Stability assessment of tree ring growth of Pinus armandii Franch in response to climate change based on slope directions at the Lubanling in the Funiu Mountains,China

Global warming will affect growth strategies and how trees will adapt.To compare the response of tree radial growth to climate warming in different slope directions,samples of Pinus armandii Franch were collected and tree-ring chronologies developed on northern and western slopes from the Lubanling in the Funiu Mountains.Correlation analyses showed that two chronologies were mainly limited by temperatures in the previous June-August and the com-bination of temperatures and moisture in the current May-July.The difference of the climate response to slopes was small but not negligible.Radial growth of the LBLO1 site on the northern slope was affected by the combined maximum and minimum temperatures,while that of the LBLO2 site was affected by maximum temperatures.With regards to moisture,radial growth of the trees on the north slope was influenced by the relative humidity in the current May-July,while on the western slope,it was affected by the relative humidity in the previous June-August,the current May-July and the precipitation in the current May-July.With the change in climate,the effects of the main limiting factors on growth on different slopes were visible to a certain extent,but the differences in response of trees on different slopes gradually decreased,which might be caused by factors such as different slope directions and the change in diurnal temperature range.These results may provide information for forest protection and ecological construction in this region,and a scientific reference for future climate reconstruction.

Stability assessment of tree ring growth of Pinus armandii Franch in response to climate change based on slope directions at the Lubanling in the Funiu Mountains,China

Global warming will affect growth strategies and how trees will adapt.To compare the response of tree radial growth to climate warming in different slope directions,samples of Pinus armandii Franch were collected and treering chronologies developed on northern and western slopes from the Lubanling in the Funiu Mountains.Correlation analyses showed that two chronologies were mainly limited by temperatures in the previous June–August and the combination of temperatures and moisture in the current May–July.The difference of the climate response to slopes was small but not negligible.Radial growth of the LBL01 site on the northern slope was affected by the combined maximum and minimum temperatures,while that of the LBL02 site was affected by maximum temperatures.With regards to moisture,radial growth of the trees on the north slope was influenced by the relative humidity in the current May–July,while on the western slope,it was affected by the relative humidity in the previous June–August,the current May–July and the precipitation in the current May–July.With the change in climate,the effects of the main limiting factors on growth on different slopes were visible to a certain extent,but the differences in response of trees on different slopes gradually decreased,which might be caused by factors such as different slope directions and the change in diurnal temperature range.These results may provide information for forest protection and ecological construction in this region,and a scientific reference for future climate reconstruction.

Dynamics of moisture regime and its reconstruction from a tree-ring width chronology of Pinus sylvestris in the downstream basin of the Selenga River, Russia

Regional tree-ring width chronology of the Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) was constructed from 8 sites in the forest-steppe belt situated in the foothills of the Selenga River basin, Russia. Moisture information contained in tree-ring width chronology was obtained through linear regression reconstruction models of annual August–July precipitation and annual water discharge of the Selenga River during the period 1767–2015. Comparison of the smoothed series allowed estimating long-term variation component of these moisture regime parameters with a high precision. At the same time, regional drought indices are less correlated with pine radial growth, because they have contribution of the other environmental variables, which are much less reflected in the tree-ring of the investigated pine forest stands. Reconstructed dynamic of the moisture regime parameters is supported by documental evident of many socially significant events in the regional history, such as crop failures caused by both droughts and floods, and catastrophic fire in the Irkutsk City in 1879. Also, dependence of the amount of precipitation in the study area on the atmospheric circulation in Central Asia is revealed to have a similar pattern with other regions, i.e., a negative relationship of precipitation with the development of large high atmospheric pressure area within its center in the Altai and Tianshan mountains.

