Asynchronous response of plant phenology to warming in a Kobresia pygmaea meadow in Nagqu, Qingzang Plateau

doi:10.17521/cjpe.2022.0156

Abstract

Abstract:

Aims The response of plant phenology to climate warming is an important element of global change research. At present, studies on plant phenology response to climate warming are in severe shortage for high-altitude ecosystems, especially regarding responses to multiple-level warming.

Methods We conducted a multiple-level warming experiment in an alpine meadow on Qingzang Plateau, and monitored plant phenology of two dominant species, including the timing of green up, budding and flowering in 2015, 2017, 2018 and 2021.

Important findings The results showed that plant phenology of different species exhibited various trends under warming. For Kobresia pygmaea, delay in phenological development, including green up, budding and flowering, was positively correlated with temperature increases. However, the timing of phenological stages of Potentilla saundersiana showed advancing first, and then delay with increasing temperature. These results suggest that plant phenology of alpine meadow asynchronously responds to increased temperature. In addition, temperature increase exerts delayed effects on plant phenology over long-term. The structural equation modeling showed that temperature increase consistently delayed the green up of K. pygmaea, and low-level warming advanced phenological development of P. saundersiana, but this advancing trend reversed under high-level warming. Importantly, soil moisture plays a key role in determining the magnitude and direction of phenological response to climate warming in our study. Our findings indicate the asynchronous characteristics of plant phenology response to climate warming in alpine meadow ecosystems, and provide basis to predict responses of high-altitude ecosystems to climate change in the future.

Key words: alpine meadow, asynchronous response, multiple-level warming, plant phenology, temperature sensitivity

XIA Jing-Yu, ZHANG Yang-Jian, ZHENG Zhou-Tao, ZHAO Guang, ZHAO Ran, ZHU Yi-Xuan, GAO Jie, SHEN Ruo-Nan, LI Wen-Yu, ZHENG Jia-He, ZHANG Yu-Xue, ZHU Jun-Tao, SUN Osbert Jianxin. Asynchronous response of plant phenology to warming in a Kobresia pygmaea meadow in Nagqu, Qingzang Plateau[J]. Chin J Plant Ecol, 2023, 47(2): 183-194.

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https://www.plant-ecology.com/EN/Y2023/V47/I2/183

Figures/Tables 7

Fig. 1 Responses of air temperature (A), soil temperature (B) and soil water content (C) to warming during the growing seasons of 2015, 2017, 2018, 2021 under multiple levels warming in an alpine meadow on Qingzang Plateau. CK, control (ambient temperature); W1, W2, W3 and W4 are the four level warming, respectively (the warming amplitudes are about 2.18, 2.66, 3.21 and 3.68 °C, respectively).

Fig. 2 Effects of gradient warming treatments on four-year mean green up, budding and flowering time of each monitored species in an alpine meadow on Qingzang Plateau (mean ± SE). W1, W2, W3 and W4 are the four level warming, respectively (the warming amplitudes are about 2.18, 2.66, 3.21 and 3.68 °C, respectively). A positive value indicates later green up, budding or flowering than the control; a negative value indicates earlier green up, budding or flowering than the control. One-way analysis of variance and Tukey test were used for pairwise comparison. Different lowercase letters indicate significant differences between warming treatments (p < 0.05).

Table 1 Repeated measured analysis of variance for main and interactive effects of year (Y), warming (W) on Kobresia pygmaea and Potentilla saundersiana green-up, budding and flowering time

物种 Species	处理 Treatment	返青时间 Green up date			现蕾时间 Budding date			开花时间 Flowering date
物种 Species	处理 Treatment	df	F	p	df	F	p	df	F	p
高山嵩草 Kobresia pygmaea	W	4	45.619	<0.001	4	28.665	<0.001	4	6.832	<0.001
	Y	3	258.565	<0.001	3	151.230	<0.001	3	79.438	<0.001
	W × Y	12	10.445	<0.001	12	1.970	0.032	12	18.260	0.699
钉柱委陵菜 Potentilla saundersiana	W	4	7.781	<0.001	4	7.344	<0.001	4	8.260	<0.001
	Y	3	27.377	<0.001	3	18.011	<0.001	3	1.117	0.344
	W × Y	12	2.912	0.001	12	4.560	<0.001	12	3.423	<0.001

Fig. 3 Effects of gradient warming treatments on Kobresia pygmaea and Potentilla saundersiana green up, budding and flowering time (mean ± SE) averaged on 2015, 2017, 2018, 2021. W1, W2, W3 and W4 are the four level warming treatments, respectively (the warming amplitudes are about 2.18, 2.66, 3.21 and 3.68 °C, respectively). A positive value indicates later green up, budding or flowering time than the control; a negative value indicates earlier green up, budding or flowering time than the control. One-way analysis of variance and Tukey test were used for pairwise comparison. Different lowercase letters indicate significant differences between warming treatments (p < 0.05).

Fig. 4 Effects of gradient warming treatment on four years mean temperature sensitivity of green up, budding and flowering time (mean ± SE) of Kobresia pygmaea and Potentilla saundersiana. W1, W2, W3 and W4 are four level warming, respectively (the warming amplitudes are about 2.18, 2.66, 3.21 and 3.68 °C). One-way analysis of variance and Tukey test were used for pairwise comparison. Different lowercase letters indicate significant differences between warming treatments (p < 0.05).

Table 2 Regression equations linking Kobresia pygmaea and Potentilla saundersiana phenological change time and environmental factors in an alpine meadow on Qingzang Plateau

物种 Species	物候时间 Phenological time	回归方程 Regression equation	F	R²	p
高山嵩草 Kobresia pygmaea	返青时间 Green up time	y = -6.363 + 4.647x₂+ 9.968x₃	55.744	0.503	<0.01
	现蕾时间 Budding time	y = -4.787 + 3.308x₂ + 7.640x₃	33.781	0.381	<0.01
	开花时间 Flowering time	y = 1.517 + 4.579x₁ + 2.980x₂	13.590	0.198	<0.01
钉柱委陵菜 Potentilla saundersiana	返青时间 Green up time	y = 1.030 - 3.984x₁ - 9.349x₂- 5.606x₃	41.132	0.495	<0.01
	现蕾时间 Budding time	y = 0.672 - 3.346x₁ - 8.092x₂- 4.654x₃	31.390	0.428	<0.01
	开花时间 Flowering time	y = -0.045 - 2.958x₁ - 6.400x₂- 2.748x₃	18.649	0.307	<0.01

Fig. 5 Effects of air temperature, soil temperature and soil water content on green up, flowering time of Kobresia pygmaea (A) and Potentilla saundersiana (B). Kobresia pygmaea: χ2 = 0.198, p = 0.656, comparative fit index (CFI) = 1.000, root mean square error (RMSE) = 0.000, Akaike information criterion (AIC) = -127.449. Potentilla saundersiana: χ2 = 0.019, p = 0.889, CFI = 1.000, RMSE = 0.000, AIC = -154.980. Number on the lines are standardized direct path coefficients; the red lines indicated negative correlations; the blue lines indicated positive correlations. Solid lines indicate significant correlation (p < 0.05).

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