Physiological and ecological mechanisms that define treelines are still debated. It has been suggested that the absence of trees above the treeline is caused by low temperatures that limit growth. Thus, we hypothesize...Physiological and ecological mechanisms that define treelines are still debated. It has been suggested that the absence of trees above the treeline is caused by low temperatures that limit growth. Thus, we hypothesized that there is a critical minimum temperature （CTmin） preventing xylogenesis at treeline. We tested this hypothesis by examining weekly xylogenesis across three and four growing seasons in two natural Smith fir （Abies georgei var. srnithii） treeline sites on the southeastern Tibetan Plateau. Despite differences in the timing of cell differentiation among years, minimum air temperature was the dominant climatic variable associated with xylem growth; the critical minimum temperature （CTmin） for the onset and end of xylogenesis occurred at 0.7 ±0.4 ℃. A process-based modelling chronology of tree-ring formation using this CTmin was consistent with actual tree-ring data. This extremely low CTmin permits Smith fir growing at treeline to complete annual xylem production and maturation and provides both support and a mechanism for treeline formation.展开更多
Aims Forest growth and recruitment and their relationships to climate are complex.The aims of our study are(i)to examine the patterns in tree radial growth and recruitment along an altitudinal gradient in Mt.Everest r...Aims Forest growth and recruitment and their relationships to climate are complex.The aims of our study are(i)to examine the patterns in tree radial growth and recruitment along an altitudinal gradient in Mt.Everest region and(ii)to identify the climatic factors that are responsible to the observed patterns in tree growth and recruitment.Methods Four plots,each 30360 m in size,were established from the lower to upper limits of the eastern Himalayan fir forest in Dingjie County of the Mt.Everest Nature Reserve,China.Dendrochronological techniques were applied to obtain information about the radial growth and age of the trees in the plots.Correlation analysis was used to identify the relationships between radial growth and recruitment of trees and climatic variables,i.e.monthly mean temperature and Palmer Drought Severity Index(PDSI).The population age structure was analyzed to investigate the recruitment history.Important Findings The timberline plot was characterized by significant tree recruitments in the recent three decades and sporadic recruitments in earlier periods.The other three plots showed recruitment pulses during 1880–1910 in Plot 3700 m,during 1870–80 and 1920–30 in Plot 3520 m and during 1900–40 in Plot 3410 m.The recruitment of fir trees in the timberline was sensitive to summer(June–September)temperatures,but it was mainly controlled by episodic disturbances in lower altitudes.Fir radial growth in the upper two plots was positively correlated with previous winter and current August temperature.Fir radial growth at the two lower plots was positively correlated with PDSI from previous September to current September.展开更多
Alpine timberline, as the ＂ecologica tion of scientists in many fields, especially in transition zone,＂ has long attracted the atten- recent years. Many unitary and dibasic fitting models have been developed to expl...Alpine timberline, as the ＂ecologica tion of scientists in many fields, especially in transition zone,＂ has long attracted the atten- recent years. Many unitary and dibasic fitting models have been developed to explore the relationship between timberline elevation and latitude or temperature. However, these models are usually on regional scale and could not be applied to other regions; on the other hand, hemispherical-scale and continental-scale models are usually based on about 100 timberline data and are necessarily low in precision. The present article collects 516 data sites of timberline, and takes latitude, continentality and mass elevation effect （MEE） as independent variables and timberline elevation as dependent variable to develop a ternary linear regression meteorological data released by WorldClim and model. Continentality is calculated using the mountain base elevation （as a proxy of mass elevation effect） is extracted on the basis of SRTM 90-meter resolution elevation data. The results show that the coefficient of determination （R2） of the linear model is as high as 0.904, and that the contribution rate of latitude, continentality and MEE to timberline elevation is 45.02% （p=0.000）, 6.04% （p=0.000） and 48.94% （p=0.000）, respectively. This means that MEE is simply the primary factor contributing to the elevation distribution of timberline on the continental and hemispherical scales. The contribution rate of MEE to timberline altitude dif- fers in different regions, e.g., 50.49% （p=0.000） in North America, 48.73% （p=0.000） in the eastern Eurasia, and 43.6% （p=0.000） in the western Eurasia, but it is usually very high.展开更多
As a good indicator of Holocene climate, the fluctuation of alpine timberline is a synthetical result of impacts of many environmental factors dur-ing geological and historical periods and modern times. As the dominan...As a good indicator of Holocene climate, the fluctuation of alpine timberline is a synthetical result of impacts of many environmental factors dur-ing geological and historical periods and modern times. As the dominant tree species of mountainous conifer forests on the northern slope of Tianshan Mountains in Xinjiang, the distribution of Picea schrenkiana and its population size are sensitive to climatic change. The typical natural profile of Huashuwozi and the nearby Xiaoxigou archaeologi-cal profile, located in Quanzijie Township, Jimusaer County in Xinjiang, were chosen to analyze and compare the relative high-resolution pollen records, and to measure 14C dating and SEM (scanning elec-tron microscope) microstructure for charcoal frag-ments contained in Xiaoxigou profile’s cultural layers. The results show that in these two profiles, the high percentages of Picea (more than 20% and 35%, re-spectively) appeared in the stratum of the same pe-riod (2000-1300 a BP), which corresponds to the charcoal fragment’s age of Picea schrenkiana con-tained in Xiaoxigou cultural layers. These results convincingly revealed that during the period of 2000-1300 a BP, the timberline for Picea schrenkiana on the northern slope of Tianshan Mountains in Xinjiang declined by about 330m compared with the present.展开更多
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundations of China(41525001,41661144040,41601204)supported by the Bilateral Project between China and Slovenia(BI-CN/09–11-012)+1 种基金COST Action(FP1106,STRe ESS)supported by the Chinese Academy of Sciences President International Fellowship Initiative for Visiting Scientists(2016VBA074)
文摘Physiological and ecological mechanisms that define treelines are still debated. It has been suggested that the absence of trees above the treeline is caused by low temperatures that limit growth. Thus, we hypothesized that there is a critical minimum temperature （CTmin） preventing xylogenesis at treeline. We tested this hypothesis by examining weekly xylogenesis across three and four growing seasons in two natural Smith fir （Abies georgei var. srnithii） treeline sites on the southeastern Tibetan Plateau. Despite differences in the timing of cell differentiation among years, minimum air temperature was the dominant climatic variable associated with xylem growth; the critical minimum temperature （CTmin） for the onset and end of xylogenesis occurred at 0.7 ±0.4 ℃. A process-based modelling chronology of tree-ring formation using this CTmin was consistent with actual tree-ring data. This extremely low CTmin permits Smith fir growing at treeline to complete annual xylem production and maturation and provides both support and a mechanism for treeline formation.
