RAPID: Using a natural extreme freeze in New Mexico to test predictions regarding the physiological basis of freezing tolerance in natural populations.

RAPID：利用新墨西哥州的自然极端冰冻来测试有关自然种群冰冻耐受性生理基础的预测。

• 批准号: 1142350
• 负责人: William Pockman
• 金额: $ 17.16万
• 依托单位: University of New Mexico
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2011
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2011-08-15 至 2013-07-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1142350&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: RAPID; Using; natural; extreme; freeze

In plants, like other organisms, physiological limits define environmental conditions allowing survival and growth. For most species, especially evergreens, the rare extremes of local climate may exceed physiological limits, killing plants or severely limiting their function. The effects of extreme events can persist for decades, affecting the ecological (growth, reproduction, species composition, etc.) and sociological (aesthetic qualities, land value, freshwater, etc.) functions of that ecosystem. This project will test predictions from past measurements of the physiological limits of creosotebush (Larrea tridentata), a widespread evergreen desert shrub dominating millions of acres in the southwest, following an extreme freeze in central and southern New Mexico in February 2011. The project will measure freezing damage and recovery of creosotebush in central and southern NM, test the ability of characteristics identified in recent research to predict the damage caused by the natural freeze and, use satellite images to quantify the broad patterns of plant damage (measured as plant canopy greenness) throughout the season and link them to our present understanding of the physiological limits of creosotebush. We expect known physiological limits will explain immediate post-freeze damage but mortality in plot and satellite measurements will be reduced by regrowth from roots. This project will improve our understanding and ability to predict plant responses to extreme events and the large-scale effects of these responses. We need to understand the response to extreme events because ongoing climate change may alter them and thus their effect on vegetation. This project will train a postdoctoral scientist and two graduate students and results will be disseminated to primary and undergraduate students and the general public.

在植物中，像其他有机体一样，生理极限定义了允许生存和生长的环境条件。对于大多数物种，特别是常绿植物，当地罕见的极端气候可能会超过生理极限，导致植物死亡或严重限制它们的功能。极端事件的影响可能持续数十年，影响生态(生长、繁殖、物种组成等)。和社会学(审美品质、土地价值、淡水等)该生态系统的功能。该项目将测试根据过去对杂色灌木(Larrea Tridentata)生理极限的测量得出的预测。杂色灌木是一种分布广泛的常绿沙漠灌木，在2011年2月新墨西哥州中部和南部发生极端冰冻后，在西南部占据了数百万英亩的面积。该项目将测量西北地区中部和南部的冰冻损害和恢复情况，测试最近研究中确定的特征预测自然冰冻造成的损害的能力，并使用卫星图像量化整个季节的植物损害(以植物树冠绿度衡量)的广泛模式，并将它们与我们目前对克里斯托灌木生理限度的理解联系起来。我们预计，已知的生理极限将解释冰冻后立即造成的损害，但小区和卫星测量中的死亡率将通过根的再生来降低。这个项目将提高我们对极端事件的植物反应以及这些反应的大规模影响的理解和预测能力。我们需要了解对极端事件的反应，因为持续的气候变化可能会改变它们，从而改变它们对植被的影响。该项目将培养一名博士后科学家和两名研究生，并将成果传播给中小学生和本科生以及普通公众。