Publication details
Open tundra persist, but arctic features decline—Vegetation changes in the warming Fennoscandian tundra
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2017 |
| Type | Article in Periodical |
| Magazine / Source | Global Change Biology |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| web | https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/gcb.13710 |
| Doi | http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/gcb.13710 |
| Field | Ecology |
| Keywords | alpine; arctic; climate change; disturbance; Empetrum nigrum; lichens; mosses; reindeer; tree line; tundra; vegetation |
| Description | In the forest-tundra ecotone of the North Fennoscandian inland, summer and wintertemperatures have increased by two to three centigrades since 1965, which isexpected to result in major vegetation changes. To document the expected expan-sion of woodlands and scrublands and its impact on the arctic vegetation, werepeated a vegetation transect study conducted in 1976 in the Darju, spanning fromwoodland to a summit, 200 m above the tree line. Contrary to our expectations,tree line movement was not detected, and there was no increase in willows orshrubby mountain birches, either. Nevertheless, the stability of tundra was apparent.Small-sized, poorly competing arctic species had declined, lichen cover haddecreased, and vascular plants, especially evergreen ericoid dwarf shrubs, hadgained ground. The novel climate seems to favour competitive clonal species andspecies thriving in closed vegetation, creating a community hostile for seedlingestablishment, but equally hostile for many arctic species, too. Preventing trees andshrubs from invading the tundra is thus not sufficient for conserving arctic biota inthe changing climate. The only dependable cure is to stop the global warming. |