Global distribution and climatic controls of natural mountain treelines
© 2023 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
| Veröffentlicht in: | Global change biology. - 1999. - 29(2023), 24 vom: 01. Dez., Seite 7001-7011 |
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| 1. Verfasser: | |
| Weitere Verfasser: | , , , , , , , , , |
| Format: | Online-Aufsatz |
| Sprache: | English |
| Veröffentlicht: |
2023
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| Zugriff auf das übergeordnete Werk: | Global change biology |
| Schlagworte: | Journal Article alpine area climate forest boundary mountain ecosystems tree cover treeline |
| Zusammenfassung: | © 2023 John Wiley & Sons Ltd. Mountain treelines are thought to be sensitive to climate change. However, how climate impacts mountain treelines is not yet fully understood as treelines may also be affected by other human activities. Here, we focus on "closed-loop" mountain treelines (CLMT) that completely encircle a mountain and are less likely to have been influenced by human land-use change. We detect a total length of ~916,425 km of CLMT across 243 mountain ranges globally and reveal a bimodal latitudinal distribution of treeline elevations with higher treeline elevations occurring at greater distances from the coast. Spatially, we find that temperature is the main climatic driver of treeline elevation in boreal and tropical regions, whereas precipitation drives CLMT position in temperate zones. Temporally, we show that 70% of CLMT have moved upward, with a mean shift rate of 1.2 m/year over the first decade of the 21st century. CLMT are shifting fastest in the tropics (mean of 3.1 m/year), but with greater variability. Our work provides a new mountain treeline database that isolates climate impacts from other anthropogenic pressures, and has important implications for biodiversity, natural resources, and ecosystem adaptation in a changing climate |
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| Beschreibung: | Date Completed 15.11.2023 Date Revised 12.09.2025 published: Print-Electronic Citation Status MEDLINE |
| ISSN: | 1365-2486 |
| DOI: | 10.1111/gcb.16885 |