.. (1997). Experiencias sobre control de la competencia herbácea en repoblaciones de terrenos agrícolas abandonados. Resultados de tres años en campo. Cuadernos de la Sociedad Española de Ciencias Forestales. 119–126. 5 indexed citations

Rankless uses publication and citation data sourced from OpenAlex, an open and comprehensive bibliographic database. While OpenAlex provides broad and valuable coverage of the global research landscape, it—like all bibliographic datasets—has inherent limitations. These include incomplete records, variations in author disambiguation, differences in journal indexing, and delays in data updates. As a result, some metrics and network relationships displayed in Rankless may not fully capture the entirety of a scholar's output or impact.

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