TY - JOUR
T1 - Climate and net carbon availability determine temporal patterns of seed production by Nothofagus
AU - Richardson, Spencer J
AU - Allen, Robert B.
AU - Whitehead, David
AU - Carswell, Fiona E.
AU - RUSCOE, Wendy
AU - Platt, Kevin H.
N1 - cited By 55
PY - 2005
Y1 - 2005
N2 - We analyzed seed production of mountain beech (Nothofagus solandri var. cliffortioides) forest along an elevational gradient in New Zealand from 1020 to 1370 m (treeline) for the years 1973-2002. We used seed production data from nine-elevations and a site- and species-specific net carbon (C) availability model from two elevations (1050 m and 1340 m) to examine how three variables (temperature, soil moisture, and net C availability) during three key periods (resource priming, flowering primordia development, and flowering) influence seed production. These three strongly interrelated variables have all been considered determinants of seed production but have not previously been tested together in a single analysis. Seed production increased over the 30-year period, with the greatest increases at high elevations; this increase was driven by a greater frequency of intermediate-sized seeding years. We then determined how temperature, soil moisture, and net C availability determined seeding, and examined whether temporal trends in the seeding data could be linked to similar temporal trends in temperature, soil moisture, or net C availability. High seed production was related to cool summers with high soil moisture during resource priming, warm summers during flower primordia development, and low net C availability during flowering. Positive temporal trends in temperatures during the period of flower primordia development accounted for the increase in seed production, suggesting that increasing temperatures are promoting more frequent seed production at high elevations.
AB - We analyzed seed production of mountain beech (Nothofagus solandri var. cliffortioides) forest along an elevational gradient in New Zealand from 1020 to 1370 m (treeline) for the years 1973-2002. We used seed production data from nine-elevations and a site- and species-specific net carbon (C) availability model from two elevations (1050 m and 1340 m) to examine how three variables (temperature, soil moisture, and net C availability) during three key periods (resource priming, flowering primordia development, and flowering) influence seed production. These three strongly interrelated variables have all been considered determinants of seed production but have not previously been tested together in a single analysis. Seed production increased over the 30-year period, with the greatest increases at high elevations; this increase was driven by a greater frequency of intermediate-sized seeding years. We then determined how temperature, soil moisture, and net C availability determined seeding, and examined whether temporal trends in the seeding data could be linked to similar temporal trends in temperature, soil moisture, or net C availability. High seed production was related to cool summers with high soil moisture during resource priming, warm summers during flower primordia development, and low net C availability during flowering. Positive temporal trends in temperatures during the period of flower primordia development accounted for the increase in seed production, suggesting that increasing temperatures are promoting more frequent seed production at high elevations.
UR - https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-16844378227&doi=10.1890%2f04-0863&partnerID=40&md5=f5d34866d7fe95110352c1b9f5f472ff
U2 - 10.1890/04-0863
DO - 10.1890/04-0863
M3 - Article
SN - 0012-9658
VL - 86
SP - 972
EP - 981
JO - Ecology
JF - Ecology
IS - 4
ER -
