Impact Of Global Change Research Articles

The impact of global change on social behaviour of poison frog (Dendrobatoidea) : potential impacts and future challenges

The impact of global change on social behaviour of poison frog (Dendrobatoidea) : potential impacts and future challenges

Forest microbiome and global change.

Forests influence climate and mitigate global change through the storage of carbon in soils. In turn, these complex ecosystems face important challenges, including increases in carbon dioxide, warming, drought and fire, pest outbreaks and nitrogen deposition. The response of forests to these changes is largely mediated by microorganisms, especially fungi and bacteria. The effects of global change differ among boreal, temperate and tropical forests. The future of forests depends mostly on the performance and balance of fungal symbiotic guilds, saprotrophic fungi and bacteria, and fungal plant pathogens. Drought severely weakens forest resilience, as it triggers adverse processes such as pathogen outbreaks and fires that impact the microbial and forest performance for carbon storage and nutrient turnover. Nitrogen deposition also substantially affects forest microbial processes, with a pronounced effect in the temperate zone. Considering plant-microorganism interactions would help predict the future of forests and identify management strategies to increase ecosystem stability and alleviate climate change effects. In this Review, we describe the impact of global change on the forest ecosystem and its microbiome across different climatic zones. We propose potential approaches to control the adverse effects of global change on forest stability, and present future research directions to understand the changes ahead.

El empleo de metodologías de código abierto para las investigaciones costeras: comparativa de las técnicas de detección de cambios

Coastal studies have a great relevance historically. This increase in the last with the new technologies and the possible global change impact. In this context, open-source tools represent a key element in these investigations. The present project analyzes the advantages and problems of open-source tools for estimate coastal variations and volumetric changes. For this purpose, a small sector of the Galician coast was used as an example. The open-source approaches have produced similar results to those obtained with proprietary software (ratios ≥ 0.97). In some cases, these methods improve processing times and allowing to users better possibilities for customization and decision-making.

Detection of global change with meiofauna and its benthic environment in a shelf sea cold water mass ecosystem

The marine benthic ecosystems can be affected by global environmental change. The northern Yellow Sea cold water mass (NYSCWM) is locally generated without external intrusion, and relatively independent and sensitive to global change. We utilized multiple scale temporal data collected during 12 cruises (2006–2014) to detect potential impact of global change on meiofauna and its benthic environment in the NYSCWM ecosystem. Time series of bottom water temperature and total organic carbon exhibited increasing trends, while those of meiofaunal abundance, biomass, sedimentary chlorophyll a and bottom water salinity exhibited decreasing trends. The temporal trends observed in our study were coincident with the global reduction of benthic standing stock in response to global change and anthropogenic disturbance. The strong seasonality of meiofauna, however, may mask its long-term pattern, and meiofauna with its sedimentary environment may serve as an integrated indicator of potential impact of global change on the shelf sea cold water mass ecosystem only if longer-term monitoring data can be accumulated and seasonal effect taken into account.

Seabird morphology determines operational wind speeds, tolerable maxima, and responses to extremes

Storms can cause widespread seabird stranding and wrecking,1,2,3,4,5 yet little is known about the maximum wind speeds that birds are able to tolerate or the conditions they avoid. We analyzed >300,000h of tracking data from 18 seabird species, including flapping and soaring fliers, to assess how flight morphology affects wind selectivity, both at fine scales (hourly movement steps) and across the breeding season. We found no general preference or avoidance of particular wind speeds within foraging tracks. This suggests seabird flight morphology is adapted to a "wind niche," with higher wing loading being selected in windier environments. In support of this, wing loading was positively related to the median wind speeds on the breeding grounds, as well as the maximum wind speeds in which birds flew. Yet globally, the highest wind speeds occur in the tropics (in association with tropical cyclones) where birds are morphologically adapted to low median wind speeds. Tropical species must therefore show behavioral responses to extreme winds, including long-range avoidance of wind speeds that can be twice their operable maxima. By contrast, Procellariiformes flew in almost all wind speeds they encountered at a seasonal scale. Despite this, we describe a small number of cases where albatrosses avoided strong winds at close range, including by flying into the eye of the storm. Extreme winds appear to pose context-dependent risks to seabirds, and more information is needed on the factors that determine the hierarchy of risk, given the impact of global change on storm intensity.6,7.

