Given the short duration of growing season in the Arctic, a strong correlation between plant productivity and growing season length (GSL) is conventionally assumed. Will this assumption hold true under a warming clima...Given the short duration of growing season in the Arctic, a strong correlation between plant productivity and growing season length (GSL) is conventionally assumed. Will this assumption hold true under a warming climate? In this study, we addressed the question by investigating the relationship between net primary productivity of leaves (NPP<sub>leaf</sub>) and GSL for various tundra ecosystems. We quantified NPP<sub>leaf</sub> and GSL using long-term satellite data and field measurements. Our results indicated that the relationship was not significant (i.e., decoupled) for 44% to 64% of tundra classes in the southern Canadian Arctic, but significant for all classes in the northern Canadian Arctic. To better understand the causes of the decoupling, we further decomposed the relationship into two components: the correspondence of interannual variations and the agreement of long- term trends. We found that the longer the mean GSL for a tundra class, the poorer the correspondence between their interannual variations. Soil moisture limitation further decoupled the relationship by deteriorating the agreement of long-term trends. Consequently, the decoupling between NPP<sub>leaf</sub> and GSL would be more likely to occur under a warming climate if the tundra class had a mean GSL > 116 (or 123) days with a dry (or moist) soil moisture regime.展开更多
文摘Given the short duration of growing season in the Arctic, a strong correlation between plant productivity and growing season length (GSL) is conventionally assumed. Will this assumption hold true under a warming climate? In this study, we addressed the question by investigating the relationship between net primary productivity of leaves (NPP<sub>leaf</sub>) and GSL for various tundra ecosystems. We quantified NPP<sub>leaf</sub> and GSL using long-term satellite data and field measurements. Our results indicated that the relationship was not significant (i.e., decoupled) for 44% to 64% of tundra classes in the southern Canadian Arctic, but significant for all classes in the northern Canadian Arctic. To better understand the causes of the decoupling, we further decomposed the relationship into two components: the correspondence of interannual variations and the agreement of long- term trends. We found that the longer the mean GSL for a tundra class, the poorer the correspondence between their interannual variations. Soil moisture limitation further decoupled the relationship by deteriorating the agreement of long-term trends. Consequently, the decoupling between NPP<sub>leaf</sub> and GSL would be more likely to occur under a warming climate if the tundra class had a mean GSL > 116 (or 123) days with a dry (or moist) soil moisture regime.
