Understanding the climate/radial-growth relationships of Northern Labrador trees

拉布拉多树表现出一种惊人而鲜为人知的现象：它们的径向生长(树轮宽度)对东西梯度气候变化的反应比对南北纬度变化的反应更强烈。为了充分理解这些关系，有必要对环境特征和树木生长进行详细的分析。 拟议的研究将在两个地点进行，一个直接沿着海岸，另一个更靠近内陆。这些地点是在Innu Guardians计划的协助下选定的，该计划在其传统领土上建立了Innu永久样地(IPSP)。在每个地点，将使用带式树干测量仪对16种白云杉进行监测，这种仪器可以检测树木扩张的微小变化。还将从树上移除微芯，以帮助解释细胞是如何以及何时铺设的。在同一个IPSP上，详细的环境数据将被记录下来，并将与径向增长数据一起使用，以更好地了解增长的时机。 对北方气候的戏剧性变化进行了预测，当地社区必须了解可能对他们的森林造成的影响。这项研究将：(1)建立拉布拉多北部内陆和沿海地区树木生长的准确时间，从而加强我们对最东部北方森林复杂森林生态的了解。(2)允许将获得的信息按比例扩大到拉布拉多已经开发的更大的树木年轮地点网格，从而有可能进行更有力的过去气候重建和树木生长预测。(3)提供与全国树线动态研究相关的新信息，因为在加拿大任何地方的北部树线都从未使用过树枝测量仪。(4)让努纳齐亚武特社区参与研究，并让他们更好地了解自己的森林，作出更明智的管理决策，让他们参与进来。

Labrador trees exhibit a striking and poorly understood phenomenon: their radial growth (width of tree rings) responds more strongly to shifts in climate along east/west gradients than to north/south latitudinal variations. To fully understand these relationships, a detailed analysis of environmental characteristics and tree growth is necessary. The proposed research will take place at two sites, one directly along the coast and one farther inland. The sites have been selected with the assistance of the Innu Guardians program that has set up Innu Permanent Sample Plots (IPSP) across their traditional territory. At each site, 16 white spruce, the dominant species, will be monitored using band dendrometers, which detect tiny changes in tree expansion. Micro-cores will also be removed from the trees to help interpret how and when cells are being laid down. At the same IPSPs, detailed environmental data will be logged, and will be used in conjunction with the radial-growth data to better understand the timing of growth. Dramatic changes in climate are forecasted for the north, and local communities must learn the probable impacts on their forests. This research will: (1) Establish the precise timing of tree growth in both inland and coastal regions of northern Labrador, thereby enhancing our understanding of the complex forest ecology of the easternmost boreal forest. (2) Allow the information gained to be scaled to the larger existing grid of tree-ring sites already developed in Labrador, making possible more robust past-climate reconstructions and tree-growth forecasts. (3) Provide novel information relevant to research on treeline dynamics across the country, as dendrometers have never been utilized at the northern treeline anywhere in Canada. (4) Engage Nunatsiavut communities by involving them in the research, and by allowing them to better understand their forests and make more informed management decisions.