Climate-driven convergent evolution in riparian ecosystems on sky islands

Climate-induced evolution will determine population persistence in a changing world. However, finding natural systems in which to study these responses has been a barrier to estimating the impact of global change on a broad scale. We propose that isolated sky islands (SI) and adjacent mountain chains (MC) are natural laboratories for studying long-term and contemporary climatic pressures on natural populations. We used greenhouse common garden trees to test whether populations on SI exposed to hot and dry climates since the end of the Pleistocene have phenotypically diverged from populations on MC, and if SI populations have converged in these traits. We show: (1) populations of Populus angustifolia from SI have diverged from MC, and converged across SI, in reproductive and productivity traits, (2) these traits (cloning and aboveground biomass, respectively) are significantly correlated, suggesting a genetic linkage between them, and (3) the trait variation is driven by both natural selection and genetic drift. These shifts represent potentially beneficial phenotypes for population persistence in a changing world. These results suggest that the SI–MC comparison is a natural laboratory, as well as a predictive framework, for studying long-term responses to climate change across the globe.

Infectious disease ecology and evolution in a changing world.

Infectious disease ecology and evolution in a changing world.

Biological Deterioration and Natural Durability of Wood in Europe

In recent years, the use of wood has gained social interest, leading to a global increase in its demand. Yet, this demand is often covered by the production of woods of low natural durability against biological deterioration. The main biological agents with the potential to attack the structural integrity of wood are wood-decay fungi, saproxylic beetles, termites, and marine molluscs and crustaceans. In most circumstances, fungi are the main wood-deteriorating agents. To attack the cell wall, wood-decay fungi combine a complex enzymatic mechanism with non-enzymatic mechanisms based on low-molecular-weight compounds. In some cases, the larvae of saproxylic beetles can also digest cell wood components, causing serious deterioration to wooden structures. The impact of subterranean termites in Europe is concentrated in the Southern countries, causing important economic losses. However, alien invasive species of voracious subterranean termites are expanding their presence in Europe. Wooden elements in permanent contact with marine water can be readily deteriorated by mollusc and crustacean borers, for which current preservatives lack efficacy. The natural durability of wood is defined as the inherent resistance of wood to catastrophic action by wood-destroying organisms. Besides exposure to the climate, product design and use conditions, the natural durability of wood is key to the prediction of the service life of wooden products, which can be shortened due to the impact of global change. The major wood properties involved in natural durability are related to the composition of lignin in the cell wall, the anatomy of the xylem, nutrient availability, the amount and composition of heartwood extractives, and the presence of moisture-regulating components since wood moisture content influences the establishment of wood-degrading organisms.

Impact of global changes and digitalization on human resource management system

The paper investigates the impact of global changes and digitalization on human resource management system. Based at the international experience it is researched that international companies have distinctive characteristics in HRM due to the various cultural, economic, and legal disparities among the countries in which they operate. When transitioning to an international level, companies must adhere to the rules of the international business game. It was stated that research by the “Deloitte” company has confirmed the impact of globalization on human resource management in Ukraine. It was formulated main tasks in HR Management, that are basic to the modern big business conduction, and on the base of it characterize the main trends of HRM digitalization. Among the main issues in the HR field, the need for developing future leaders and transferring knowledge to them is identified. It is described how digitization has a significant impact on the main HRM processes and formulated recommendations for the effective use of digital technologies in HRM system.

Worldwide Correlations Support COVID-19 Seasonal Behavior and Impact of Global Change.

