Climate–growth relationships of relictPicea jezoensisat Mt. Gyebang, South Korea

Abstract

A study was conducted to evaluate climatic variation at Mt. Gyebang, South Korea, and its influence on the modelled and observed growth of its relict Picea jezoensis population. Using the MT-CLIM and Biome-BGC models, year-to-year meteorological variation and subsequent changes in growing season, primary productivity and water balance were simulated. These were compared with the observed growth of sample P. jezoensis trees at the site. According to weather data and model calculations, the P. jezoensis stand at Mt. Gyebang was exposed to significant climate variations affecting growing season, carbon balance, and water balance. Although the length of growing season showed an increasing trend over time, the observed growth of P. jezoensis was unaffected by the length of growing season. Probably due to the site's shallow soil depths and species' shallow rooting depth, the modelled increase in productivity caused by climate variation was not manifested in an increase in growth of P. jezoensis. These findings imply that the competitiveness of P. jezoensis at this site has declined over time and that an active approach to conservation planning for this species and site is warranted.

Impact of Climate Change on Species Distribution of Picea jezoensis Carrière in Baekdudaegan Using Ensemble Modeling

“…Furthermore, P. jezoensis is vulnerable to global warming with declining competitiveness in South Korea. (7,8) In this study, we only considered the climatic factors as environmental parameters. Further study is needed to perform more comprehensive modeling research with various environmental parameters of P. jezoensis, such as growth conditions, soil, and altitude.…”

“…(5,6) Furthermore, P. jezoensis is vulnerable to global warming with declining competitiveness in South Korea. (7,8) P. jezoensis has been designated as an endangered species in Korea and categorized as of Least Concern (LC) in the International Union for Conservation for Nature (IUCN)'s Red List of Threatened Species. (9) Hence, this species is of great conservation importance in South Korea, owing to its restricted distribution and ecological value.…”

“…(10)(11)(12) In particular, research on P. jezoensis in South Korea has focused on only certain areas. (8,12) . Thus, it is difficult to overview the comprehensive distribution of P. jezoensis across the South Korean peninsula in terms of landscape ecology.…”

Trends in the effects of climate change on terrestrial ecosystems in the Republic of Korea

“…Another local scale study conducted on a spruce community in a mountains area, Mt. Gyebangsan, also showed that climate change between 1972 and 2006 advanced the start date of spruce growth and delayed the end date, resulting in an increase in the growing season of spruce; however, this increase in growing season was not statistically significantly correlated with spruce growth (Jang et al 2015).…”