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Effects of Climate Change and Shifts in Forest Composition on Forest Net Primary Production
Author(s) -
Chiang JyhMin,
Iverson Louts R.,
Prasad Anantha,
Brown Kim J.
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
journal of integrative plant biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.734
H-Index - 83
eISSN - 1744-7909
pISSN - 1672-9072
DOI - 10.1111/j.1744-7909.2008.00749.x
Subject(s) - primary production , climate change , environmental science , biosphere , range (aeronautics) , ecology , atmospheric sciences , global change , physical geography , ecosystem , geography , biology , geology , materials science , composite material
Forests are dynamic in both structure and species composition, and these dynamics are strongly influenced by climate. However, the net effects of future tree species composition on net primary production (NPP) are not well understood. The objective of this work was to model the potential range shifts of tree species (DISTRIB Model) and predict their impacts on NPP (PnET‐II Model) that will be associated with alterations in species composition. We selected four 200 × 200 km areas in Wisconsin, Maine, Arkansas, and the Ohio‐West Virginia area, representing focal areas of potential species range shifts. PnET‐II model simulations were carried out assuming that all forests achieved steady state, of which the species compositions were predicted by DISTRIB model with no migration limitation. The total NPP under the current climate ranged from 552 to 908 g C/m 2 per year. The effects of potential species redistributions on NPP were moderate (−12% to +8%) compared with the influence of future climatic changes (−60% to +25%). The direction and magnitude of climate change effects on NPP were largely dependent on the degree of warming and water balance. Thus, the magnitude of future climate change can affect the feedback system between the atmosphere and biosphere.