scholarly journals Effects of increased flooding on riparian vegetation: Field experiments simulating climate change along five European lowland streams

2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (8) ◽  
pp. 3052-3063 ◽  
Author(s):  
Annemarie G. Garssen ◽  
Annette Baattrup-Pedersen ◽  
Tenna Riis ◽  
Bart M. Raven ◽  
Carl Christian Hoffman ◽  
...  
2012 ◽  
Vol 163 (12) ◽  
pp. 481-492
Author(s):  
Andreas Rigling ◽  
Ché Elkin ◽  
Matthias Dobbertin ◽  
Britta Eilmann ◽  
Arnaud Giuggiola ◽  
...  

Forest and climate change in the inner-Alpine dry region of Visp Over the past decades, observed increases in temperature have been particularly pronounced in mountain regions. If this trend should continue in the 21st Century, frequency and intensity of droughts will increase, and will pose major challenges for forest management. Under current conditions drought-related tree mortality is already an important factor of forest ecosystems in dry inner-Alpine valleys. Here we assess the sensitivity of forest ecosystems to climate change and evaluate alternative forest management strategies in the Visp region. We integrate data from forest monitoring plots, field experiments and dynamic forests models to evaluate how the forest ecosystem services timber production, protection against natural hazards, carbon storage and biodiver-sity will be impacted. Our results suggest that at dry low elevation sites the drought tolerance of native tree species will be exceeded so that in the longer term a transition to more drought-adapted species should be considered. At medium elevations, drought and insect disturbances as by bark beetles are projected to be important for forest development, while at high elevations forests are projected to expand and grow better. All of the ecosystem services that we considered are projected to be impacted by changing forest conditions, with the specific impacts often being elevation-dependent. In the medium term, forest management that aims to increase the resilience of forests to drought can help maintain forest ecosystem services temporarily. However, our results suggest that relatively rigid management interventions are required to achieve significant effects. By using a combination of environmental monitoring, field experiments and modeling, we are able to gain insight into how forest ecosystem, and the services they provide, will respond to future changes.


Atmosphere ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (7) ◽  
pp. 927
Author(s):  
Jamshad Hussain ◽  
Tasneem Khaliq ◽  
Muhammad Habib ur Rahman ◽  
Asmat Ullah ◽  
Ishfaq Ahmed ◽  
...  

Rising temperature from climate change is the most threatening factor worldwide for crop production. Sustainable wheat production is a challenge due to climate change and variability, which is ultimately a serious threat to food security in Pakistan. A series of field experiments were conducted during seasons 2013–2014 and 2014–2015 in the semi-arid (Faisalabad) and arid (Layyah) regions of Punjab-Pakistan. Three spring wheat genotypes were evaluated under eleven sowing dates from 16 October to 16 March, with an interval of 14–16 days in the two regions. Data for the model calibration and evaluation were collected from field experiments following the standard procedures and protocols. The grain yield under future climate scenarios was simulated by using a well-calibrated CERES-wheat model included in DSSAT v4.7. Future (2051–2100) and baseline (1980–2015) climatic data were simulated using 29 global circulation models (GCMs) under representative concentration pathway (RCP) 8.5. These GCMs were distributed among five quadrants of climatic conditions (Hot/Wet, Hot/Dry, Cool/Dry, Cool/Wet, and Middle) by a stretched distribution approach based on temperature and rainfall change. A maximum of ten GCMs predicted the chances of Middle climatic conditions during the second half of the century (2051–2100). The average temperature during the wheat season in a semi-arid region and arid region would increase by 3.52 °C and 3.84 °C, respectively, under Middle climatic conditions using the RCP 8.5 scenario during the second half-century. The simulated grain yield was reduced by 23.5% in the semi-arid region and 35.45% in the arid region under Middle climatic conditions (scenario). Mean seasonal temperature (MST) of sowing dates ranged from 16 to 27.3 °C, while the mean temperature from the heading to maturity (MTHM) stage was varying between 12.9 to 30.4 °C. Coefficients of determination (R2) between wheat morphology parameters and temperature were highly significant, with a range of 0.84–0.96. Impacts of temperature on wheat sown on 15 March were found to be as severe as to exterminate the crop before heading. The spikes and spikelets were not formed under a mean seasonal temperature higher than 25.5 °C. In a nutshell, elevated temperature (3–4 °C) till the end-century can reduce grain yield by about 30% in semi-arid and arid regions of Pakistan. These findings are crucial for growers and especially for policymakers to decide on sustainable wheat production for food security in the region.


Ecohydrology ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 413-424 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rui Rivaes ◽  
Patricia M. Rodríguez-González ◽  
António Albuquerque ◽  
António N. Pinheiro ◽  
Gregory Egger ◽  
...  

2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (8) ◽  
pp. eaav1131 ◽  
Author(s):  
Quan Quan ◽  
Dashuan Tian ◽  
Yiqi Luo ◽  
Fangyue Zhang ◽  
Tom W. Crowther ◽  
...  

