Reprint
Alpine and Polar Treelines in a Changing Environment
Edited by
April 2020
268 pages
- ISBN978-3-03928-630-0 (Paperback)
- ISBN978-3-03928-631-7 (PDF)
This book is a reprint of the Special Issue Alpine and Polar Treelines in a Changing Environment that was published in
Biology & Life Sciences
Environmental & Earth Sciences
Summary
Concerns have been raised with respect to the state of high-altitude and high-latitude treelines, as they are anticipated to undergo considerable modifications due to global changes, and especially due to climate warming. As high-elevation treelines are temperature-limited vegetation boundaries, they are considered to be sensitive to climate warming. As a consequence, in this future, warmer environment, an upward migration of treelines is expected because low air and root-zone temperatures constrain their regeneration and growth. Despite the ubiquity of climate warming, treeline advancement is not a worldwide phenomenon: some treelines have been advancing rapidly, others have responded sluggishly or have remained stable. This variation in responses is attributed to the potential interaction of a continuum of site-related factors that may lead to the occurrence of locally conditioned temperature patterns. Competition amongst species and below-ground resources have been suggested as additional factors explaining the variability in the movement of treelines. This Special Issue (book) is dedicated to the discussion of treeline responses to changing environmental conditions in different areas around the globe.
Format
- Paperback
License
© 2020 by the authors; CC BY-NC-ND license
Keywords
Changbai Mountain; Erman’s birch; microsite; alpine treeline; non-structural carbohydrates (NSCs); treeline; climate change; ecosystem manipulation; space-for-time substitution; long-term trends; Central Austrian Alps; 15N natural abundance; nitrogen cycling; treeline; shrubline; altitude; light quantity; light quality; spectrometer; shoot elongation; tree seedlings; forest climatology; Switzerland; temperature; relative air humidity; thermal continentality; foehn winds; expert elicitation; knowledge engineering; apical control; multi-stemmed growth form; Pinus cembra; treeline; climate change; experimental rain exclusion; plant water availability; soil drought; treeline; sap flow; Picea abies; Larix decidua; drought; Mediterranean climate; photoinhibition; photosynthetic pigments; tocopherol; climate change; climate zone; environmental stress; forest edge; precipitation; tree regeneration; tree seedling recruitment; upward advance; alpine timberline; conifer shrub; pit aspiration; refilling; winter stress; xylem embolism; tree line; sub-Antarctic; westerly winds; postglacial; Holocene; Southern Ocean; climate change; palynology; cloud; peat; dendroclimatology; elevational gradients; drought; western Montana; Rocky Mountains; treeline; climate change; fungal ecology; diversity; monitoring; NDVI; permafrost; remote sensing data; history of treeline research; elevational treeline; polar treeline; treeline dynamics; timberline; higher altitude; chlorophyll; carotenoids; climate change; Pinus sibirica; Abies sibirica; elevational transect; basal area increment; climate warming; conifers; European Alps; growth trend; n/a