Climate-driven synchrony in seed production of masting deciduous and conifer tree species

Gallego‐Zamorano, Juan; Hokkanen, Tatu; Lehikoinen, Aleksi

doi:10.1093/jpe/rtw117

Cited by 30 publications

(35 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…Favourable climate conditions driven by synoptic weather patterns have been identified as triggers of regionally synchronous pulses of high seed production (e.g., 'mast' years; Koenig and Knops 1998). All seven species in this study exhibit masting dynamics that are hypothesized to be the result of some combination of warm, dry conditions in the growing seasons up to two years prior to cone development (see examples for our study species in Woodward et al 1994, Houle 1999, Sirois 2000, Krebs et al 2012, Bisi et al 2016, Gallego Zamorano et al 2018. However, documentation of seed production in mast years requires long time series and our study design was insufficient to assess controls over mast years.…”

Section: Seed Production Does Not Beget Viable Seed Available For Dismentioning

confidence: 85%

Reproduction as a bottleneck to treeline advance across the circumarctic forest tundra ecotone

et al. 2018

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The fundamental niche of many species is shifting with climate change, especially in sub-arctic ecosystems with pronounced recent warming. Ongoing warming in sub-arctic regions should lessen environmental constraints on tree growth and reproduction, leading to increased success of trees colonising tundra. Nevertheless, variable responses of treeline ecotones have been documented in association with warming temperatures. One explanation for time lags between increasingly favourable environmental conditions and treeline ecotone movement is reproductive limitations caused by low seed availability. Our objective was to assess the reproductive constraints of the dominant tree species at the treeline ecotone in the circumpolar north. We sampled reproductive structures of trees (cones and catkins) and stand attributes across circumarctic treeline ecotones. We used generalized linear mixed models to estimate the sensitivity of seed production and the availability of viable seed to regional climate, stand structure, and species-specific characteristics. Both seed production and viability of available seed were strongly driven by specific, sequential seasonal climatic conditions, but in different ways. Seed production was greatest when growing seasons with more growing degree days coincided with years with high precipitation. Two consecutive years with more growing degree days and low precipitation resulted in low seed production. Seasonal climate effects on the viability of available seed depended on the physical characteristics of the reproductive structures. Large-coned and -seeded species take more time to develop mature embryos and were therefore more sensitive to increases in growing degree days in the year of flowering and embryo development. Our findings suggest that both moisture stress and abbreviated growing seasons can have a notable negative influence on the production and viability of available seed at treeline. Our synthesis revealed that constraints on predispersal reproduction within the treeline ecotone might create a considerable time lag for range expansion of tree populations into tundra ecosystems.

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Section: Seed Production Does Not Beget Viable Seed Available For Dismentioning

confidence: 85%

Reproduction as a bottleneck to treeline advance across the circumarctic forest tundra ecotone

et al. 2018

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“…S1), particularly in northern Europe, and strongly declined with distance (Fig. ), consistent with previous findings for other temperate species (Koenig & Knops, ; Garrison et al ., ; Gallego Zamorano et al ., ). While synchrony generally declined with distance (e.g.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Spatial patterns and broad‐scale weather cues of beech mast seeding in Europe

Hacket‐Pain²,

et al. 2017

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SummaryMast seeding is a crucial population process in many tree species, but its spatio-temporal patterns and drivers at the continental scale remain unknown .Using a large dataset (8000 masting observations across Europe for years 1950-2014) we analysed the spatial pattern of masting across the entire geographical range of European beech, how it is influenced by precipitation, temperature and drought, and the temporal and spatial stability of masting-weather correlations.Beech masting exhibited a general distance-dependent synchronicity and a pattern structured in three broad geographical groups consistent with continental climate regimes. Spearman's correlations and logistic regression revealed a general pattern of beech masting correlating negatively with temperature in the summer 2 yr before masting, and positively with summer temperature 1 yr before masting (i.e. 2T model). The temperature difference between the two previous summers (DeltaT model) was also a good predictor. Moving correlation analysis applied to the longest eight chronologies (74-114 yr) revealed stable correlations between temperature and masting, confirming consistency in weather cues across space and time.These results confirm widespread dependency of masting on temperature and lend robustness to the attempts to reconstruct and predict mast years using temperature data.

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“…It is important to note the highly variable nature of seed production, where inter‐annual variation in climate and intrinsic periodicity (i.e. masting) drive temporal variability (Sirois , Gallego Zamorano et al ). While relatively little is known about black spruce and tamarack masting in Newfoundland, it is commonly recognized that black spruce and tamarack have years of increased seed production (an estimated 2–6 yr and 3–6 yr for black spruce and tamarack respectively; Johnston , Sirois ) that may overcome seed limitations observed by this study.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The importance of biotic filtering on boreal conifer recruitment at alpine treeline

Crofts

Brown

2020

Ecography

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Treeline, the ecotone where forest transitions to alpine or tundra ecosystems, is considered the thermal limit to tree growth and survival. Despite temperature increases across mountainous areas and high latitudes globally, there has been no ubiquitous change in treeline position. The process of range expansion must initially depend on increased recruitment at, or beyond current range limits and recruitment limitations have been hypothesized as a mechanism for the variable response of treeline position to climate warming. We conducted a unique series of observational and experimental studies to quantify early-life stage constraints, from seed production to seedling establishment, on black spruce Picea mariana and tamarack Larix laricina recruitment at a model alpine treeline in Newfoundland, Canada. We found recruitment at treeline to be simultaneously seed and establishment limited. The treeline population produced fewer seeds than the forest population and black spruce seeds produced at treeline were less viable. Tamarack was more seed limited than black spruce where seed viability was low regardless of altitudinal position. Post-dispersal seed predation greatly constrained recruitment across the altitudinal gradient; however, black spruce seeds experienced the lowest levels of invertebrate seed predation on the lichen mat at treeline. If seeds were not consumed, individuals at treeline were establishment limited where germination and seedling establishment was both less abundant and delayed on lichen substrate. Our study highlights the need for multiple factors to align temporally for significant recruitment at treeline to occur.

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Climate-driven synchrony in seed production of masting deciduous and conifer tree species

Cited by 30 publications

References 39 publications

Reproduction as a bottleneck to treeline advance across the circumarctic forest tundra ecotone

Reproduction as a bottleneck to treeline advance across the circumarctic forest tundra ecotone

Spatial patterns and broad‐scale weather cues of beech mast seeding in Europe

The importance of biotic filtering on boreal conifer recruitment at alpine treeline

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