The alpine dwarf shrub Cassiope fastigiata in the Himalayas: does it reflect site-specific climatic signals in its annual growth rings?

Liang, Eryuan; Liu, Wenwen; Ren, Ping; Dawadi, Binod; Eckstein, Dieter

doi:10.1007/s00468-014-1128-5

Cited by 27 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 34 publications

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“…In conclusion, this study has demonstrated that, although shrubs species can show different response to climate depending on micro-climate (Liang et al 2015), the analysis of the effects of temperature and precipitation variability on shrub growth leads to a better understanding of their ability to cope with expected change in climate. We found differences in d 13 C-derived WUEi and d 18 O for the three sampled species.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 96%

Tree-ring carbon and oxygen isotopes indicate different water use strategies in three Mediterranean shrubs at Capo Caccia (Sardinia, Italy)

Altieri

Mereu

Cherubini

et al. 2015

Trees

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Key message Variations in stable carbon and oxygen isotope compositions of co-occurring plant species reflect their different water use strategies and indicate the importance of screening species' WUE i to plan climate change adaptation strategies. Abstract The different abilities of plant species to cope with drought have been associated with structural and ecophysiological constraints. In this paper, we evaluate interspecific differences in intrinsic water use efficiency (WUE i ) and the ratio of photosynthesis (A) to stomatal conductance (g s ) in three co-occurring Mediterranean shrubs: two broad-leaved evergreen (Pistacia lentiscus and Phillyrea angustifolia) and one needle-like-leaved evergreen (Juniperus phoenicea). We used d 13 C in rings to assess inter-annual changes in WUE i while the influence of the stomatal conductance was explored through d 18 O. Our results indicate consistent differences in WUE i in the three species, largely determined by leaf traits and differences in stomatal conductance control. Juniperus phoenicea could be the most threatened by the current trend of increasing temperature and summers drought. Phillyrea angustifolia and P. lentiscus seem to be less affected by drought stress because of their tighter stomatal control and high survival rate under field conditions. Our study shows that shrubs with different leaf traits employ different plant ecophysiological strategies under drought stress.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 96%

Tree-ring carbon and oxygen isotopes indicate different water use strategies in three Mediterranean shrubs at Capo Caccia (Sardinia, Italy)

Altieri

Mereu

Cherubini

et al. 2015

Trees

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“…However, it is difficult to understand the significant and negative correlation between growth and June precipitation derived from CRU gridded data, which can be related to the coarse spatial scale of these climate data. Previous studies in the central Himalayas have shown that pre-monsoon precipitation is the major growth-limiting factor for Himalayan birch (Betula utilis) [5,6], Himalayan fir (Abies spectabilis) [8], alpine dwarf shrubs (Cassiope fastigiata) [31], Himalayan spruce (Picea smithiana), Himalayan blue pine (Pinus wallichiana) [9,10], and Chir pine (Pinus roxburghii) [22]. Similar growth responses in different conifer trees species were also reported from surrounding areas such as in the western Himalayas [11,12,32,33], subtropical broadleaf tree Toon (Toona ciliata) in the eastern Himalayas [17], and in the southeastern Tibetan Plateau [34,35].…”

Section: Climate-and Drought-growth Associations: the Pivotal Role Ofmentioning

confidence: 99%

Moisture-Limited Tree Growth for a Subtropical Himalayan Conifer Forest in Western Nepal

Sigdel

Dawadi

Camarero

et al. 2018

Forests

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Chir pine (Pinus roxburghii Sarg.) is a common tree species with ecological and economic importance across the subtropical forests of the central Himalayas. However, little is known about its growth response to the recent warming and drying trends observed in this region. Here, we developed a 268-year-long ring-width chronology (1743-2010) from western Nepal to investigate its growth response to climate. Based on nearby available meteorological records, growth was positively correlated with winter (November to February; r = 0.39, p < 0.05) as well as March to April (r = 0.67, p < 0.001) precipitation. Growth also showed a strong positive correlation with the sum of precipitation from November of the previous year to April of the current year (r = 0.65, p < 0.001). In contrast, a negative relationship with the mean temperature in March to April (r = −0.48, p < 0.05) suggests the influence of warming-induced evapotranspiration on tree growth. Spring droughts lasting 4-6 months constrain Chir pine growth. These results are supported by the synchronization between droughts and very narrow or locally missing rings. Warming and drying tendencies during winter and spring will reduce forest growth and resilience and make Chir pine forests more vulnerable and at higher risk of growth decline and dieback.

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“…However, these difficulties did not hinder from further exploring the dendrochronological potential of shrubs (e.g. Srur & Villalba 2009; Garc ıa-Cervig on Morales et al 2012;Gazol & Camarero 2012;Liang et al 2012Liang et al , 2015Schweingruber et al 2013). To date, only a few long (>150 years) shrub ring-width chronologies have been developed to the best of our knowledge (see Hallinger et al 2010;Weijers et al 2010;Boulanger-Lapointe et al 2014;Pellizzari et al 2014;Myers-Smith et al 2015).…”

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confidence: 99%

Up to 400‐year‐old Rhododendron shrubs on the southeastern Tibetan Plateau: prospects for shrub‐based dendrochronology

Camarero

Wang

et al. 2015

Boreas

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In harsh and treeless environments, shrubs constitute the dominant growth form of woody plants, thus offering the opportunity to extend dendrochronological networks beyond the uppermost and northernmost distribution limits of trees. However, shrub‐based dendrochronology has so far resulted in only a few long and climate‐responsive ring‐width chronologies at such stressful sites, particularly above the alpine tree line. A previous study on an alpine Rhododendron shrub species resulted in <80‐year‐long ring‐width chronologies. Here, we collected Rhododendron aganniphum var. schizopeplum stems from elevations between 4000 and 4500 m a.s.l. on the SE Tibetan Plateau and built six tree‐ring width chronologies. One of them is 401 years long and well replicated from AD 1670 to 2011 (EPS>0.85), thus representing the longest shrub chronology available to date. A principal component analysis (PCA) converted the total variability of all six site chronologies into PCs. Then, the six site chronologies and the PC1, accounting for 65.9% of the total variance of the tree‐ring width, were correlated with time series of monthly climate data. Based on this, the year‐to‐year variability of the ring‐width indices was positively correlated with July temperature, which thus turned out to be the dominant factor controlling growth. Accordingly, such long shrub‐ring chronologies may act as climatic and ecological proxies in treeless environments of the Tibetan Plateau.

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The alpine dwarf shrub Cassiope fastigiata in the Himalayas: does it reflect site-specific climatic signals in its annual growth rings?

Cited by 27 publications

References 34 publications

Tree-ring carbon and oxygen isotopes indicate different water use strategies in three Mediterranean shrubs at Capo Caccia (Sardinia, Italy)

Tree-ring carbon and oxygen isotopes indicate different water use strategies in three Mediterranean shrubs at Capo Caccia (Sardinia, Italy)

Moisture-Limited Tree Growth for a Subtropical Himalayan Conifer Forest in Western Nepal

Up to 400‐year‐old Rhododendron shrubs on the southeastern Tibetan Plateau: prospects for shrub‐based dendrochronology

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