Impacts of winter icing events on the growth, phenology and physiology of sub‐arctic dwarf shrubs

Preece, Catherine; Callaghan, Terry V.; Phoenix, Gareth K.

doi:10.1111/j.1399-3054.2012.01640.x

Cited by 32 publications

(48 citation statements)

References 71 publications

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“…Overall, this study supports the intermediate to high tolerance of icing observed recently in a shorter duration icing study (Preece et al . ), but further shows that this level of tolerance is not lost even under ice encasement of much longer duration, as in the case of the January icing here.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 57%

“…It was expected that ice encasement would decrease growth of the three dwarf shrubs, although possibly only following the January icing, given the tolerance to shorter duration icing shown previously (Preece et al . ). However, there were no effects of icing on apical growth of any species, indicating that the plants are able to tolerate the ice encasement – including the much longer ice encasement duration of the January icing – with no negative impacts on shoot extension.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…There have been very few field studies investigating icing impacts in the sub‐arctic, with the responses that have been shown appearing to be highly species‐specific: 3 years of simulated March icing events led to increased shoot mortality and earlier leaf emergence of Vaccinium myrtillus , but did not consistently affect E. nigrum or V. vitis‐idaea (Preece et al . ). However, this was following ice encasement of relatively short duration, so may have under‐estimated icing impacts.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

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Impact of early and late winter icing events on sub‐arctic dwarf shrubs

Preece

Phoenix

2013

Plant Biol J

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Polar regions are predicted to undergo large increases in winter temperature and an increased frequency of freeze-thaw cycles, which can cause ice layers in the snow pack and ice encasement of vegetation. Early or late winter timing of ice encasement could, however, modify the extent of damage caused to plants. To determine impacts of the date of ice encasement, a novel field experiment was established in sub-arctic Sweden, with icing events simulated in January and March 2008 and 2009. In the subsequent summers, reproduction, phenology, growth and mortality, as well as physiological indicators of leaf damage were measured in the three dominant dwarf shrubs: Vaccinium uliginosum, Vaccinium vitis-idaea and Empetrum nigrum. It was hypothesised that January icing would be more damaging compared to March icing due to the longer duration of ice encasement. Following 2 years of icing, E. nigrum berry production was 83% lower in January-iced plots compared to controls, and V. vitis-idaea electrolyte leakage was increased by 69%. Conversely, electrolyte leakage of E. nigrum was 25% lower and leaf emergence of V. vitis-idaea commenced 11 days earlier in March-iced plots compared to control plots in 2009. There was no effect of icing on any of the other parameters measured, indicating that overall these study species have moderate to high tolerance to ice encasement. Even much longer exposure under the January icing treatment does not clearly increase damage.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 57%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

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Impact of early and late winter icing events on sub‐arctic dwarf shrubs

Preece

Phoenix

2013

Plant Biol J

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“…Similar population crashes to semidomesticated reindeer caused by ground ice are also known from other northern regions and years (Riseth et al 2011;Vikhamar-Schuler et al 2013;Rasmus et al 2016). Ground ice has a negative impact on vegetation encased in ice (Gudleifsson 2009;Bjerke et al 2011;Preece et al 2012). The winter of 2012 also led to negative plant responses, similar to those recorded after the 2006 winter (Bjerke et al 2014).…”

Section: B Winter Warming Trends In the Twenty-first Centurysupporting

confidence: 58%

“…2a), but we choose to use a consistent season duration to facilitate climate comparisons across all stations. Plant species under the snow cover have been observed to respond differently to extraordinary warming events, depending on the timing of their occurrence during the winter season (Bokhorst et al 2010Preece and Phoenix 2014). Therefore, we also consider three subperiods: 1) early winter (OctoberNovember), 2) midwinter (December-February), and 3) late winter (March-April).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Changes in Winter Warming Events in the Nordic Arctic Region

et al. 2016

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In recent years extreme winter warming events have been reported in arctic areas. These events are characterized as extraordinarily warm weather episodes, occasionally combined with intense rainfall, causing ecological disturbance and challenges for arctic societies and infrastructure. Ground-ice formation due to winter rain or melting prevents ungulates from grazing, leads to vegetation browning, and impacts soil temperatures. The authors analyze changes in frequency and intensity of winter warming events in the Nordic arctic region-northern Norway, Sweden, and Finland, including the arctic islands Svalbard and Jan Mayen. This study identifies events in the longest available records of daily temperature and precipitation, as well as in future climate scenarios, and performs analyses of long-term trends for climate indices aimed to capture these individual events. Results show high frequencies of warm weather events during the 1920s-30s and the past 15 years , causing weak positive trends over the past 90 years . In contrast, strong positive trends in occurrence and intensity for all climate indices are found for the past 50 years with, for example, increased rates for number of melt days of up to 9.2 days decade 21 for the arctic islands and 3-7 days decade 21 for the arctic mainland. Regional projections for the twenty-first century indicate a significant enhancement of the frequency and intensity of winter warming events. For northern Scandinavia, the simulations indicate a doubling in the number of warming events, compared to 1985-2014, while the projected frequencies for the arctic islands are up to 3 times higher.

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The impact of winter warming and more frequent icing events on reindeer herder occupational safety, health, and wellbeing

Ocobock

Turunen

Soppela

et al. 2022

American J Hum Biol

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Background Northern Finland, like the rest of the Arctic, has experienced increases in mean annual temperature, the number of winter rains, the number of thaw–freeze days, the number of extremely warm weather events, and a shortened snow season. These changes have produced numerous problems for reindeer herders whose livelihoods rely on a healthy ecosystem with predictable weather patterns. Methods We performed a scoping literature review to assess how climate change induced extreme weather has negatively impacted reindeer herding as well as the health and wellbeing of reindeer herders. Results Late snow cover negatively impacts reindeer herding through a more widely dispersed herd that increases the work to gather reindeer, leads to reduced calf weight, and results in less meat for sale. This increased labor, especially in extreme cold conditions, can also negatively impact reindeer herder health. Icing due to thaw–freeze and rain‐on‐snow events makes it impossible for reindeer to dig through the snow to access lichens, increasing the need for reindeer herders to keep the herd in winter enclosures and provide supplemental feed. Conclusion Climate change induced weather events such as late snow cover and icing increase reindeer herder efforts and expenses, put their livelihood at risk, and put their health at risk.

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Impacts of winter icing events on the growth, phenology and physiology of sub‐arctic dwarf shrubs

Cited by 32 publications

References 71 publications

Impact of early and late winter icing events on sub‐arctic dwarf shrubs

Impact of early and late winter icing events on sub‐arctic dwarf shrubs

Changes in Winter Warming Events in the Nordic Arctic Region

The impact of winter warming and more frequent icing events on reindeer herder occupational safety, health, and wellbeing

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