Many viral diseases exhibit seasonal behavior and can be affected by environmental stressors. Using time-series correlation charts extrapolated from worldwide data, we provide strong support for the seasonal development of COVID-19 regardless of the immunity of the population, behavioral changes, and the periodic appearance of new variants with higher rates of infectivity and transmissibility. Statistically significant latitudinal gradients were also observed with indicators of global change. Using the Environmental Protection Index (EPI) and State of Global Air (SoGA) metrics, a bilateral analysis of environmental health and ecosystem vitality effects showed associations with COVID-19 transmission. Air quality, pollution emissions, and other indicators showed strong correlations with COVID-19 incidence and mortality. Remarkably, EPI category and performance indicators also correlated with latitude, suggesting cultural and psychological diversity in human populations not only impact wealth and happiness but also planetary health at latitudinal level. Looking forward, we conclude there will be a need to disentangle the seasonal and global change effects of COVID-19 noting that countries that go against the health of the planet affect health in general.

Pak-China Defense Cooperation and Evolving International Relations

This study is about the impact of different global and regional changes resulting from PakistanChina’s defense cooperation and further examines the increasing range of diplomatic cooperation in the social, tactical, and economic realms. The paper focuses on three events: (i) the 1978 transformation of China and its opening-up policies; (ii) disbanding of the U.S.S.R (1991); and (iii) the event of 9/11 in the United States. These events had a significant influence on Pak-China ties. This study is a literature review and contributes to a better understanding of the evolving international systems namely the India-U.S. tactical relations and strategic cooperation. The paper concludes that China and Pakistan need to preserve amicable, strategic, and diplomatic connections with one another as it is necessary for the peace, security, and economic development of not only China and Pakistan but for the region overall. Keywords: Pakistan-China Relations, Indian Concern, Regional Peace, Defense Cooperation,

Alterations in soil pH emerge as a key driver of the impact of global change on soil microbial nitrogen cycling: Evidence from a global meta‐analysis

AbstractAimSoil nitrogen (N) cycling is critical to the productivity of terrestrial ecosystems. However, the impact of global change factors (GCFs) on the microbial mediators of N cycling pathways has yet to be synthesized, and it also remains unclear whether the response of the abundance of N‐cycling genes can predict changes in their corresponding processes.LocationGlobal.Time period2000–2021.Major taxa studiedArchaea, bacteria.MethodsWe synthesized 8322 paired observations of soil microorganisms related to N cycling from field experiments in which GCFs (climate change and nutrient addition) were manipulated.ResultsWe found that the abundance of soil microbes and most N‐cycling genes were resistant to elevated CO2, experimental warming and water addition/reduction; however, N addition and the combination of N addition with other GCFs significantly increased the abundance of ammonia oxidizer bacteria (amoA‐AOB). The results indicated that in steady‐state (natural) conditions, the main factors driving the global abundance of soil bacteria, archaea and N‐cycling genes varied in terms of the contributions of climatic and edaphic factors. However, upon manipulation of GCFs, the induced change in soil pH was the most essential factor associated with changes in the abundance of soil microbes and N‐cycling genes. Notably, the changes in ammonia‐oxidizing archaea (amoA‐AOA) and amoA‐AOB genes, in addition to genes involved in denitrification (nirS and nirK), were significantly correlated with the rates of their corresponding processes, but GCF‐induced shifts in the potential nitrification rate (PNR) were explained well by changes in the abundance of the amoA‐AOB gene under GCFs.Main conclusionsOur study highlights how ongoing GCFs impact the abundance of soil microbes and N‐cycling genes, which might have a profound impact on terrestrial N cycling. Our field‐based results provide new insights into the drivers of the abundance of soil microbes and N‐cycling genes.

An evaluation of freshwater monitoring programs in ILTER nodes and mountain national parks: identifying key variables to monitor global change effects

