Arctic plants become higher because of climate change – which could fuel climate change more

Although it does not have the lush vegetation of other regions of the Earth, the Arctic is far from sorry. Hundreds of species of shrubs, herbs and other low-altitude plants occupy a prominent place in icy expanses and play a key role in the carbon cycle. However, anthropogenic climate change is causing new plants to migrate to the southern parts of the Arctic, which, according to a new document, can cause a lot of problems in the future.

In (too) strong growth

An international team of 130 researchers, led by Dr. Isla Myers-Smith of the School of Geosciences at the University of Edinburgh and Dr. Anne Bjorkman of the Center for Research on Biodiversity and Climate Change. Senckenberg (BiK-F) in Frankfurt, studied Arctic flora as part of a project funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC).

The team examined more than 60,000 data points from hundreds of sites in the arctic and alpine tundra and reported that higher average temperatures have an impact on the delicate balance of these ecosystems. This is the first time that a biome-wide study of the role of plants in this rapidly warming part of the planet is taking place, says Bjorkman.

"Rapid global warming in arctic and alpine regions is causing changes in the structure and composition of plant communities, with important consequences for the functioning of this vast and sensitive ecosystem," adds Dr. Bjorkman.

"Arctic regions have long been at the center of climate change research, as permafrost in northern latitudes contains 30-50% of global soil carbon."

Among other things, plants insulate the soil in which they grow sunlight. Although it's a good chance for us on a hot summer day in the Arctic, it's a question of stability of the ecosystem. Higher plants also help to trap more snow under their leaves. This thicker layer of snow, in turn, further isolates the soil from changes in temperature in the atmosphere, preventing it from freezing.

In other words, the taller Arctic plants keep the ground thawed for several days each year, resulting in "increased greenhouse gas emissions", the biological material trapped in the ground becomes breaking down every year.

"If the bigger plants continue to grow at the current rate, the height of the plant community could increase by 20 to 60% by the end of the century," says Dr. Bjorkman.

The team collected data from sites in Alaska, Canada, Iceland, Scandinavia and Russia. Alpine sites in the European Alps and the Colorado Rockies have also been included in the study. For each dataset, the team examined the relationship between temperature and soil moisture. They also monitored plant height and leaf area as well as leaf surface area, leaf nitrogen content, leaf dry matter content, and "woodiness and persistence".

Of all these features, only height has increased significantly over time. Temperature and humidity levels (which are strongly influenced by temperature) had the strongest influence on the observed characteristics of the plant.

"We need to better understand the soil moisture in the Arctic. It is likely that precipitation will increase in the region, but this is only one factor that affects soil moisture, "said Dr. Myers-Smith. "While most models and research on climate change have focused on increasing temperatures, our research has shown that soil moisture can play a much larger role in modifying plant characteristics than we do. the pension before.

The results suggest that (thanks to the mechanism explained previously), this increase in the overall height of the plant could have important consequences for the Arctic and the whole world. At the same time, they should help us better adapt our climate models to account for the increased greenhouse gas emissions in the region.

The article entitled "Functional change of plants in a warming tundra biome" was published in the journal. Nature.

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