Collaborative Research on Topological Relationships at Alpine Treeline

对全球气候条件变化前景的担忧，为查明可以随时监测和分析这种变化影响的区域的调查提供了新的动力。其中一组区域是高山林木线过渡带，在那里山地森林逐渐让位给贫瘠的山坡或高山冻土带。以前的研究表明，在这些地区，即使轻微的气候变化也会导致植被模式的深刻变化。这个合作研究项目将对树线物种的分布模式进行深入分析，并探索影响物种数量和位置的各种因素之间的关系。研究将集中在蒙大拿州冰川国家公园。数据将从卫星图像和对气候变量以及土壤和基岩条件的实地观测中收集。来自数字高程模型和树木年轮的数据也将用于构建和测试统计和路径模型，这些模型代表了树线分布如何随着时间的推移对不同变量之间的相互作用做出反应。该合作项目将提供新的数据和模型，以增强对研究地点和许多其他山区环境中高山树线区不同因素之间相互作用的认识。该项目可能为确定气候条件变化的影响提供新的指标，并将探索监测和评价遥感数据和地理信息系统在植被模拟中的使用的新方法。

Concerns about prospects for changing climatic conditions across the globe have given new impetus to inquiries that would identify zones where the impacts of such changes can be readily monitored and analyzed. One such set of zones are alpine treeline ecotones, where montane forests gradually give way to barren slopes or alpine tundra. Previous studies have shown these areas to be locales where even minor climatic changes can induce profound changes in vegetation patterns. This collaborative research project will conduct intensive analyses of patterns of treeline species and will explore relationships among various factors that affect the number and location of species. Research will focus on sites in Glacier National Park of Montana. Data will be gathered from satellite images and field observations of climatic variables and soil and bedrock conditions. Data from digital elevation models and tree rings also will be used to construct and test statistical and path models that represent how treeline distributions respond to interactions among different variables over time. This collaborative project will provide new data and models that enhance knowledge about interactions among different factors in alpine treeline zones, both at the study site and in many other mountainous environments. This project may provide new metrics for identifying the impacts of changing climatic conditions, and it also will explore new methods for monitoring and evaluating the use of remote sensed data and geographic information systems in vegetation modelling.