Identifying and quantifying global change impacts on biotic and abiotic components of ecosystems is critical to promote an effective adaptation that increases the success of conservation strategies. To achieve this goal, global and regional assessment efforts require certain degree of harmonization on local monitoring programs to establish relevant comparisons at different spatio-temporal scales. Otherwise, the lack of harmonization might hinder the detection and assessment on the effects of human impacts. In this work we have compiled information on freshwater monitoring programs located in areas of intensive research and conservation interest: International Long Term Ecological Research (ILTER) nodes and mountain National Parks. We aimed at evaluating the quality and robustness of these programs to assess the impact of global change, addressing from the worldwide to the European and Spanish national scale. Results highlighted that freshwater monitoring programs lack a common strategy to monitor these ecosystems. Even at the continental and national scales, contrasting strategies and level of detail have been historically applied. Water quality, habitat and biodiversity are more commonly monitored than community structure and ecosystem functioning. Monitoring efforts on the Spanish Mountain National parks indicated differences on the targeted aquatic ecosystems. Rivers and lakes received a higher attention, while mires were rarely considered. Our results provide evidence that greater efforts should be directed towards constructing a coordinated strategy to monitor freshwater ecosystems at national, continental, and global scales. This strategy should involve a shared backbone of biophysical and biogeochemical variables for each habitat type on agreed protocols that are implemented across regions and administrative borders. Achieving this will support a substantial advance on the ecological research to further delineate proper conservation strategies to face the challenges imposed by global change.

Experimental temperatures shape host microbiome diversity and composition.

Global climate change has led to more extreme thermal events. Plants and animals harbour diverse microbial communities, which may be vital for their physiological performance and help them survive stressful climatic conditions. The extent to which microbiome communities change in response to warming or cooling may be important for predicting host performance under global change. Using a meta-analysis of 1377 microbiomes from 43 terrestrial and aquatic species, we found a decrease in the amplicon sequence variant-level microbiome phylogenetic diversity and alteration of microbiome composition under both experimental warming and cooling. Microbiome beta dispersion was not affected by temperature changes. We showed that the host habitat and experimental factors affected microbiome diversity and composition more than host biological traits. In particular, aquatic organisms-especially in marine habitats-experienced a greater depletion in microbiome diversity under cold conditions, compared to terrestrial hosts. Exposure involving a sudden long and static temperature shift was associated with microbiome diversity loss, but this reduction was attenuated by prior-experimental lab acclimation or when a ramped regime (i.e., warming) was used. Microbial differential abundance and co-occurrence network analyses revealed several potential indicator bacterial classes for hosts in heated environments and on different biome levels. Overall, our findings improve our understanding on the impact of global temperature changes on animal and plant microbiome structures across a diverse range of habitats. The next step is to link these changes to measures of host fitness, as well as microbial community functions, to determine whether microbiomes can buffer some species against a more thermally variable and extreme world.

Temporal transferability of species abundance models to study the changes of breeding bird species based on land cover changes

AimSpecies distribution models have become important tools for studying changes in biodiversity. Most studies use these models to evaluate the impact of global changes on biodiversity. For that purpose, scenarios are used that are based on changes in land use and/or land cover, or on climatic changes. However, the temporal transferability of such models depends heavily on modeling methods, environmental predictors and the ecological traits of species. Here, we evaluate the power of modeling tools to predict changes in bird species abundances based on observed changes in land cover. LocationWallonia, Belgium MethodsTo assess this temporal transferability, this research makes use of two biological and two environmental datasets, both sampled with a 10-year interval. This allows us to compare the predictions of models for another period than the period used to fit the models, with actual values for species abundance. We also analyzed the impact of ecological traits on the temporal transferability. Generalized additive models were fitted for 75 breeding birds. While a lot of studies use occurrence data, we used abundance data for fitting models. Abundance data contains more information and should allow us to better capture abundance changes in bird populations. ResultsFor the majority of species studied, the results show a low temporal transferability. With a few exceptions, e.g., species with softwood habitats, predicted changes do not correspond to observed changes. For certain bird species, e.g., those on arable lands, we observed an increase in predicted abundances in the future, while these species actually decreased. Few ecological traits seem to significantly impact the models’ transferability. Main conclusionsOur findings show that it is difficult to predict abundance changes of bird species based only on land cover changes. It is necessary to add other predictors into the models, e.g., predictors of habitat quality or spatial configuration.

Integrating the impact of global change on the niche and physiology of marine nitrogen-fixing cyanobacteria.