January to August temperature variability since 1776 inferred from tree-ring width of Pinus tabulaeformis in Helan Mountain

Tree-ring standardized chronologies are developed by 78 cores collected from the eastern and western Helan Mountain. Statistical analysis shows that both the STD and RES chronologies correlate negatively with the temperature of different periods of early half year, especially with January to August mean （JA） temperature, which means that JA temperature is one of the predominant limiting factors of tree growth in the Helan Mountain. Based on this analysis, we reconstructed JA temperature, and the explained variance is 43.3% （F=21.422, p〈0.001 ）. The comparatively high temperature periods in the reconstruction were： 1805-1818 1828-1857, 1899-1907, 1919-1931 and 1968-1995; and the comparatively low temperatu re periods happened in 1858-1872, 1883-1895 and 1935-1953. Ten-year moving average curve shows three slow uplifting trends： 1766-1853, 1862-1931 and 1944-1995. Each temperature increase was followed by a sudden temperature decrease about 10 years, that is to say, the JA temperature in the Helan Mountain is characterized by slow increase and sudden decrease. The 70- and 10.77-year periodicities detected in the temperature series correspond to the Gleissberg （80-year） and Schwabe （11-year） periodicities of solar activity respectively, the 2.11-2.62 years cycles are considered to be influenced by QBO （Quasi-Biennial-Oscillation） and the local environmental change.

Establishment of tree-ring chronology and climatic response of Tibetan juniper(S.tibetica) in south Tibet,western China

A tree-ring width chronology of 442 years(1567-2008) was developed from Tibetan junipers(S.tibetica) derived from south Tibet in western China.Three versions of chronology were produced according to standard dendrochronological techniques.The correlation and response analysis displays a high correlation between the standard tree ring-width chronology and observed annual mean precipitation series during the period 1961-2008.Based on a linear regression model,an annual(prior August to current July) precipitation for the past 229 years was reconstructed.This is the first well-calibrated precipitation reconstruction for the Nanggarze region,south Tibet.The results show that relatively wet years with above-average precipitation occurred in 1780-1807,1854-1866,1886-1898,1904-1949,1967-1981 and 2000-2008,whereas relatively dry years with below-average precipitation prevailed during 1808-1853,1867-1885,1899-1903,1950-1966 and 1982-1999.Common dry/wet periods during 1890s,1910s,1940s-1960s and 1980s were also identified from other moisture reconstructions of nearby regions,indicating a synchronous climatic variation in south Tibet.Abrupt change beginning in 1888 was detected,revealing a transition from wet to dry conditions in south Tibet.Power spectrum analysis reveals significant cycles of 28-year,5.5-5.6-year and 3.3-year during the past 200 years.

Climatic response of Pinus sylvestris var. mongolica tree-ring width and precipitation reconstruction for the northern Greater Higgnan Mountains, China, since 1720

August-June precipitation has been reconstructed back to AD 1720 for the northern Greater Higgnan Mountains, China, by use ofPinus sylvestris var. mongolica tree-ring width. The reconstruction explains the variance of 39% in observed precipitation from 1973 to 2008. Some extremely dry/wet signals in historical documents and other precipitation reconstructions in previous studies are precisely captured in our reconstruction. Wet periods occurred during the periods of 1730 to 1746, 1789 to 1812, 1844 to 1903, 1920 to 1930, 1942 to 1961, and 1985 to 1998; while periods of 1747 to 1788, 1813 to 1843, 1904 to 1919, 1931 to 1941, and 1962 to 1984 were relatively dry. Power spectral and wavelet analyses demon- strated the existence of significant 24-year, 12-year, and 2-year cycles of variability.

R软件包MtreeRing在生长轮宽度测量中的应用

介绍了使用R软件包MtreeRing自动测量生长轮宽度的方法。MtreeRing使用数学形态学和边缘检测方法对数字图像中的生长轮边界进行识别,并且可以校正倾斜生长轮带来的测量误差。此外,MtreeRing还提供了具有图形用户界面的小程序,满足了不同编程水平用户的需求。两个针叶树种的对比分析表明,MtreeRing测量的生长轮宽度与WinDENDRO无显著差异,自动检测提高了测量效率,图形用户界面也增强了R软件的易用性。相比WinDENDRO等商业工具,MtreeRing无需软件成本,生长轮宽度序列可以直接在R软件中进行后续分析,或使用rwl等通用格式导出。

