TY - JOUR
T1 - Will seasonally dry tropical forests be sensitive or resistant to future changes in rainfall regimes?
AU - Allen, Kara
AU - Dupuy, Juan Manuel
AU - Gei, Maria G.
AU - Hulshof, Catherine
AU - Medvigy, David
AU - Pizano, Camila
AU - Salgado-Negret, Beatriz
AU - Smith, Christina M.
AU - Trierweiler, Annette
AU - Van Bloem, Skip J.
AU - Waring, Bonnie G.
AU - Xu, Xiangtao
AU - Powers, Jennifer S.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2017 IOP Publishing Ltd.
PY - 2017/2/3
Y1 - 2017/2/3
N2 - Seasonally dry tropical forests (SDTF) are located in regions with alternating wet and dry seasons, with dry seasons that last several months or more. By the end of the 21st century, climate models predict substantial changes in rainfall regimes across these regions, but little is known about how individuals, species, and communities in SDTF will cope with the hotter, drier conditions predicted by climate models. In this review, we explore different rainfall scenarios that may result in ecological drought in SDTF through the lens of two alternative hypotheses: 1) these forests will be sensitive to drought because they are already limited by water and close to climatic thresholds, or 2) they will be resistant/resilient to intra- and inter-annual changes in rainfall because they are adapted to predictable, seasonal drought. In our review of literature that spans microbial to ecosystem processes, a majority of the available studies suggests that increasing frequency and intensity of droughts in SDTF will likely alter species distributions and ecosystem processes. Though we conclude that SDTF will be sensitive to altered rainfall regimes, many gaps in the literature remain. Future research should focus on geographically comparative studies and well-replicated drought experiments that can provide empirical evidence to improve simulation models used to forecast SDTF responses to future climate change at coarser spatial and temporal scales.
AB - Seasonally dry tropical forests (SDTF) are located in regions with alternating wet and dry seasons, with dry seasons that last several months or more. By the end of the 21st century, climate models predict substantial changes in rainfall regimes across these regions, but little is known about how individuals, species, and communities in SDTF will cope with the hotter, drier conditions predicted by climate models. In this review, we explore different rainfall scenarios that may result in ecological drought in SDTF through the lens of two alternative hypotheses: 1) these forests will be sensitive to drought because they are already limited by water and close to climatic thresholds, or 2) they will be resistant/resilient to intra- and inter-annual changes in rainfall because they are adapted to predictable, seasonal drought. In our review of literature that spans microbial to ecosystem processes, a majority of the available studies suggests that increasing frequency and intensity of droughts in SDTF will likely alter species distributions and ecosystem processes. Though we conclude that SDTF will be sensitive to altered rainfall regimes, many gaps in the literature remain. Future research should focus on geographically comparative studies and well-replicated drought experiments that can provide empirical evidence to improve simulation models used to forecast SDTF responses to future climate change at coarser spatial and temporal scales.
KW - belowground processes
KW - climate change
KW - drought
KW - functional traits
KW - precipitation variability
KW - tree phenology
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U2 - 10.1088/1748-9326/aa5968
DO - 10.1088/1748-9326/aa5968
M3 - Review article
AN - SCOPUS:85015728537
VL - 12
JO - Environmental Research Letters
JF - Environmental Research Letters
SN - 1748-9326
IS - 2
M1 - 023001
ER -