Climate change winners and losers: The effects of climate change on five palm species in the Southeastern United States

Butler, Christopher J.; Larson, Matt

doi:10.1002/ece3.6697

Cited by 13 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 79 publications

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“…Even so, we conclude that warming might have neutral to slightly positive effects on S. repens in north Florida. This conclusion fits with the prediction that S. repens habitat will increase slightly with warming (Butler & Larson, 2020).…”

Section: Species Responses To Warmingsupporting

confidence: 90%

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Warming impacts on photosynthetic processes in dominant plant species in a subtropical forest

Aspinwall

Chieppa

Gray

et al. 2022

Physiologia Plantarum

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Climate warming could shift some subtropical regions to a tropical climate in the next 30 years. Yet, climate warming impacts on subtropical species and ecosystems remain unclear. We conducted a passive warming experiment in a subtropical forest in Florida, USA, to determine warming impacts on four species differing in their climatic distribution, growth form, and functional type: Serenoa repens (palm), Andropogon glomeratus (C4 grass), Pinus palustris (needled evergreen tree), and Quercus laevis (broadleaved deciduous tree). We hypothesized that warming would have neutral‐positive effects on photosynthetic processes in monocot species with warmer climatic distributions or adaptations to warmer temperatures, but negative effects on photosynthesis in tree species. We also hypothesized that periods of low soil moisture would alter photosynthetic responses to warming. In both monocot species, warming had no significant effect on net photosynthesis (A) or stomatal conductance (gs) measured at prevailing temperatures, or photosynthetic capacity measured at a common temperature. In P. palustris, warming reduced A (−15%) and gs (−28%), and caused small reductions in Rubisco carboxylation and RuBP regeneration. Warming had little effect on photosynthetic processes in Q. laevis. Interestingly, A. glomeratus showed little sensitivity to reduced soil moisture, and all C3 species reduced A and gs as soil moisture declined and did so consistently across temperature treatments. In subtropical forests of the southeastern US, we conclude that climate warming may have neutral or slightly positive effects on the performance of grasses and broadleaved species but negative effects on P. palustris seedlings, foreshadowing possible changes in community and ecosystem properties.

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Section: Species Responses To Warmingsupporting

confidence: 90%

“…This conclusion fits with the prediction that S . repens habitat will increase slightly with warming (Butler & Larson, 2020).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Warming impacts on photosynthetic processes in dominant plant species in a subtropical forest

Aspinwall

Chieppa

Gray

et al. 2022

Physiologia Plantarum

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“…Andreazzi et al ., 2012 ; Tucker Lima et al ., 2018 ; Pedroso et al ., 2021 ), and the physiological and ecological responses of both palms and frugivores to habitat and climate change can have cascading effects on palm regeneration. Quantifying how seed dispersal distances vary according to palm fruit traits and feeding guilds of frugivores is also crucial for forecasting palm species distributions under climate change (Butler & Larson, 2020 ; Sales et al ., 2021 ). Pulp‐eaters and seed‐eaters may not be able to disperse palm seeds as far as fruit‐eaters can, but certain frugivores in these feeding guilds provide highly relevant long‐distance dispersal services for several palms (Fig.…”

Section: Prospectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The mutualism–antagonism continuum in Neotropical palm–frugivore interactions: from interaction outcomes to ecosystem dynamics

