Aspen Bibliography

Herbivory-mediated responses of selected boreal forests to climatic change

Document Type

Article

Journal/Book Title/Conference

Climatic Change

Volume

48

Issue

2-3

First Page

427

Last Page

440

Publication Date

2001

Abstract

Recent efforts to project vegetationresponses to climatic warming have emphasized thetight linkages between climate and vegetationdistribution. Here we provide several examplesindicating that the direct effects of climatic warmingon boreal vegetation can be qualitatively differentthan the indirect effects mediated by climaticresponses of herbivores. These herbivore-mediatedvegetation responses to climatic warming will likelyvary regionally. In southern Fennoscandia, we projectthat the climatically induced changes in animalpopulations should enhance the density of spruce atthe expense of pine and broadleafed trees. In northernFennoscandia we project reduced herbivory onbroadleafed trees and increased herbivory on pine,leading to an increase in broadleafed trees and spruceand a reduction in pine. Climatic warming in interiorAlaska may reduce herbivory on broadleafed trees andincrease herbivory on evergreen spruce, thusreinforcing the impact of increased fire frequency.

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