Open AccessNorth American tree migration paced by climate in the West, lagging in the East
Author(s) -
Shubhi Sharma,
Robert A. Andrus,
Yves Bergeron,
Michał Bogdziewicz,
Don C. Bragg,
Dale G. Brockway,
Natalie L. Cleavitt,
Benoı̂t Courbaud,
Adrian J. Das,
Michael C. Dietze,
Timothy J. Fahey,
Jerry F. Franklin,
Gregory S. Gilbert,
Cathryn H. Greenberg,
Qinfeng Guo,
Janneke Hille Ris Lambers,
Inés Ibáñez,
J. F. Johnstone,
Christopher L. Kilner,
Johannes M. H. Knops,
Walter D. Koenig,
Georges Künstler,
Jalene M. LaMontagne,
Diana Macias,
Emily Moran,
Jonathan A. Myers,
Robert Parmenter,
Ian S. Pearse,
Renata Poulton-Kamakura,
Miranda D. Redmond,
Chantal D. Reid,
Kyle C. Rodman,
C. Lane Scher,
William H. Schlesinger,
Michael Steele,
Nathan L. Stephenson,
Jennifer J. Swenson,
Margaret Swift,
Thomas T. Veblen,
Amy V. Whipple,
Thomas G. Whitham,
Andreas P. Wion,
Christopher W. Woodall,
Roman Zlotin,
James S. Clark
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
proceedings of the national academy of sciences of the united states of america
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1091-6490
pISSN - 0027-8424
DOI - 10.1073/pnas.2116691118
Subject(s) - fecundity , climate change , geography , ecology , disequilibrium , habitat , population , population growth , biology , demography , medicine , sociology , ophthalmology
Significance Suitable habitats for forest trees may be shifting fast with recent climate change. Studies tracking the shift in suitable habitat for forests have been inconclusive, in part because responses in tree fecundity and seedling establishment can diverge. Analysis of both components at a continental scale reveals a poleward migration of northern species that is in progress now. Recruitment and fecundity both contribute to poleward spread in the West, while fecundity limits spread in the East, despite a fecundity hotspot in the Southeast. Fecundity limitation on population spread can confront conservation and management efforts with persistent disequilibrium between forest diversity and rapid climate change.