Dracxler

Kissling

2021

Biological Reviews

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Frugivory, that is feeding on fruits, pulp or seeds by animals, is usually considered a mutualism when interactions involve seed dispersal, and an antagonism when it results in the predation and destruction of seeds. Nevertheless, most frugivory interactions involve both benefits and disadvantages for plants, and the net interaction outcomes thus tend to vary along a continuum from mutualism to antagonism. Quantifying outcome variation is challenging and the ecological contribution of frugivorous animals to plant demography thus remains little explored. This is particularly true for interactions in which animals do not ingest entire fruits, that is in seed‐eating and pulp‐eating. Here, we provide a comprehensive review of Neotropical palm–frugivore interactions, with a focus on how frugivore consumption behaviour (i.e. digestive processing, fruit‐handling ability and caching behaviour) and feeding types (fruit‐eating, pulp‐eating and seed‐eating) influence interaction outcomes at different demographic stages of palms. We compiled a total of 1043 species‐level palm–frugivore interaction records that explicitly captured information on which parts of palm fruits are eaten by animals. These records showed consumption of fruits of 106 Neotropical palm species by 273 vertebrate species, especially birds (50%) and mammals (45%), but also fish (3%) and reptiles (2%). Fruit‐eating involved all four taxonomic vertebrate classes whereas seed‐eating and pulp‐eating were only recorded among birds and mammals. Most fruit‐eating interactions (77%) resulted in positive interaction outcomes for plants (e.g. gut‐passed seeds are viable or seeds are successfully dispersed), regardless of the digestive processing type of vertebrate consumers (seed defecation versus regurgitation). The majority of pulp‐eating interactions (91%) also resulted in positive interaction outcomes, for instance via pulp removal that promoted seed germination or via dispersal of intact palm seeds by external transport, especially if animals have a good fruit‐handling ability (e.g. primates, and some parrots). By contrast, seed‐eating interactions mostly resulted in dual outcomes (60%), where interactions had both negative effects on seed survival and positive outcomes through seed caching and external (non‐digestive) seed dispersal. A detailed synthesis of available field studies with qualitative and quantitative information provided evidence that 12 families and 27 species of mammals and birds are predominantly on the mutualistic side of the continuum whereas five mammalian families, six mammal and one reptile species are on the antagonistic side. The synthesis also revealed that most species can act as partial mutualists, even if they are typically considered antagonists. Our review demonstrates how different consumption behaviours and feeding types of vertebrate fruit consumers can influence seed dispersal and regeneration of palms, and thus ultimately affect the structure and functioning of tropical ecosystems. Variation in feeding types of anim...

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“…Changes in mean precipitation and temperature have been linked with distributional shifts in a number of species [1,2], and these shifts are expected to continue to occur in the coming decades [3]. However, extreme weather events can also be key drivers of biodiversity [4,5].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Palms are expected to be impacted by climate change [3,7], with the range of some species apparently expanding poleward in recent years [8,9], as well as expanding in distribution after being introduced to areas outside of their native range [7,10]. However, palms can also be negatively affected by cold-weather outbreaks.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Little Evidence of Leaf Damage to Dwarf Palmetto (Sabal minor; Arecaceae) during an Unusual Arctic Outbreak

Butler

2022

Ecologies

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The dwarf palmetto (Sabal minor) is a widespread understory palm of the southeastern United States. This palm is expected to be one of the species that exhibits a range shift in response to climate change, and the population at the northwestern edge of its distribution in Oklahoma appears to be increasing in both numbers and extent. However, this palm may also be susceptible to cold damage during unusually severe winters, which could potentially limit the spread of this species. An unusually cold arctic outbreak spread across the southern Great Plains during 13–17 February 2021, with minimum temperatures of −11 °C recorded in Houston (Texas), −15 °C in San Antonio (Texas), and −26 °C in Oklahoma City (Oklahoma). In order to evaluate the effects of the arctic outbreak on Sabal minor, I examined individuals in four counties (one site in Brazoria County, TX; one site in Brazos County, TX; two sites in McCurtain County, Oklahoma; and two sites in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma) in the period of 5–16 March 2021. At nearly every site, 30 individuals were examined, and the number of palmate leaves as well as the extent of the green area on the leaf was visually estimated, with percentages rounded to the nearest 5%. There was little evidence of cold damage from southeastern Oklahoma to coastal Texas, with palmate leaves retaining a median of 85% green area. However, some damage was noted in seedlings at the northernmost population in McCurtain County, Oklahoma. In contrast, extensive leaf damage was noted in dwarf palmetto plantings in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, with plants retaining a median of only 5% green leaf area. The results of this study suggest that arctic outbreaks are unlikely to prohibit the continued spread of this species at the northern edge of its native range but may cause damage to multiple plant growth stages that could reduce the rate at which the species survives and reproduces.

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Climate change winners and losers: The effects of climate change on five palm species in the Southeastern United States

Abstract: This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Cited by 13 publications

References 79 publications

Warming impacts on photosynthetic processes in dominant plant species in a subtropical forest

Warming impacts on photosynthetic processes in dominant plant species in a subtropical forest

The mutualism–antagonism continuum in Neotropical palm–frugivore interactions: from interaction outcomes to ecosystem dynamics

Little Evidence of Leaf Damage to Dwarf Palmetto (Sabal minor; Arecaceae) during an Unusual Arctic Outbreak

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