High mountain ecosystems and their biota are governed by low-temperature conditions and thus can be used as indicators for climate warming impacts on natural ecosystems, provided that long-term data ...exist.
We used data from the largest alpine to nival permanent plot site in the Alps, established in the frame of the Global Observation Research Initiative in Alpine Environments (GLORIA) on Schrankogel in the Tyrolean Alps, Austria, in 1994, and resurveyed in 2004 and 2014.
Vascular plant species richness per plot increased over the entire period, albeit to a lesser extent in the second decade, because disappearance events increased markedly in the latter period. Although presence/absence data could only marginally explain range shift dynamics, changes in species cover and plant community composition indicate an accelerating transformation towards a more warmth-demanding and more drought-adapted vegetation, which is strongest at the lowest, least rugged subsite.
Divergent responses of vertical distribution groups of species suggest that direct warming effects, rather than competitive displacement, are the primary causes of the observed patterns. The continued decrease in cryophilic species could imply that trailing edge dynamics proceed more rapidly than successful colonisation, which would favour a period of accelerated species declines.
Plants are colonized by fungal endophytes. In this study we tested the hypothesis that endophyte communities in mountain plants changes along the elevation gradient. We identified fungal endophytes ...in aboveground parts and seeds of five plant species at altitudes of 1000–1750 m in the Tatra National Park. Endophytes isolated from them were grouped into morphotypes on the basis of macroscopic features, such as mycelium shape and colour. Isolates representing individual morphotypes were identified using molecular markers ITS1 and ITS2. When comparing species composition, we used Bray-Curtis distance matrices, calculated on the basis of frequency of the given fungal species. We identified 16 species of fungal endophytes. Five taxa were absent from seeds in spite of their occurrence in mother plant leaves. Differences in altitude were not significantly correlated with fungal species composition observed at a given sampling site. There was also no significant correlation between the species composition of leaf and seed mycobiota. This suggests imperfect vertical transmission in the studied plant species.
Dolines are small- to large-sized bowl-shaped depressions of karst surfaces. They may constitute important microrefugia, as thermal inversion often maintains cooler conditions within them. This study ...aimed to identify the effects of large- (macroclimate) and small-scale (slope aspect and vegetation type) environmental factors on cool-adapted plants in karst dolines of East-Central Europe. We also evaluated the potential of these dolines to be microrefugia that mitigate the effects of climate change on cool-adapted plants in both forest and grassland ecosystems.
We compared surveys of plant species composition that were made between 2007 and 2015 in 21 dolines distributed across four mountain ranges (sites) in Hungary and Romania. We examined the effects of environmental factors on the distribution and number of cool-adapted plants on three scales: (1) regional (all sites); (2) within sites and; (3) within dolines. Generalized linear models and non-parametric tests were used for the analyses.
Macroclimate, vegetation type and aspect were all significant predictors of the diversity of cool-adapted plants. More cool-adapted plants were recorded in the coolest site, with only few found in the warmest site. At the warmest site, the distribution of cool-adapted plants was restricted to the deepest parts of dolines. Within sites of intermediate temperature and humidity, the effect of vegetation type and aspect on the diversity of cool-adapted plants was often significant, with more taxa being found in grasslands (versus forests) and on north-facing slopes (versus south-facing slopes).
There is large variation in the number and spatial distribution of cool-adapted plants in karst dolines, which is related to large- and small-scale environmental factors. Both macro- and microrefugia are therefore likely to play important roles in facilitating the persistence of cool-adapted plants under global warming.
