Abstract
Research Highlights: Analyzing the contrasting ecological gradients makes it easier to understand the influence of climate on carbon accumulation. Background and Objectives: The increasing climatic variability has implications for vegetation, impacting on its ecological functions, among which carbon accumulation stands out. In the present study, we used climate-dendrochronology relationships to evaluate carbon accumulation in two conifer species that grow in contrasting humidity sites: Pinus strobiformis Engelm (mesic sites) and Pinus leiophylla var. chihuahuana (Engelm.) Shaw (arid sites). Materials and Methods: Using a dendrochronological approach, we estimated the correlation of biomass and carbon accumulation of each species with some climatic variables (temperature, precipitation, and a drought index) and generated a linear mixed model. Results: The response in carbon accumulation between species with respect to climate was significantly different. P. strobiformis showed a positive correlation with the climatic variables analyzed, while in P. leiophylla the correlation was negative, except with precipitation. Conclusions: These results show that forests in both mesic and arid sites are prone to climate changes, although their responses are different, impacting the productivity and carbon cycles of forest ecosystems.
Highlights
Climate variability is a relevant issue and significant resources have been allocated to mitigate its effects on forest ecosystems [1]
By combining tree-ring chronologies with allometric equations, we examined whether variations in the carbon accumulation patterns of Pinus strobiformis and Pinus leiophylla var. chihuahuana respond differentially to specific hydroclimatic drivers
The observed average values of carbon accumulation based on the radial growth were around 4.7 g cm−3 per year for P. strobiformis and
Summary
Climate variability is a relevant issue and significant resources have been allocated to mitigate its effects on forest ecosystems [1]. In northern Mexico, the Sierra Madre Occidental is one of the most important forest reserves of the Country, as it contributes 66% of commercial standing timber at the national level [13]. It has great ecological importance given its contribution to carbon sequestration [14] and the diversity of conifers thriving there (46% of pine species, nationwide) [15] give ideal opportunities to understand ecological processes related to hydroclimatic variations to be experienced by these ecosystems
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