Tree ring based drought variability in Northwest Tajikistan since 1895 AD

Determining the mechanisms controlling the changes of wet and dry conditions will improve our understanding of climate change over the past hundred years,which is of great significance to the study of climate and environmental changes in the arid regions of Central Asia.Forest trees are ecologically significant in the local environment,and therefore the tree ring analysis can provide a clear record of regional historical climate.This study analyzed the correlation between the tree ring width chronology of Juniperus turkestanica Komarov and the standardized precipitation evapotranspiration index(SPEI)in Northwest Tajikistan,based on 56 tree ring samples collected from Shahristan in the Pamir region.Climate data including precipitation,temperature and the SPEI were downloaded from the Climate Research Unit(CRU)TS 4.00.The COFECHA program was used for cross-dating,and the ARSTAN program was used to remove the growth trend of the tree itself and the influence of non-climatic factors on the growth of the trees.A significant correlation was found between the radial growth of J.turkestanica trees and the monthly mean SPEI of February–April.The monthly mean SPEI sequence of February–April during the period of 1895–2016 was reconstructed,and the reconstruction equation explained 42.5%of the variance.During the past 122 a(1895–2016),the study area has experienced three wetter periods(precipitation above average):1901–1919,1945–1983 and 1995–2010,and four drier periods(precipitation below average):1895–1900,1920–1944,1984–1994 and 2011–2016.The spatial correlation analysis revealed that the monthly mean SPEI reconstruction sequence of February–April could be used to characterize the large-scale dry-wet variations in Northwest Tajikistan during the period of 1895–2016.This study could provide comparative data for validating the projections of climate models and scientific basis for managing water resources in Tajikistan in the context of climate change.

Standardization of Qilian Juniper ring-width series in the eastern margin of the Qaidam Basin

Standardization is one of the important procedures in dendroclimatology. We used abundant Qilian juniper （Sabina przewalskii Kom.） tree-ring samples from the eastern margin of the Qaidam Basin to develop a new standardization method, i.e. total growth curve （TGC）. The samples that contained the complete pith and reached to the growing culmination around the 40th-60th year were used to fit TGC, and the generalized negative exponential function was used to fit the curve. Usually, most cores cannot reach the arboreal pith for some reasons and it is difficult to determine the arboreal cambial age. The empirical model of initial radial growth （IRG） was employed to estimate the number of rings missing from the pith by the same data and IRG model explained 90.9% of the variance. When developing the chronology, the cambial ages of cores that contained the complete pith were regarded as beginning from the first year and others were determined by the numbers of missing and included rings in the core. Standardization was accomplished by dividing each tree-ring series by corresponding TGC. The chronologies developed by TGC can retain more low-frequency variational information and TGC helps to develop more reliable tree-ring width chronology.

Reconstruction of hydrological changes based on tree-ring data of the Haba River, northwestern China

Reconstructing the hydrological change based on dendrohydrological data has important implications for understanding the dynamic distribution and evolution pattern of a given river. The widespread, long-living coniferous forests on the Altay Mountains provide a good example for carrying out the dendrohydrological studies. In this study, a regional composite tree-ring width chronology developed by Lariat sibirica Ledeb. and Picea obovata Ledeb. was used to reconstruct a 301-year annual （from preceding July to succeeding June） streamflow for the Haba River, which originates in the southern Altay Mountains, Xinjiang, China. Results indicated that the reconstructed streamflow series and the observations were fitting well, and explained 47.5% of the variation in the observed streamflow of 1957-2008. Moreover, floods and droughts in 1949-2000 were precisely captured by the streamflow reconstruction. Based on the frequencies of the wettest/driest years and decades, we identified the 19th century as the century with the largest occurrence of hydrological fluctuations for the last 300 years. After applying a 21-year moving average, we found five wet （1724-1758, 1780-1810, 1822-1853, 1931-1967, and 1986-2004） and four dry （1759-1779, 1811-1821, 1854-1930, and 1968-1985） periods in the streamflow reconstruction. Furthermore, four periods （1770-1796, 1816-1836, 1884-1949, and 1973-1997） identified by the streamflow series had an obvious increasing trend. The increasing trend of streamflow since the 1970s was the biggest in the last 300 years and coincided with the recent warming-wetting trend in northwestern China. A significant correlation between streamflow and precipitation in the Altay Mountains indicated that the streamflow reconstruction contained not only local, but also broad-scale, hydro-climatic signals. The 24-year, 12-year, and 2.2-4.5-year cycles of the reconstruction revealed that the streamflow variability of the Haba River may be influenced by solar activity and the atmosphere-ocean system.

