Alpine and Polar Treelines in a Changing Environment

• Format: eBook
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI - Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute 2020
• Subjects: Biology, life sciences; 15N natural abundance; Abies sibirica; alpine timberline; alpine treeline; altitude; apical control; basal area increment; carotenoids; Central Austrian Alps; Changbai Mountain; chlorophyll; climate change; climate warming; climate zone; cloud; conifer shrub; conifers; dendroclimatology; diversity; drought; ecosystem manipulation; elevational gradients; elevational transect; elevational treeline; environmental stress; Erman's birch; European Alps; experimental rain exclusion; expert elicitation; foehn winds; forest climatology; forest edge; fungal ecology; growth trend; higher altitude; history of treeline research; Holocene; knowledge engineering; Larix decidua; light quality; light quantity; long-term trends; Mediterranean climate; microsite; monitoring; multi-stemmed growth form; n/a; NDVI; nitrogen cycling; non-structural carbohydrates (NSCs); palynology; peat; permafrost; photoinhibition; photosynthetic pigments; Picea abies; Pinus cembra; Pinus sibirica; pit aspiration; plant water availability; polar treeline; postglacial; precipitation; refilling; relative air humidity; remote sensing data; Rocky Mountains; sap flow; shoot elongation; shrubline; soil drought; Southern Ocean; space-for-time substitution; spectrometer; sub-Antarctic; Switzerland; temperature; thermal continentality; timberline; tocopherol; tree line; tree regeneration; tree seedling recruitment; tree seedlings; treeline; treeline dynamics; upward advance; westerly winds; western Montana; winter stress; xylem embolism
• Online Access: Open Access: DOAB: description of the publication; Open Access: DOAB, download the publication
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (268 p.)
• ISBN: 9783039286300; 9783039286317; books978-3-03928-631-7
• Access: Open Access

Concerns have been raised with respect to the state of high-altitude and high-latitude treelines, as they are anticipated to undergo considerable modifications due to global changes, and especially due to climate warming. As high-elevation treelines are temperature-limited vegetation boundaries, they are considered to be sensitive to climate warming. As a consequence, in this future, warmer environment, an upward migration of treelines is expected because low air and root-zone temperatures constrain their regeneration and growth. Despite the ubiquity of climate warming, treeline advancement is not a worldwide phenomenon: some treelines have been advancing rapidly, others have responded sluggishly or have remained stable. This variation in responses is attributed to the potential interaction of a continuum of site-related factors that may lead to the occurrence of locally conditioned temperature patterns. Competition amongst species and below-ground resources have been suggested as additional factors explaining the variability in the movement of treelines. This Special Issue (book) is dedicated to the discussion of treeline responses to changing environmental conditions in different areas around the globe.