It has been well established by field experiments that warming stimulates either net ecosystem carbon uptake or release, leading to negative or positive carbon cycle–climate change feedback, respectively. This variation in carbon-climate feedback has been partially attributed to water availability. However, it remains unclear under what conditions water availability enhances or weakens carbon-climate feedback or even changes its direction. Combining a field experiment with a global synthesis, we show that warming stimulates net carbon uptake (negative feedback) under wet conditions, but depresses it (positive feedback) under very dry conditions. This switch in carbon-climate feedback direction arises mainly from scaling effects of warming-induced decreases in soil water content on net ecosystem productivity. This water scaling of warming effects offers generalizable mechanisms not only to help explain varying magnitudes and directions of observed carbon-climate feedback but also to improve model prediction of ecosystem carbon dynamics in response to climate change.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 1315
Author(s):  
Federico Martinelli ◽  
Francisco Javier Ollero ◽  
Antonio Giovino ◽  
Anna Perrone ◽  
Abdelkader Bekki ◽  
...  

In order to gain insight into the complex molecular networks driving legume adaptation caused by climate change, it is necessary to deeply characterize the existing germplasm in response to the environmental constraint predicted to worsen in the near future: drought. In this study, we propose to perform a three-year deep agronomic characterization of local genotypes of selected legumes in abiotic stressing conditions through controlled and field experiments conducted in several countries of the Mediterranean basin (Italy, Spain, Algeria, Tunisia, Turkey, Lebanon, and Croatia). These phenotypic analyses will be integrated with a multi-omic approach aiming at identifying the key players involved in the modulation of the analyzed traits that includes the analysis of the plant methylome, transcriptome, and proteome. Following this approach, we propose to deliver epigenomic markers linked with rapid adaptation mechanisms in response to drought. Besides, new genetic variability by breeding could be created in stressing conditions and produce the basis for the obtainment of more productive cultivars in worsening environments. The epigenetic marks identified in “omic” activities will be validated in molecular marker-assisted selection in F2–F4 populations. Finally, specific rhizobia strains for the best evaluated genotypes will be identified in order to enhance symbiotic nitrogen fixation in drought stress conditions with selected cultivars.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Silvia Baronti ◽  
Anita Maienza ◽  
Fabrizio Ungaro ◽  
Antonio,Antonello Montagnoli ◽  
Lorenzo Genesio ◽  
...  

<p>There are extensive reports and scientific articles in literature on the applicability of biochar as soil amendment in agriculture and on the benefits that this practice can bring in terms of soil improvement and optimization of water resources. The use of biochar as a soil amendment in agriculture is a suitable option that helps to mitigate the effects of climate change. Biochar has an approximate mean residence time in the soil over 1,000 years and this long-term stability is a fundamental prerequisite for considering biochar as a suitable method for carbon sequestration. Unfortunately, most literature provides results based on one-year trials. Not enough for a soil amendment to be able to claim effectiveness for many decades and not enough for a soil treatment to be considered irreversible. An effective option to fill this knowledge gap is represented by long-term field experiments. In this study, we investigated the effect of biochar application on plant water relations and soil properties during 10 years in a field experiment in Central Italy on Vitis vinifera. Biochar was applied at a rate of 22 t ha-1 in two consecutive growing seasons: 2009 and 2010. The results obtained during these years on biochar treatment compared to the control treatment are exciting: we demonstrated an increase in grape production, up to 66%, without a decrease of the grape quality, an increase in plant-soil water relations, no effects on the concentrations of soil PAHs, no eco-toxicity soil effect and a positive effect on soil chemical and biological parameters. Surprisingly, after 10 years the biochar effect continued to demonstrate significant differences among treatments, in particular: a significant increase of soil biological quality, decrease in soil bulk density coupled with a corresponding increase in saturated hydraulic conductivity, an enhance in soil available water content and a significant improvement of plant water status. The modification of plant water availability induced by biochar application increase the resilience of vineyards to droughts, as demonstrated by the lower leaf potential and higher stomatal conductance. This effect has a significant impact on quantity and quality of grape production after 10 years. Moreover, in the long-term perspective the biochar demonstrates to have an effect on soil biological communities that resulted sensitive to biochar with positive increase of abundance of species related to soil moisture content and enhance of biodiversity index. According to these results, the viticulture is now in the position to provide an effective contribution to mitigate climate change and we expect that this will be an example for other Mediterranean countries.</p>


Author(s):  
Harry L. Bryden ◽  
Carol Robinson ◽  
Gwyn Griffiths

Within the context of UK marine science, we project a strategy for ocean circulation research over the next 20 years. We recommend a focus on three types of research: (i) sustained observations of the varying and evolving ocean circulation, (ii) careful analysis and interpretation of the observed climate changes for comparison with climate model projections, and (iii) the design and execution of focused field experiments to understand ocean processes that are not resolved in coupled climate models so as to be able to embed these processes realistically in the models. Within UK-sustained observations, we emphasize smart, cost-effective design of the observational network to extract maximum information from limited field resources. We encourage the incorporation of new sensors and new energy sources within the operational environment of UK-sustained observational programmes to bridge the gap that normally separates laboratory prototype from operational instrument. For interpreting the climate-change records obtained through a variety of national and international sustained observational programmes, creative and dedicated UK scientists should lead efforts to extract the meaningful signals and patterns of climate change and to interpret them so as to project future changes. For the process studies, individual scientists will need to work together in team environments to combine observational and process modelling results into effective improvements in the coupled climate models that will lead to more accurate climate predictions.


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