High mountain ecosystems are defined by low temperatures and are therefore considered to react sensitively to climate warming. Responding to observed changes in plant species richness on high peaks ...of the European Alps, an extensive setup of 1 m x 1 m permanent plots was established at the alpine-nival ecotone (between 2900 and 3450 m) on Mount Schrankogel, a GLORIA master site in the central Tyrolean Alps, Austria, in 1994. Recording was repeated in a representative selection of 362 quadrats in 2004. Ten years after the first recording, we observed an average change in vascular plant species richness from 11.4 to 12.7 species per plot, an increase of 11.8% (or of at least 10.6% at a 95% confidence level). The increase in species richness involved 23 species (about 43% of all taxa found at the ecotone), comprising both alpine and nival species and was pronouncedly higher in plots with subnival/nival vegetation than in plots with alpine grassland vegetation. Only three species showed a decrease in plot occupancy: one was an annual species, one was rare, and one a common nival plant that decreased in one part of the area but increased in the uppermost part. Species cover changed in relation to altitudinal preferences of species, showing significant declines of all subnival to nival plants, whereas alpine pioneer species increased in cover. Recent climate warming in the Alps, which has been twice as high as the global average, is considered to be the primary driver of the observed differential changes in species cover. Our results indicate an ongoing range contraction of subnival to nival species at their rear (i.e. lower) edge and a concurrent expansion of alpine pioneer species at their leading edge. Although this was expected from predictive distribution models and different temperature-related habitat preferences of alpine and nival species, we provide first evidence on - most likely - warming-induced species declines in the high European Alps. The projected acceleration of climate warming raises concerns that this phenomenon could become the major threat to biodiversity in high mountains.
It is unclear whether the frequently observed increase in non-structural carbohydrates (NSC) in plants exposed to low temperatures or drought reflects a higher sensitivity of growth than ...photosynthesis in such conditions (i.e. sink limitation), or a prioritization of carbon (C) allocation to storage. Alpine areas in Mediterranean-type climate regions are characterized by precipitation increases and temperature decreases with elevation. Thus, alpine plants with wide elevational ranges in Mediterranean regions may be good models to examine these alternative hypotheses. We evaluated storage and growth during experimental darkness and re-illumination in individuals of the alpine plant
Phacelia secunda
from three elevations in the Andes of central Chile. We hypothesized that storage is prioritized regarding growth in plants of both low- and high elevations where drought and cold stress are greatest, respectively. We expected that decreases in NSC concentrations during darkness should be minimal and, more importantly, increases in NSC after re-illumination should be higher than increases in biomass. We found that darkness caused a significant decrease in NSC concentrations of both low- and high-elevation plants, but the magnitude of the decrease was lower in the latter. Re-illumination caused higher increase in NSC concentration than in biomass in both low- and high-elevation plants (1.5- and 1.9-fold, respectively). Our study shows that C allocation in
Phacelia secunda
reflects ecotypic differences among elevation provenances and suggests that low temperature, but not drought, favours C allocation to storage over growth after severe C limitation.
The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau sensu lato (QTP s.l.) harbors an exceptionally high biodiversity, especially at its southeastern margin: this area encompasses the Hengduan Mountains and the eastern ...Himalayas, which have been listed as biodiversity hotspots. To the contrary, the plateau interior (namely the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau sensu stricto, QTP s.s.) is relatively species-poor because of its particularly harsh climate. With contrasting geological histories and environmental conditions of the Hengduan Mountains, the Himalayas, and the QTP s.s., it would be expected that floristic compositions and diversity patterns of these three regions would differ between each other. To compare the floristic diversity of these three regions, we assembled data on seed plant's distribution in the three regions based on county-level mapping from published monographs and online databases, and we then analyzed their floristic features and species diversity patterns (horizontal and elevational). We found that the Hengduan Mountains hosted the most seed plant species (8,439), as expected. The highest percentage of shrub (22.88%) and tree species (9.80%) were in the Himalayas, whereas herbaceous species (81.50%) were relatively more prominent in the QTP s.s. The Hengduan Mountains also had the most species-rich genera (10) with more than 50% of their total species diversity in China. Also, temperate genera dominated across these three regions, with a highest percentage (77.61%) within the QTP s.s. Across the QTP s.l., species diversity gradually decreased from the southeastern part to the northwest, and most of seed plants were distributed in the southern and eastern margin of the Hengduan Mountains and East Himalayas. Along elevational gradients, species richness all demonstrated a hump-shape curve, but the most species-rich elevation zone differed for each type of life-form across the three regions. Our study sets a base for exploring the origin and evolution of mountain taxa, as well as provides a snapshot of the current plant distribution, which will certainly be modified by climate change.
