DOI: 10.1016/j.foreco.2013.05.041
Scopus记录号: 2-s2.0-84879727606
论文题名: Forest patches and the upward migration of timberline in the southern Peruvian Andes
作者: Rehm E.M. ; Feeley K.J.
刊名: Forest Ecology and Management
ISSN: 0378-1127
出版年: 2013
卷: 305 起始页码: 204
结束页码: 211
语种: 英语
英文关键词: Climate change
; Forest patches
; Microclimate
; Puna
; Seed dispersal
; Timberline
Scopus关键词: Forest patches
; Microclimate
; Puna
; Seed dispersal
; Timberline
; Biodiversity
; Climate change
; Expansion
; Population distribution
; Seed
; Forestry
; biodiversity
; climate change
; ecotone
; forest ecosystem
; germination
; grassland
; human activity
; microclimate
; patchiness
; seed dispersal
; treeline
; warming
; Biodiversity
; Biological Populations
; Climates
; Distribution
; Forestry
; Seeds
; Andes
; Peru
英文摘要: Montane plant species around the globe are predicted to shift their distributions upslope in response to increasing temperatures associated with climate change. In the tropical Andes, which are one of the most diverse and threatened of all biodiversity hotspots, many plant and animal species have already started to shift their distributions to higher elevations in response to warming. However, a variety of biotic and abiotic factors may stabilize Andean timberlines and halt further upslope migrations into the high elevation grasslands (referred to as "puna" in southern Peru) above the forest. One possibility is that small forest patches that occur above-timberline throughout the Andes may facilitate forest expansion into newly suitable areas in the puna, yet little is known about the ecology or function of these patches. In this study, we examined seedling recruitment patterns, seed dispersal, and microclimate at the timberline, in and around above-timberline forest patches, and in the puna. The above-timberline forest patches had similar patterns of seed dispersal as the timberline but overal <1% of captured seeds were dispersed 10. m into the puna. At both the patch edges and the forest timberline, seedling abundances were lower in the puna relative to the adjacent forest and forest-puna ecotone. This reduction may be a result of reduced seed dispersal across the forest-puna ecotone and/or decreased germination of dispersed seeds due to the harsh microclimatic conditions occurring in the puna (daily temperature fluctuations are greatly elevated in the puna relative to the forest and frost events are more frequent and severe). While increasing temperatures associated with climate change may ameliorate some of the severe climatic conditions occurring in the puna, it will not directly affect other potential recruitment limitations such as reduced seed dispersal, high levels of UV radiation, and anthropogenic activities (cattle grazing and fires) in the puna. With the reduction of anthropogenic activities, above-timberline forest patches may serve as nucleating foci for future forest expansion into the puna. However, our results indicate that any upslope migration of the timberline into the puna will likely occur at a rate that is slower than what is required to keep pace with warming because recruitment is restricted to a narrow strip along the forest-puna borders. Slowed forest expansion into the puna could act as a barrier to the upslope migration of Andean cloud forest species leading to extreme losses of Andean biodiversity. © 2013 Elsevier B.V. Citation statistics:
资源类型: 期刊论文
标识符: http://119.78.100.158/handle/2HF3EXSE/66458
Appears in Collections: 影响、适应和脆弱性
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作者单位: Department of Biological Sciences, Florida International University, Miami, FL, United States; Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, Coral Gables, FL, United States
Recommended Citation:
Rehm E.M.,Feeley K.J.. Forest patches and the upward migration of timberline in the southern Peruvian Andes[J]. Forest Ecology and Management,2013-01-01,305