Warmer Shorter Winters Disrupt Arctic Terrestrial Ecosystems

The Earth is warming, especially in polar areas in which winter temperatures and precipitation are expected to increase. Despite a growing research focus on winter climatic change, the impacts on Arctic terrestrial ecosystems remain poorly understood. Snow acts as an insulator, and depth changes aff...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Annual review of ecology, evolution, and systematics evolution, and systematics, 2014-11, Vol.45 (1), p.271-295
Main Author: Cooper, Elisabeth J
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Climate change
Ecological function
Ecology
Ecosystems
Environmental impact
Forage
Freezing
Global warming
Growing season
Growing seasons
Herbivores
ice
Marine ecosystems
Microbial activity
mild period
phenological mismatch
Plant growth
Precipitation
Predators
Seasons
Snow
Snow depth
Snowmelt
Soil nutrients
Soil temperature regimes
Terrestrial ecosystems
Trophic levels
Tundra
Winter
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Summary:The Earth is warming, especially in polar areas in which winter temperatures and precipitation are expected to increase. Despite a growing research focus on winter climatic change, the impacts on Arctic terrestrial ecosystems remain poorly understood. Snow acts as an insulator, and depth changes affect the enhancement of thermally dependent reactions, such as microbial activity, affecting soil nutrient composition, respiration, and winter gas efflux. Snow depth and spring temperatures influence snowmelt timing, determining the start of plant growth and forage availability. Delays in winter onset affect tundra carbon balance, faunal hibernation, and migration but are unlikely to lengthen the plant growing season. Mild periods in winter followed by a return to freezing have negative consequences for plants and invertebrates, and the resultant ice layers act as barriers to foraging, triggering starvation of herbivores and their predators. In summary, knock-on effects between seasons and trophic levels have important consequences for biological activity, diversity, and ecosystem function.
ISSN:1543-592X
1545-2069
DOI:10.1146/annurev-ecolsys-120213-091620