Long‐term legacies of seasonal extremes in Arctic ecosystem functioning

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stef Bokhorst ◽  
J. Hans. C. Cornelissen ◽  
Sander Veraverbeke
Keyword(s):  
Ecosystem Functioning ◽  
Arctic Ecosystem ◽  
Seasonal Extremes

scholarly journals Plant traits are poor predictors of long-term ecosystem functioning

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fons van der Plas ◽  
Thomas Schröder-Georgi ◽  
Alexandra Weigelt ◽  
Kathryn Barry ◽  
Sebastian Meyer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
Ecosystem Functioning ◽  
Plant Traits ◽  
Vascular Plant ◽  
Plant Performance ◽  
Ecosystem Functions ◽  
Average Percentage ◽  
Functional Consequences ◽  
Small Set

ABSTRACTEarth is home to over 350,000 vascular plant species1 that differ in their traits in innumerable ways. Yet, a handful of functional traits can help explaining major differences among species in photosynthetic rate, growth rate, reproductive output and other aspects of plant performance2–6. A key challenge, coined “the Holy Grail” in ecology, is to upscale this understanding in order to predict how natural or anthropogenically driven changes in the identity and diversity of co-occurring plant species drive the functioning of ecosystems7, 8. Here, we analyze the extent to which 42 different ecosystem functions can be predicted by 41 plant traits in 78 experimentally manipulated grassland plots over 10 years. Despite the unprecedented number of traits analyzed, the average percentage of variation in ecosystem functioning that they jointly explained was only moderate (32.6%) within individual years, and even much lower (12.7%) across years. Most other studies linking ecosystem functioning to plant traits analyzed no more than six traits, and when including either only six random or the six most frequently studied traits in our analysis, the average percentage of explained variation in across-year ecosystem functioning dropped to 4.8%. Furthermore, different ecosystem functions were driven by different traits, with on average only 12.2% overlap in significant predictors. Thus, we did not find evidence for the existence of a small set of key traits able to explain variation in multiple ecosystem functions across years. Our results therefore suggest that there are strong limits in the extent to which we can predict the long-term functional consequences of the ongoing, rapid changes in the composition and diversity of plant communities that humanity is currently facing.

scholarly journals Changes in Net Global Surface Water Area Since 1985

Proceedings ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 69
Author(s):  
Zahra Kalantari ◽  
Sonia Borja ◽  
Georgia Destouni
Keyword(s):  
Surface Water ◽  
Ecosystem Functioning ◽  
Water Allocation ◽  
Land Use Changes ◽  
Water Area ◽  
Aral Sea ◽  
Surface Water Resources ◽  
Global Surface ◽  
Spatial And Temporal Characteristics

Spatial and temporal characteristics of surface water resources (e.g., extension, connectivity, seasonality) are key elements in water allocation, climate and hydrological regulation, ecosystem functioning, and the food-energy-water nexus. Changes in surface water area due to losses/gains to land could strongly affect these processes on different scales. Previous findings on changes in the Earth’s surface water area are contradictory. Based on water–land year classification datasets, we estimated global surface water area changes between 1985–2000 and 2001–2015. We found a net global gain in surface water of 100,454 km2, attributable to a large net gain in seasonal water (83,329 km2) and a small net gain in permanent water (17,125 km2). In general, net changes were highly heterogeneous in space, with local exceptions of clear drying and wetting trends, e.g., the Aral Sea and Quill Lakes, respectively. These findings raise multiple questions as to why seasonal water gains dominate and how different intertwined drivers (e.g., hydroclimate and human-induced water–land use changes) shape the distribution of the Earth’s surface water. Understanding these long-term changes is essential to predicting water-related pressures and prioritizing management decisions.

scholarly journals Biodiversity-ecosystem functioning relationships in a long-term non-weeded field experiment

Ecology ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 99 (8) ◽  
pp. 1836-1846 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. F. Veen ◽  
Wim H. van der Putten ◽  
T. Martijn Bezemer
Keyword(s):  
Field Experiment ◽  
Ecosystem Functioning

scholarly journals Global distribution and conservation status of ecologically rare mammal and bird species

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicolas Loiseau ◽  
Nicolas Mouquet ◽  
Nicolas Casajus ◽  
Matthias Grenié ◽  
Maya Guéguen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Human Development ◽  
Rare Species ◽  
Human Development Index ◽  
Ecosystem Functioning ◽  
Conservation Status ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Ecosystem Processes ◽  
Potential Contribution ◽  
Development Index

Abstract Identifying species that are both geographically restricted and functionally distinct, i.e. supporting rare traits and functions, is of prime importance given their risk of extinction and their potential contribution to ecosystem functioning. We use global species distributions and functional traits for birds and mammals to identify the ecologically rare species, understand their characteristics, and identify hotspots. We find that ecologically rare species are disproportionately represented in IUCN threatened categories, insufficiently covered by protected areas, and for some of them sensitive to current and future threats. While they are more abundant overall in countries with a low human development index, some countries with high human development index are also hotspots of ecological rarity, suggesting transboundary responsibility for their conservation. Altogether, these results state that more conservation emphasis should be given to ecological rarity given future environmental conditions and the need to sustain multiple ecosystem processes in the long-term.

scholarly journals Plant traits alone are poor predictors of ecosystem properties and long-term ecosystem functioning

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (12) ◽  
pp. 1602-1611
Author(s):  
Fons van der Plas ◽  
Thomas Schröder-Georgi ◽  
Alexandra Weigelt ◽  
Kathryn Barry ◽  
Sebastian Meyer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ecosystem Functioning ◽  
Plant Traits ◽  
Ecosystem Properties
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