Warming-induced upward migration of the alpine treeline in the Changbai Mountains, northeast China
Warming-induced upward migration of the alpine treeline in the Changbai Mountains, northeast China
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DOI：
10.1111/gcb.13963
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发表时间：
2018-03-01
影响因子：
11.6
通讯作者：
He, Hong S.
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Du, Haibo;Liu, Jie;He, Hong S.
树状线对环境变化的响应描述了全球变化研究中的一个重要现象。然而，经常相互矛盾的结果和通常太短的观测仍然挑战着我们对气候诱导的树线动力学的理解。在这里，我们使用最先进的树生态方法来重建高山树线位置的长期变化与东北中国长白山两侧气温的关系。在过去的160年里，树线增加了大约80米，这个过程可以分为三个阶段，不同的速度和驱动。第一阶段主要受1702年天池火山喷发后植被恢复的影响。第二阶段的缓慢上移与缓慢升高的温度相一致。最后一个阶段与1985年以来的快速变暖相吻合，显示出每1摄氏度33米的上升趋势，是最强烈的上升趋势。目前树线以外的树木的空间分布和年龄结构证实了最新的、由变暖引起的向上移动。我们的结果表明，高山树线将继续上升，如果气温进一步上升，高山冻土带可能会消失。这项研究不仅加强了对长期树线动态的机理理解，而且突出了气温上升对高海拔植被动态的影响。
Treeline responses to environmental changes describe an important phenomenon in global change research. Often conflicting results and generally too short observations are, however, still challenging our understanding of climate-induced treeline dynamics. Here, we use a state-of-the-art dendroecological approach to reconstruct long-term changes in the position of the alpine treeline in relation to air temperature at two sides in the Changbai Mountains in northeast China. Over the past 160 years, the treeline increased by around 80 m, a process that can be divided into three phases of different rates and drives. The first phase was mainly influenced by vegetation recovery after an eruption of the Tianchi volcano in 1702. The slowly upward shift in the second phase was consistent with the slowly increasing temperature. The last phase coincided with rapid warming since 1985, and shows with 33 m per 1 degrees C, the most intense upward shift. The spatial distribution and age structure of trees beyond the current treeline confirm the latest, warming-induced upward shift. Our results suggest that the alpine treeline will continue to rise, and that the alpine tundra may disappear if temperatures will increase further. This study not only enhances mechanistic understanding of long-term treeline dynamics, but also highlights the effects of rising temperatures on high-elevation vegetation dynamics.