On the basis of the digital edition of the 'Atlas of the vascular flora of the Pyrenees' (www.florapyrenaea. org), the alpine flora of this mountain range is delimited in order to know its diversity ...and the different patterns of its spatial distribution, along with some other environmental characteristics. The Pyrenean alpine flora is made up of 645 taxa (630 species and 15 subspecies). All the administrative regions harbour more than 60% of the alpine plants, with Catalonia and Aragon reaching the highest values (around 90%). Along the altitudinal gradient, the highest plant diversity is found between 2300 and 2600 m. a. s. l., although 25% of the total alpine flora goes beyond 3000 m. On the other hand, a remarkable number of alpine plants live in the lowlands, and thus more than 300 alpine plants can be found below 1500 m. The average altitude range of the alpine plants is 1369 m, 300 m wider than that observed for the whole Pyrenean flora. Life-forms, habitat distribution and habitat naturalness of alpine plants are significantly different from those of the whole Pyrenean flora. Distribution of abundance categories also shows values of rarity significantly lower among alpine plants than for the whole flora. More than half the Pyrenean endemic plants are present in the alpine flora. High diversity and wide ecological amplitude of the alpine flora must be taken into account either when considering vulnerability of alpine plants facing 'global change' or when addressing conservation policies for the whole Pyrenees from a common perspective.
Why do quaking aspens grow in prominent clumps rather than randomly scattered across the landscape? Why and how does a rufous hummingbird drop its metabolism to one-hundredth of its normal rate? Why ...do bull elk grow those enormous antlers? Using his experience as a biologist and ecologist, George Constantz illuminates these remarkable slices of mountain life in plain but engaging language. Whether it sketches conflict or cooperation, surprise or familiarity, each story resolves when interpreted through the theory of evolution by natural selection.
These provocative accounts of birds, insects, rodents, predators, trees, and flowers are sure to stir the reader’s curiosity. Who wouldn’t be intrigued by a rattlesnake’s ability to hunt in total darkness by detecting the infrared radiation emitted by a mouse? Or how white-tailed ptarmigan thrive in their high, treeless alpine environments -- even through the winter? The narratives, often brought home with a counterintuitive twist, invite readers to make new connections and broaden perspectives of a favorite outdoor place.
Climate change has become one of the most critical threats to global biodiversity. However, whether phylogenetically related species respond to climate change in similar ways remains controversial. ...The answer to this question is crucial for understanding the impacts of climate change and the conservation on the tree of life. By integrating species distribution models with a molecular phylogeny of 50 threatened plant species from one of the global biodiversity hotspots, Gongga Mountains (Mt. Gongga) in southwest China, we evaluated the responses of threatened plant species to future climate change, and estimated whether species responses are phylogenetically conserved. Phylogenetic reconstruction was used to calculate the phylogenetic distance and null model to verify the reliability of the results. We found that correlations between responses of different species to future climate change decreased with the increase in their phylogenetic distance in the monocotyledonous or herbaceous species, but not in the dicotyledonous and woody species. Our results suggested that the responses of herbaceous and monocotyledonous threatened species in Mt. Gongga to future climate change tend to be phylogenetically conserved, while the responses of woody and dicotyledonous threatened species are not. Our study provides evidence for the existence of phylogenetically non-random extinction in the monocotyledonous herbs in Mt. Gongga and highlights the importance of integrating phylogenetic information and evolutionary history into conservation planning. We also provide theoretical basis and technical support for designing effective conservation schemes for the protection of biodiversity under anthropogenic climate change.
PDF
