Abstract
ABSTRACTThe 8.2 ka bp cooling event is assumed to be the most clearly marked abrupt climate event in the Holocene at northern mid‐ to high latitudes. In this study, we simulate the vegetation responses to the 8.2 ka bp climate change event over Europe and Northern Africa. Our results show that all dominant plant functional types (PFTs) over Europe and North Africa respond to these climate changes, but the magnitude, timing and impact factor of their responses are different. Compared with pollen‐based vegetation reconstructions, our simulation generally captures the main features of vegetation responses to the 8.2 ka bp event. Interestingly, in Western Europe, the simulated vegetation after perturbation is different from its initial state, which is consistent with two high‐resolution pollen records. This different vegetation composition indicates the long‐lasting impact of abrupt climate change on vegetation through eco‐physiological and ecosystem demographic processes, such as plant competition. Moreover, our simulations suggest a latitudinal gradient in the magnitude of the event, with more pronounced vegetation responses to the severe cooling in the north and weaker responses to less severe cooling in the south. This effect is not seen in pollen records. © 2019 The Authors. Journal of Quaternary Science Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Highlights
The worldwide distribution and character of vegetation depend mainly on climate conditions, and plants are likely to respond within decades when the amplitudes of climatic changes exceed the tolerance of the species, due to high mortality by frost, drought or other fatal damage to plant physiology (Tinner and Lotter, 2001)
We focus on simulated vegetation responses to the 8.2 ka BP cooling event
Similar to previous studies (Wiersma and Renssen, 2006; Matero et al, 2017), our simulations suggest relative dryness in most regions of Europe and North Africa during the 8.2 ka BP event but do not reproduce the increased precipitation in northern Europe indicated by geological records from Sweden and Norway (Morrill et al, 2013)
Summary
The worldwide distribution and character of vegetation depend mainly on climate conditions, and plants are likely to respond within decades when the amplitudes of climatic changes exceed the tolerance of the species, due to high mortality by frost, drought or other fatal damage to plant physiology (Tinner and Lotter, 2001). Woillez et al (2013) used Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) climatic anomalies to force the ORCHIDEE DGVM They investigated an important regression of forests and expansion of grasses in Europe during the LGM, driven by small decreases in mean temperature (about −1 to −2 °C) and precipitation (about −10 to −30%). Köhler et al (2005) found a southward shift of the tree line and a reduction of temperate and boreal forests in the Northern Hemisphere, but do not give more details on the spatio‐temporal responses of vegetation distribution Their results were in qualitative agreement with Menviel et al (2008) and Scholze et al (2003). To what extent are vegetation simulations consistent with pollen‐based reconstructions for the 8.2 ka BP event?
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