基金Natural Science Foundation of China(30670365,40631002 and 30870461)the Chinese Academy of Sciences(KSCXYW-Z-1022).
文摘Aims Forest growth and recruitment and their relationships to climate are complex.The aims of our study are(i)to examine the patterns in tree radial growth and recruitment along an altitudinal gradient in Mt.Everest region and(ii)to identify the climatic factors that are responsible to the observed patterns in tree growth and recruitment.Methods Four plots,each 30360 m in size,were established from the lower to upper limits of the eastern Himalayan fir forest in Dingjie County of the Mt.Everest Nature Reserve,China.Dendrochronological techniques were applied to obtain information about the radial growth and age of the trees in the plots.Correlation analysis was used to identify the relationships between radial growth and recruitment of trees and climatic variables,i.e.monthly mean temperature and Palmer Drought Severity Index(PDSI).The population age structure was analyzed to investigate the recruitment history.Important Findings The timberline plot was characterized by significant tree recruitments in the recent three decades and sporadic recruitments in earlier periods.The other three plots showed recruitment pulses during 1880–1910 in Plot 3700 m,during 1870–80 and 1920–30 in Plot 3520 m and during 1900–40 in Plot 3410 m.The recruitment of fir trees in the timberline was sensitive to summer(June–September)temperatures,but it was mainly controlled by episodic disturbances in lower altitudes.Fir radial growth in the upper two plots was positively correlated with previous winter and current August temperature.Fir radial growth at the two lower plots was positively correlated with PDSI from previous September to current September.
基金National Natural Science Foundation of China,No.41030528No.40971064
文摘Alpine timberline, as the ＂ecologica tion of scientists in many fields, especially in transition zone,＂ has long attracted the atten- recent years. Many unitary and dibasic fitting models have been developed to explore the relationship between timberline elevation and latitude or temperature. However, these models are usually on regional scale and could not be applied to other regions; on the other hand, hemispherical-scale and continental-scale models are usually based on about 100 timberline data and are necessarily low in precision. The present article collects 516 data sites of timberline, and takes latitude, continentality and mass elevation effect （MEE） as independent variables and timberline elevation as dependent variable to develop a ternary linear regression meteorological data released by WorldClim and model. Continentality is calculated using the mountain base elevation （as a proxy of mass elevation effect） is extracted on the basis of SRTM 90-meter resolution elevation data. The results show that the coefficient of determination （R2） of the linear model is as high as 0.904, and that the contribution rate of latitude, continentality and MEE to timberline elevation is 45.02% （p=0.000）, 6.04% （p=0.000） and 48.94% （p=0.000）, respectively. This means that MEE is simply the primary factor contributing to the elevation distribution of timberline on the continental and hemispherical scales. The contribution rate of MEE to timberline altitude dif- fers in different regions, e.g., 50.49% （p=0.000） in North America, 48.73% （p=0.000） in the eastern Eurasia, and 43.6% （p=0.000） in the western Eurasia, but it is usually very high.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant No.90102009)the Scientific Research Foundation for the Returned 0verseas Chinese Scholars,State Education Ministry,the Innovation Project of the Chinese Academy of Sciences(Grant No.KZCXI-10-05)973 project(Grant No.G1999043502).
文摘As a good indicator of Holocene climate, the fluctuation of alpine timberline is a synthetical result of impacts of many environmental factors dur-ing geological and historical periods and modern times. As the dominant tree species of mountainous conifer forests on the northern slope of Tianshan Mountains in Xinjiang, the distribution of Picea schrenkiana and its population size are sensitive to climatic change. The typical natural profile of Huashuwozi and the nearby Xiaoxigou archaeologi-cal profile, located in Quanzijie Township, Jimusaer County in Xinjiang, were chosen to analyze and compare the relative high-resolution pollen records, and to measure 14C dating and SEM (scanning elec-tron microscope) microstructure for charcoal frag-ments contained in Xiaoxigou profile’s cultural layers. The results show that in these two profiles, the high percentages of Picea (more than 20% and 35%, re-spectively) appeared in the stratum of the same pe-riod (2000-1300 a BP), which corresponds to the charcoal fragment’s age of Picea schrenkiana con-tained in Xiaoxigou cultural layers. These results convincingly revealed that during the period of 2000-1300 a BP, the timberline for Picea schrenkiana on the northern slope of Tianshan Mountains in Xinjiang declined by about 330m compared with the present.