Marine nitrogen fixation is a major source of new nitrogen to the ocean, which interacts with climate driven changes to physical nutrient supply to regulate the response of ocean primary production in the oligotrophic tropical ocean. Warming and changes in nutrient supply may alter the ecological niche of nitrogen-fixing organisms, or 'diazotrophs', however, impacts of warming on diazotroph physiology may also be important. Lab-based studies reveal that warming increases the nitrogen fixation-specific elemental use efficiency (EUE) of two prevalent marine diazotrophs, Crocosphaera and Trichodesmium, thus reducing their requirements for the limiting nutrients iron and phosphorus. Here, we coupled a new diazotroph model based upon observed diazotroph energetics of growth and resource limitation to a state-of-the-art global model of phytoplankton physiology and ocean biogeochemistry. Our model is able to address the integrated response of nitrogen fixation by Trichodesmium and Crocosphaera to warming under the IPCC high emission RCP8.5 scenario for the first time. Our results project a global decline in nitrogen fixation over the coming century. However, the regional response of nitrogen fixation to climate change is modulated by the diazotroph-specific thermal performance curves and EUE, particularly in the Pacific Ocean, which shapes global trends. Spatially, the response of both diazotrophs is similar with expansion towards higher latitudes and reduced rates of nitrogen fixation in the lower latitudes. Overall, 95%-97% of the nitrogen fixation climate signal can be attributed to the combined effect of temperature on the niche and physiology of marine diazotrophs, with decreases being associated with a reduced niche and increases resulting due to a combination of expanding niche and temperature driven changes to EUE. Climate change impacts on both the niche and physiology of marine diazotrophs interact to shape patterns of marine nitrogen fixation, which will have important implications for ocean productivity in the future.

Impacts of global change on two tropical, high mountain lakes in Central Mexico

High mountain lakes and their catchments are remote ecosystems in areas with low anthropogenic disturbance. High mountain lakes integrate changes in the atmosphere and catchment areas (e.g., acid rain, airborne pollutants, climate change). The present research analyses long-term datasets of meteorological and limnological variables representing two tropical high mountain lakes, El Sol and La Luna, in Central Mexico to identify the impacts of anthropogenic disturbance (i.e., sentinels of global/climate change). The 54-year meteorological analysis showed marked interannual variability with no statistically significant air temperature or rainfall trends. However, from 2000 to 2018, the air temperature increased by 0.5 °C. Accordingly, the lake water temperature increased (Lake El Sol: 0.8 °C, Lake La Luna: 0.6 °C). Although the rainfall displayed no change, the water level decreased in both lakes (1.5 m), most likely associated with increased evapotranspiration. Unexpectedly, the dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) concentration in the lakes decreased. The initial acid pH rose to close neutrality in Lake La Luna and to alkaline values in Lake El Sol. The latter may be a consequence of the lowered SOx and NOx emissions from governmental regulations promulgated to control atmospheric pollution beginning in 2000 and probably resulting in less acidic deposition. An additional explanation for the lakes' deacidification is the increased deposition of alkaline ions derived from activities at the volcano slopes. Since the atmospheric supply is the primary nitrogen source to high mountain lakes, the DIN concentration decline could reflect the reduction in atmospheric HNO3. Thus, Lakes El Sol and La Luna evidenced global change. Both lakes are inside the same crater and are subjected to similar influences; thus, they showed similar responses to global change (increasing lake water temperatures, declining water levels, higher pH value, and lower DIN concentrations). Nevertheless, their differences (e.g., catchment size, surface area, water volume, water depth, trophic status) influenced the magnitude of the impacts, with higher pH increases recorded in Lake El Sol and higher DIN concentrations in Lake La Luna.

Higher association and integration among functional traits in small tree than shrub in resisting drought stress in an arid desert

