Spatiotemporal patterns of microclimatic buffering in relict alpine communities
Questions: In alpine landscapes, topography creates a mosaic of microclimatic nichesthat might prevent local extinctions, but the influence of this spatial heterogeneity onplant communities is largely unknown. Here we ask (1) how soil microclimatic variationis comparable at temporal and spatial scal...
| Autores: | , , , |
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| Tipo de recurso: | artículo |
| Estado: | Versión publicada |
| Fecha de publicación: | 2024 |
| País: | España |
| Institución: | Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC) |
| Repositorio: | DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSIC |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:digital.csic.es:10261/376814 |
| Acceso en línea: | http://hdl.handle.net/10261/376814 https://api.elsevier.com/content/abstract/scopus_id/85187867314 |
| Access Level: | acceso abierto |
| Palabra clave: | Alpine vegetation Climate warming Microclimate Microrefugia Snow cover Temporal change Thermophilization Topography |
| Sumario: | Questions: In alpine landscapes, topography creates a mosaic of microclimatic nichesthat might prevent local extinctions, but the influence of this spatial heterogeneity onplant communities is largely unknown. Here we ask (1) how soil microclimatic variationis comparable at temporal and spatial scales, and (2) how such variation influencesspecies composition and local extinctions in relict alpine communities.Location: Picos de Europa National Park, northern Spain.Methods: We resurveyed permanent plots in four alpine sites following the recordingof soil temperatures (temporal survey) for 10 years. We then sampled the spatialvariation in species composition and microclimatic temperatures in 80 plots aroundthe permanent plots (spatial survey). We evaluated the variation of six microclimaticindices between the temporal and the spatial surveys, and calculated the temporaltrends observed in species cover. We finally predicted local extinction rates undermicroclimatic scenarios based on the observed microclimate–community relations.Results: Despite high interannual variation, we found a 10-year trend of temperaturewarming on (microridge) fellfields and (microvalley) snowbeds. Microclimatic variationwas larger in space than in time, with little temperature variation in snowbeds andextreme low temperatures recorded in fellfields. Species composition was mainlyinfluenced by growing degree days (GDD) and freezing degree days (FDD), which wereboth related to snow cover duration. Plant cover of 16 species (out of 36 frequentspecies) showed significant responses to microclimatic variation. Local extinctionswere mainly predicted under relatively hotter and more freezing conditions.Conclusions: Our results support the idea that microclimatic spatial heterogeneitycan reduce the negative influence of climate change on alpine plant communities.However, a continuous reduction of snow cover will result in a tipping point beyondwhich the buffer effect of this spatial heterogeneity will not be effective in protectedmicrosites, leading to community homogenization. This process may have startedin relict alpine communities where species from snowy microclimates are beingoutcompeted by species adapted to below-zero winter temperatures. |
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