Tree-ring response of Larix chinensis on regional climate and sea-surface temperature variations in alpine timberline in the Qinling Mountains

Tree-ring width chronologies of Larix chinensis were developed from the northern and southern slopes of the Qinling Mountains in Shaanxi Province,and climatic factors affecting the tree-ring widths of L.chinensis were examined.Correlation analysis showed that similar correlations between tree-ring width chronologies and climatic factors demonstrated that radial growth responded to climate change on both slopes.The radial growth of L.chinensis was mainly limited by temperature,especially the growing season.In contrast,both chronologies were negatively correlated with precipitation in May of the previous year and April of the current year.Spatial climate-correlation analyses with gridded land-surface climate data revealed that our tree-ring width chronologies contained a strong regional temperature signal over much of northcentral and eastern China.Spatial correlation with seasurface temperature fields highlights the influence of the Pacific Ocean,Indian Ocean,and North Atlantic Ocean.Wavelet coherence analysis indicated the existence of some decadal and interannual cycles in the two tree-ring width chronologies.This may suggest the influences of El Nin˜o-Southern Oscillation and solar activity on tree growth in the Qinling Mountains.These findings will help us understand the growth response of L.chinensis to climate change in the Qinling region,and they provide critical information for future climate reconstructions based on this species in semi-humid regions.

Infl uence of altitude and tree class on climate-growth relationships in a larch plantation in subtropical China

Precise quantifi cation of climate-growth relationships can make a major contribution to scientifi c forest management.However,whether diff erences in the response of growth to climate at diff erent altitudes remains unclear.To answer this,264 trees of Larix kaempferi from 88 plots,representing diff erent altitudinal ranges(1000-2100 m)and tree classes were sampled and used to develop tree-ring chronologies.Tree-ring growth(TRG)was either positively(dominant)or negatively(intermediate and suppressed)correlated with climate in diff erent tree classes at diff erent altitudes.TRG was strongly correlated with growing season at low altitudes,but was less sensitive to climate at middle altitudes.It was mainly limited by precipitation and was highly sensitive to climate at low altitudes.Climate-growth relationships at high altitudes were opposite compared to those at low altitudes.TRG of dominant trees was more sensitive to climate change compared to intermediate and suppressed trees.Climate factors(annual temperatures;moisture,the number of frost-free days)had diff erent eff ects on tree-ring growth of diff erent tree classes along altitudinal gradients.It was concluded that the increase in summer temperatures decreased water availability,resulting in a signifi cant decline in growth rates after 2005 at lower altitudes.L.kaempferi is suitable for planting in middle altitudes and dominant trees were the best sampling choice for accurately assessing climate-growth relationships.

气候因子对云冷杉针叶混交林主要针叶树种径向生长的贡献率分析

【目的】为分析气候变化对针叶树种径向生长的影响,揭示针叶混交林对气候变化的响应规律,在全球气候变暖的背景下,对森林生态系统的适应性经营提供理论支撑。【方法】以金沟岭林场云冷杉针叶混交林中的3个针叶树种为研究对象,建立3个针叶树种的树轮宽度标准化年表,分析3个树种的树轮宽度与气候因子之间的相关关系,明确该地区显著限制其径向生长的气候因子,并用层次分割法量化气候因子对各树种树轮宽度变化的贡献率。【结果】在95%的置信区间下,与气候因子相关分析显示:红松和臭冷杉的径向生长同时受气温和降水的影响,与生长季初期气温正相关;鱼鳞云杉的树轮宽度主要受气温影响,与秋冬季节气温负相关,与降水量的整体相关性较低。3个树种均受到上一年气候因子的影响,有一定的“滞后效应”。滑动相关分析表明,本研究3个主要针叶树种与气候因子的响应关系存在差异,主要表现为负相关性呈增强趋势。3月平均气温对红松的贡献率最高,为34.56%,4月最低气温对臭冷杉的贡献率最高,为22.29%,对鱼鳞云杉的贡献率为60.89%。【结论】层次分割分析法能够有效量化气候因子对各树种树轮生长的贡献率,分析结果可为制定该地区应对未来气候变化的经营管理措施提供理论参考。