Revealing plant adaptation strategies to drought has become one of the research hotspots in assessing the impact of global change on forest ecosystems. However, it is not clear whether the drought adaptation strategies are consistent across life forms. The scientific question of this study is whether small tree and shrub adopt different strategies to cope with drought stress. To answer it, we analyzed the differences of change pattern in four types of functional traits (leaf, photosynthetic, hydraulic and carbohydrate traits), as well as the asscoiation and integration among traits across a drought stress gradient between the most common small tree (Haloxylon ammodendron) and shrub (Alhagi sparsifolia Shap.) species in an arid desert of northwest China. Our results showed that the adaptation of photosynthetic and carbohydrate traits were the same in the two species, but leaf and hydraulic traits were different. Association and integration among traits were obviously higher in small tree than shrub because the former suffered more severe drought stress. All the functional traits of small tree can be integrated into two independent drought adaptation groups, which can be named drought resistance-nutrient accumulation group and hydraulic adaptation group, respectively. These two groups were all obviously related to drought adaptation, and can be considered as two adaptive strategies evolved by small tree to cope with drought stress. In contrast, all traits of shrub can be classified into four independent adaptive groups. However, it is difficult to associate all of them as drought adaptation strategies. In conclusion, shrub had a stronger drought tolerance, and showed an independent trait adaptability relative to small tree, with no close accociation between traits. Oppositely, the traits of small tree were closely related to each other. The trade-offs and compensations among traits greatly helpled small tree to reduce drought stress.

Multiple global changes drive grassland productivity and stability: A meta‐analysis

Abstract Temporal stability of primary productivity is the key to stable provisioning of ecosystem services to human beings. Yet, the effects of various global changes on grassland stability remain ambiguous. Here, we conducted a comprehensive meta‐analysis based on 1070 multi‐year paired observations from 173 studies, to examine the impacts of various global changes on productivity, community stability and plant diversity of grasslands on a global scale. The global change drivers include nitrogen (N) addition, phosphorus (P) addition, N and P addition, precipitation increase, precipitation decrease, elevated CO2 and warming. Global change drivers generally had stronger impacts on grassland productivity than on temporal stability, except for precipitation changes. Community temporal stability was reduced by N addition, N and P addition and precipitation decrease, but was increased by precipitation increase and remained unchanged under P addition, elevated CO2 and warming. In addition, species richness decreased under N addition, N and P addition and precipitation decrease. At the plant functional group level, N and P addition reduced grasses' stability and precipitation increase enhanced forbs' stability. Nutrient additions decreased community stability via increasing the inter‐annual variation more than the mean of primary productivity, while precipitation changes mainly affected community temporal stability via changing mean productivity. The negative impacts of global change drivers (i.e. N and P addition, warming) on community temporal stability increased with the degree of species loss but decreased with increasing stability of grasses. Moreover, the negative impacts of nutrient addition and precipitation decrease on community stability was lessened while the positive effect of precipitation increase on community stability was enhanced in grasslands with higher historical precipitation variability, greater soil fertility and longer experimental duration. Synthesis. Our findings demonstrate that N‐based nutrient additions and drought destabilise grassland productivity, while precipitation increase enhances community stability. Impacts of global changes on community productivity and stability are mediated by species richness, plant functional group, site‐specific environmental conditions (i.e. climate, soil) and experimental duration, which deserve more attention in grassland management practices under future global change scenarios.

Pollen-based biome reconstruction on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau during the past 15,000 years

Reconstruction of past vegetation change is critical for better understanding the potential impact of future global change on the fragile alpine ecosystems of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau (QTP). In this paper, pollen assemblages comprising 58 records from the QTP, spanning the past 15 kyrs, were collected to reconstruct biome compositions using a standard approach. Six forest biomes were identified mainly on the southeastern plateau, exhibiting a pattern of gradual expansion along the eastern margin during early to mid-Holocene times. The alpine meadow biome was separately identified based on an updated scheme, and showed notable westward expansions towards lower latitudes and higher altitudes during early Holocene times. Consistent patterns of migration could also be identified for the alpine steppe biome, which moved eastward during the late Holocene after 4 ka. As the dominant biome type, temperate steppe was distributed widely over the QTP with minor migration patterns, except for a progressive expansion to lower altitudes in the late Holocene times. The desert biome was inferred mainly as covering the northwestern plateau and the Qaidam Basin, in relatively restricted areas. The spatial distribution of the reconstructed biomes represent the large-scale vegetation gradient on the QTP. Monsoonal precipitation expressed predominant controls on the development of alpine ecosystems, while the variations in desert vegetation responded to regional moisture brought by the mid-latitude Westerlies. Temperature changes played relatively minor roles in the variations of alpine vegetation, but exerted more significant impacts on the forest biomes.