The altitudinal distribution center of a widespread cushion species is related to an optimum combination of temperature and precipitation in the central Tibetan Plateau

Li, R.; Luo, Tianxiang; Tang, Yanhong; Du, Mingyuan; Zhang, X.

doi:10.1016/j.jaridenv.2012.07.018

Cited by 28 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 37 publications

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“…The meteorological records along the altitudinal range from ~4,400 to 5,300 m at the DX site show increasing precipitation with increasing elevation up to 5,100 m, and then slightly decreasing precipitation at higher elevations (Li et al. ). The elevation of the shrubline gradually increases from east (SD) to west (SG) in our study area (Appendix : Table S1).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Past the climate optimum: Recruitment is declining at the world's highest juniper shrublines on the Tibetan Plateau

Liang

Wang

et al. 2019

Ecology

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Alpine biomes are climate change hotspots, and treeline dynamics in particular have received much attention as visible evidence of climate‐induced shifts in species distributions. Comparatively little is known, however, about the effects of climate change on alpine shrubline dynamics. Here, we reconstruct decadally resolved shrub recruitment history (age structure) through the combination of field surveys and dendroecology methods at the world's highest juniper (Juniperus pingii var. wilsonii) shrublines on the south‐central Tibetan Plateau. A total of 1,899 shrubs were surveyed at 12 plots located in four regions along an east‐to‐west declining precipitation gradient. We detected synchronous recruitment with 9 out of 12 plots showing a gradual increase from 1600 to 1900, a peak at 1900–1940, and a subsequent decrease from the 1930s onward. Shrub recruitment was significantly and positively correlated with reconstructed summer temperature from 1600 to 1940, whereas it was negatively associated with temperature in recent decades (1930–2000). Recruitment was also positively correlated with precipitation, except in the 1780–1830 period, when a trend toward wetter climate conditions began. Warming‐induced drought limitation has likely reduced the recruitment potential of alpine juniper shrubs in recent decades. Ongoing warming without a simultaneous increase in precipitation is expected to further impair recruitment at the world's highest juniper shrublines and alter the dynamics and competitive balance between woody plant species throughout these alpine biomes.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Past the climate optimum: Recruitment is declining at the world's highest juniper shrublines on the Tibetan Plateau

Liang

Wang

et al. 2019

Ecology

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“…Primary productivity in more than half of the world's ecosystems has been substantially limited by water availability (Heimann & Reichstein, ). Previous studies have shown that an optimum combination of temperature and precipitation would determine the altitudinal distribution center of cushion species and other dominant plant species at the same sites (Li et al ., ; Wang et al ., ). In this study, numerous environmental factors were measured (Tables and ), including climatic factors (e.g.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Climate warming would generally cause higher temperature and varied humidity change in the future, and the most immediate effect of climate change would be the shifts in species geographical range (Thuiller, ). Some studies have pointed out that climate warming would increase the mortality of cushion species and move the optimum distribution center of alpine meadow upwards (Li et al ., ; Wang et al ., ). However, few studies have examined the sensitivity and response of Tibetan bacterial community to recent and future climatic warming.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bacterial community in alpine grasslands along an altitudinal gradient on the Tibetan Plateau

Yuan

Wang

et al. 2013

FEMS Microbiol Ecol

121

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The Tibetan Plateau, 'the third pole', is a region that is very sensitive to climate change. A better understanding of response of soil microorganisms to climate warming is important to predict soil organic matter preservation in future scenario. We selected a typically altitudinal gradient (4400 m-5200 m a.s.l) along south-facing slope of Nyainqentanglha Mountains on central Tibetan Plateau. Bacterial communities were investigated using terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis (T-RFLP) combined with sequencing methods. Acidobacteria and Proteobacteria were dominant bacteria in this alpine soil. Redundancy analysis revealed that soil bacterial communities were significantly different along the large altitudinal gradient, although the dominant environmental driving factors varied at different soil depth. Specifically, our results showed that precipitation and soil NH4 + were dominant environmental factors that influence bacterial communities at 0-5 cm depth along the altitudinal gradients, whereas pH was a major influential factor at 5-20 cm soil. In this semi-arid region, precipitation rather than temperature was a main driving force on soil bacterial communities as well as on plant communities. We speculate that an increase in temperature might not significantly change soil bacterial community structures along the large altitudinal gradient, whereas precipitation change would play a more important role in affecting soil bacterial communities.

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“…The size of each cushion was determined by measuring the longest and shortest canopy diameters, and its area was calculated as π × (longest axis × shortest axis)/4 (Badano et al, ). Cushion cover per unit surface area at each elevation was determined by 20 1‐m 2 quadrats as in Li et al (). At each elevation, eight soil samples (0–10 cm depth) were collected from four randomly selected paired plots (i.e., within cushion and in open areas).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Water Shortage Drives Interactions Between Cushion and Beneficiary Species Along Elevation Gradients in Dry Himalayas

Ale

Zhang

et al. 2018

JGR Biogeosciences

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It is challenging to understand the drivers of plant‐plant interaction patterns in dry mountains. However, such knowledge is important to assess alpine ecosystem resilience to climate change. In water‐limited ecosystems, leaf δ13C and satellite‐derived vegetation index (NDVI) may serve as reliable indicators of environmental severity to address plant responses to water availability. We hypothesized that in dry mountains, interaction intensity between cushion and beneficiary species increases with increasing δ13C and decreasing NDVI regardless of elevation, indicating the importance of water availability in driving plant interactions. We used relative interaction indices (RII) of species and individual numbers within and outside the canopy of three cushion plant species along three elevational transects in dry Himalayas, Nepal. Site‐specific NDVI was calculated from 30 m Landsat images. Thornthwaite moisture index was calculated for each elevation site. We observed nonlinear patterns in RII, δ13C, and NDVI with elevation. Intraspecific variation of δ13C was negatively correlated with moisture index and NDVI, while NDVI across sites was positively correlated with precipitation but not with temperature. RII within a cushion species was positively correlated with δ13C and negatively with NDVI when the effect of elevation was removed. In pooled data across cushion species and sites, RII was negatively correlated with precipitation and NDVI when the effect of temperature was removed. RII was uncorrelated with cushion size under the same environment. Leaf nitrogen showed no correlation with RII or δ13C. Our data show that water shortage is the main driver of plant interactions in the alpine belt of dry Himalayas.

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The altitudinal distribution center of a widespread cushion species is related to an optimum combination of temperature and precipitation in the central Tibetan Plateau

Cited by 28 publications

References 37 publications

Past the climate optimum: Recruitment is declining at the world's highest juniper shrublines on the Tibetan Plateau

Past the climate optimum: Recruitment is declining at the world's highest juniper shrublines on the Tibetan Plateau

Bacterial community in alpine grasslands along an altitudinal gradient on the Tibetan Plateau

Water Shortage Drives Interactions Between Cushion and Beneficiary Species Along Elevation Gradients in Dry Himalayas

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