The consequences of winter climate change for plant performance.

Abstract

With continually increasing summer temperatures and intense heatwaves, it can be easy to neglect the ecological effects of winter climate change. However, shifts in the climate during winter can have profound consequences for eco-evolutionary dynamics in extratropical latitudes and high elevation locales. Climate change has increased winter temperatures, disrupted snowpack, and reduced ice cover (Rixen et al., 2022). Extreme losses of snowpack are projected for many regions by the end of the century (Talsma et al., 2022). Patterns of climate change are complex and region-dependent, but overall winters are becoming less reliable, with elevated temperatures and altered snow dynamics. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.