Interpreting Climate Proxies from Tree-rings

Abstract

Trees, as long living plants, are governed by environmental and/or climate changes within their habitat. Their growth rings record to a large extent the temporal dynamics of these changes either directly or through tree physiological reactions. They render the highest time resolution thus far possible for environmental or climate reconstructions of the past 10,000 years (exactly dated, annually resolved, see: [828], [994]). Trees are a substantial part of the human environment with a high socio-economic value. Their large geographical extension over various regions of the world, including those with greatest population densities but also marginal areas allows to gain unique informations about local and regional consequences of global climate change.