seasons and life cycles; a conceptual framework and low-cost instrumentation for automated...
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Seasons and life cycles; a conceptual framework and low-cost instrumentation for automated monitoring of plant community life histories in alpine landscapes. Presented by Heidi Stelzer at the "Perth II: Global Change and the World's Mountains" conference in Perth, Scotland in September 2010.TRANSCRIPT
Biological consequences of
earlier snowmelt from
desert dust deposition in
alpine landscapes
Heidi Steltzer, Chris Landry,
Tom Painter, Justin Anderson, and Ed Ayres
Painter et al. (2007) Geophysical Research Letters
Neff et al. (2008) Nature Geoscience
Human activities in
the adjacent
deserts have led to
5 fold more dust in
the mountains since
the mid-1800’s.
dust
vegetation snow
people people
AGRICULTURE DESERT
• Effects on ecosystem services: – Water quality and quantity
– Biodiversity
– Wildlife
– Aesthetics
Three alternative hypotheses Different models of how snowmelt affects
plant community life history
Day of year
snowfree
On
set
of
even
t
(Day o
f year)
Day of year
snowfree
On
set
of
even
t
(Day o
f year)
Steltzer et al. (2009)
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
On
set
of
gre
enin
g(d
ay o
f yea
r)160
180
200
220
Day of year snowfree
150 160 170 180 190 200
On
set
of
flow
ering
(da
y o
f yea
r)
160
180
200
220
R2 = 0.97
wr = 1.00
R2 = 0.96
wr = 0.96
Day of year snowfree
150 160 170 180 190 200
R2 = 0.94
wr = 0.63
R2 = 0.95
wr = 0.83
All species observed Species common to all plots
- Dust
Control
+ Dust
Fabric
Key result
• Earlier snowmelt from desert dust
deposition changes the climate
cues that regulate plant community
life history in the alpine tundra.
Onset
of
gre
en
ing
(day o
f year)
160
180
200
220 SE aspect
NE aspect
- Dust Control + Dust Fabric
Onset
of
flow
ering
(day o
f year)
160
180
200
220
P = 0.07P = 0.89
P = 0.88P = 0.41
P = 0.01
P = 0.01
Earlier snowmelt
Key result
• Earlier snowmelt synchronized
plant community life history events
Synchronization of plant growth across
hillslopes is a change in the fundamental
ecology of Colorado alpine ecosystems
“A tendency of plants to grow and bloom in lockstep
would lead to a feast-and-famine ecology for
both plants and animals, rather than one with resources
distributed throughout the growing season.”
Christian Science Monitor (2009)
• The case is building that the transfer of desert
dust to the mountains has environmental
consequences for alpine plants, wildlife, and
people.
• Our use of desert landscapes is linked to the
life cycles of mountain plants and changes the
environmental cues that determine when alpine
meadows will be in bloom, possibly increasing
plants’ sensitivity to climate warming.
dust
vegetation snow
people people
AGRICULTURE DESERT
$
Special Thanks • Center for Snow and
Avalanche Studies
• British Ecological Society
• U.S. National Science Foundation
• Andrew Temple, CSAS
• Michael Barton, CSAS
• Koren Nydick, MSI
• David Inouye, RMBL
• Natural Resource Ecology Laboratory, CSU
• Uncompahgre National Forest
• Fort Lewis College