It is apparent that more climate extremes are occurring. Earlier snowmelts in high-altitude regions, severe forest fires and rain pulses followed by dry periods are becoming the norm.
To determine what the future will bring to temperate forest and cropland regions scientists are looking at the unique adaptations of desert life, which function by their own set of rules long thought to be unique to dry areas. New research suggests that climate change is causing these “dryland mechanisms” to increasingly affect earth’s wetter areas, such as temperate regions, croplands and forests.
Overall, the team identified a dozen different dryland mechanisms affecting multiple processes, including plant growth, vegetation distribution, water flow, energy budget, carbon and nutrient cycling and decomposition of dead material.
“These dryland mechanisms are controlled by environmental factors, such as intense solar radiation, high temperatures, large bare patches between plants, and inconsistent availability of water,” said Heather Throop, the study co-author.
It is now clear that a new, unprecedented pattern is emerging, one that was considered absent or insignificant in most biomes on Earth. These dryland mechanisms are with increasing frequency, occurring in temperate regions. In the future they are also likely to increase in frequency and become more relevant due to warmer, drier conditions from climate change.
“Breaking down dead material is important in ecosystems since it releases nutrients for new plant growth,” Throop said. “Typically, in wet systems this decomposition is driven by organisms such as bacteria that consume the dead material. In dry systems the rules are different—we have a lot more influence of sunlight and high temperatures breaking down material that’s sitting on the surface.”
https://phys.org/news/2022-07-heeding-regions-future-global-temperate.html