不同年龄兴安落叶松单木径向生长对气候变化的响应

量化不同年龄兴安落叶松径向生长与气候因子之间的关系,为兴安落叶松天然林的适应性经营和管理提供决策依据。为此,以黑龙江省大兴安岭地区塔河林业局盘古林场2022年收集的159株兴安落叶松(Larix gmelinii)天然林单木样芯数据为基础,以树木年龄为标准,采用系统聚类方法将样木划分为幼龄组、中龄组和老龄组;运用树木年轮学方法建立标准年表,进而比较和分析不同年龄树木径向生长与气候因子的关系,并采用多元逐步回归法构建对气候敏感的单木径向生长预测模型。结果表明,1)4组(整体组、老龄组、中龄组、幼龄期)兴安落叶松树轮宽度年表的总体样本解释量(EPS)、平均敏感度(MS)和信噪比(SNR)均较高,表明所建立的兴安落叶松标准年表保留了较丰富的气候信息;2)兴安落叶松径向生长主要限制因子为当年8月份温度、前一年8—10月份温度以及当年2、7月份和前一年7、12月份降水量;3)不同年龄兴安落叶松对气候因子的响应存在显著差异,其中,老龄组树木的径向生长不仅受当年夏季温度的制约,还受前一年夏季温度和降水的影响,呈现出显著的滞后效应,而幼龄组和中龄组兴安落叶松则受环境因素的影响相对较小。

塔克拉玛干沙漠腹地柽柳年轮宽度对地下水埋深的响应

【目的】柽柳作为干旱荒漠生态系统的典型物种,研究其年轮宽度对地下水响应的保护有重要价值。【方法】研究基于沙漠腹地达理雅博依绿洲地下水埋深资料,利用年轮测定方法分析不同地下水埋深状况下柽柳年轮宽度的变化,探讨其与地下水埋深变化的关系。【结果】样地一地下水埋深随时间逐年增加,埋深范围是1.2~2.6 m,柽柳的年轮宽度在2001-2020年呈显著增加趋势,变化范围为0.98~5.80 mm,年轮宽度年际间差异显著;样地二地下水埋深随时间增长呈现先增加后减小的趋势,埋深范围是2.7~4.5 m,柽柳年轮宽度在1977-2020年整体呈正弦函数变化,范围为1.46~4.41 mm,年轮宽度年际间差异性不显著;样地一柽柳标准年表振幅范围是0.502~1.641,大于样地二柽柳标准年表振幅范围为0.577~1.331。【结论】样地一地下水埋深向着柽柳生长适宜的范围增加时,有利于柽柳的生长,表现为年轮宽度增加,样地二的柽柳年轮宽度变化和地下水埋深之间无显著相关性。

Exploratory Precipitation in North-Central China during the Past Four Centuries

Two robust precipitation reconstructions were conducted by combining tree-ring chronologies, dryness/wetness indices from historical documents, and climate data from the global grid. It was found that the recurrent drought history of a region can help us understand the variability of precipitation. Several dry/wet periods during the past four centuries and potential cycles of precipitation variation were determined. Furthermore, the reconstructions are not only consistent well with each other in North-central China, but also in good agreement with variations of precipitation in northeastern Mongolia, the Longxi area in Gangsu Province and the Dulan area of Qinghai Province, and the snow accumulation of the Guliya glacier. These synchronous variations indicate that it is valuable to study various climate records, find common information and determine the driving force of climate change.

Dendroclimatic response of Abies spectabilis at treeline ecotone of Barun Valley, eastern Nepal Himalaya

A dendroclimatic study was conducted in the treeline ecotone of Barun Valley, eastern Nepal, to determine the tree-ring climate response and ring width trend of Abies spectabilis. A 160-year-old chronology, from 1850 to 2010, was developed from 38 tree-ring samples. No higher growth in recent decades was observed in tree-ring width in this area. The mean temperature of the current year in February and in the combined winter months of December, January, and February showed significant positive correlation with tree-ring width, although no significant correlation was found between tree-ring width and the precipitation pattern of the region. This tree-ring climate response result is different from that in other studies in Nepal, which could be attributed to location and elevation.

Climate forcing of tree growth in dry Afromontane forest fragments of Northern Ethiopia:evidence from multi-species responses

Background: Climate-induced challenge remains a growing concern in the dry tropics, threatening carbon sink potential of tropical dry forests. Hence, understanding their responses to the changing climate is of high priority to facilitate sustainable management of the remnant dry forests. In this study, we examined the long-term climate-growth relations of main tree species in the remnant dry Afromontane forests in northern Ethiopia. The aim of this study was to assess the dendrochronological potential of selected dry Afromontane tree species and to study the influence of climatic variables (temperature and rainfall) on radial growth. It was hypothesized that there are potential tree species with discernible annual growth rings owing to the uni-modality of rainfall in the region. Ring width measurements were based on increment core samples and stem discs collected from a total of 106 trees belonging to three tree species (Juniperus procera, Olea europaea p. cuspidate and Podocarpus falcatus). Thesubsp. collected samples were prepared, crossdated, and analyzed using standard dendrochronological methods. The formation of annual growth rings of the study species was verified based on successful crossdatability and by correlating tree-ring widths with rainfall. Results: The results showed that all the sampled tree species form distinct growth boundaries though differences in the distinctiveness were observed among the species. Positive and significant correlations were found between the tree-ring widths and rainfall, implying that rainfall plays a vital role in determining tree growth in the region. The study confirmed the formation of annual growth rings through successful crossdating, thus highlighted the potential applicability of dendroclimatic studies in the region. Conclusions: Overall, the results proved the strong linkage between tree-ring chronologies and climate variability in the study region, which further strengthens the potential of dendrochronological studies developing in Ethiopia, and also has great implications for further paleo-climatic reconstructions and in the restoration of degraded lands. Further knowledge on the growth characteristics of tree species from the region is required to improve the network of tree-ring data and quality of the chronology so as to successfully reconstruct historic environmental changes.

Removing harvest residues from hardwood stands affects tree growth, wood density and stem wood nutrient concentration in European beech (Fagus sylvatica) and oak (Quercus spp.)

Background:Higher exportation of harvest residues from forests due to increased demand for woody biomass,has reportedly diminished soil mineral resources and may lead to degraded tree nutrition as well as growth.However,as nutrients become less available in the soil,the remobilization of nutrients in biomass tissues(plant internal cycling)helps sustain tree nutrition.Our study aims to quantify the impact of Removing Harvest Residues and Litter(RHRL)during five years on tree growth,wood density,and stem wood nutrient concentrations in young beech and oak forest stands.Result:Our study found that,RHRL significantly decreased tree growth ring width by 14%,and wood density by 3%,in beech trees,in near bark rings.RHRL also significantly reduced nutrient concentration in near bark and near pith areas of both studied species.Mg,Na and S were found lower by 44%,76%,and 56%,respectively,in near bark area of beech trees.In near bark area of oak trees,K,Ca,Mg,Na,S,and Fe were lower by 20%,25%,41%,48%,41%,and 16%,respectively.K and Mg concentrations decreased more strongly in near pith area compared to near bark area suggesting internal translocation of these two elements.Conclusion:In beech trees,wood density proved to be an important factor while quantifying the effect of removing harvest residuals on tree growth and biomass.Soil nutrient loss intensified the remobilization of nutrients con-tained in older tree rings(close to the pith)towards newly formed rings(close to bark).In our study,in beech trees,K was found to be the most recycled major nutrient.These results demonstrate the potential of such analysis for providing valuable insight into the effect of RHRL in premature stands on the physiological adaptive strategies of trees and an indication of soil fertility status.