Cloud forest dynamics in the Mexican neotropics during the last 1300 years
Key questions for understanding the resilience and variability of Mexican Neotropical cloud forest assemblages in current and future climate change include: How have human disturbances and climate change affected the dynamics of the cloud forest assemblage? What are the predominant processes respons...
| Những tác giả chính: | , , |
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| Định dạng: | Journal article |
| Ngôn ngữ: | English |
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Wiley-Blackwell
2010
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| Những chủ đề: |
| _version_ | 1826276530175606784 |
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| author | Figueroa-Rangel, B Willis, K Olvera-Vargas, M |
| author_facet | Figueroa-Rangel, B Willis, K Olvera-Vargas, M |
| author_sort | Figueroa-Rangel, B |
| collection | OXFORD |
| description | Key questions for understanding the resilience and variability of Mexican Neotropical cloud forest assemblages in current and future climate change include: How have human disturbances and climate change affected the dynamics of the cloud forest assemblage? What are the predominant processes responsible for its present day composition and distribution? Are the current conservation strategies for the cloud forest in accordance with preserving its natural variability through time? In this study, the temporal dynamics of the cloud forest in west-central Mexico over the last ~ 1300 years were reconstructed using paeleoecological techniques. These included analyses of fossil pollen, microfossil charcoal, and sediment geochemistry. Results indicated that a cloud forest assemblage has been the predominant vegetation type in this region over the last ~ 1300 years. During this time, however, there have been changes in the vegetation with an apparent expansion of cloud forest from ~ 832 to 620 cal years BP and a decline from 1200 to 832 cal years BP. Climate change (intervals of aridity) and human disturbances through anthropogenic burning appear to have been the main factors influencing the dynamics of this cloud forest. The spatial heterogeneity reported for high-altitude forests in this region, in concert with high beta diversity, appears to be a manifestation of the high temporal variability in species composition for these forests. Greater turnover in cloud forest taxa occurred during intervals of increased humidity and is probably representative of a higher temporal competition for these resources among the cloud forest taxa. The present results support the current protection scheme for cloud forests in west-central Mexico where areas are kept in exclusion zones to avoid timber extraction, grazing, and agriculture; this will maintain diversity within these forests, even if there are only a few individuals per species, and enable the forests to retain some resilience to current and future climate change. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-06T23:15:21Z |
| format | Journal article |
| id | oxford-uuid:66f14ce4-29ad-4290-a631-f62cc1a85298 |
| institution | University of Oxford |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-06T23:15:21Z |
| publishDate | 2010 |
| publisher | Wiley-Blackwell |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | oxford-uuid:66f14ce4-29ad-4290-a631-f62cc1a852982022-03-26T18:34:59ZCloud forest dynamics in the Mexican neotropics during the last 1300 yearsJournal articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_dcae04bcuuid:66f14ce4-29ad-4290-a631-f62cc1a85298Environmental changeClimate systems and policyEnvironmentEnglishOxford University Research Archive - ValetWiley-Blackwell2010Figueroa-Rangel, BWillis, KOlvera-Vargas, MKey questions for understanding the resilience and variability of Mexican Neotropical cloud forest assemblages in current and future climate change include: How have human disturbances and climate change affected the dynamics of the cloud forest assemblage? What are the predominant processes responsible for its present day composition and distribution? Are the current conservation strategies for the cloud forest in accordance with preserving its natural variability through time? In this study, the temporal dynamics of the cloud forest in west-central Mexico over the last ~ 1300 years were reconstructed using paeleoecological techniques. These included analyses of fossil pollen, microfossil charcoal, and sediment geochemistry. Results indicated that a cloud forest assemblage has been the predominant vegetation type in this region over the last ~ 1300 years. During this time, however, there have been changes in the vegetation with an apparent expansion of cloud forest from ~ 832 to 620 cal years BP and a decline from 1200 to 832 cal years BP. Climate change (intervals of aridity) and human disturbances through anthropogenic burning appear to have been the main factors influencing the dynamics of this cloud forest. The spatial heterogeneity reported for high-altitude forests in this region, in concert with high beta diversity, appears to be a manifestation of the high temporal variability in species composition for these forests. Greater turnover in cloud forest taxa occurred during intervals of increased humidity and is probably representative of a higher temporal competition for these resources among the cloud forest taxa. The present results support the current protection scheme for cloud forests in west-central Mexico where areas are kept in exclusion zones to avoid timber extraction, grazing, and agriculture; this will maintain diversity within these forests, even if there are only a few individuals per species, and enable the forests to retain some resilience to current and future climate change. |
| spellingShingle | Environmental change Climate systems and policy Environment Figueroa-Rangel, B Willis, K Olvera-Vargas, M Cloud forest dynamics in the Mexican neotropics during the last 1300 years |
| title | Cloud forest dynamics in the Mexican neotropics during the last 1300 years |
| title_full | Cloud forest dynamics in the Mexican neotropics during the last 1300 years |
| title_fullStr | Cloud forest dynamics in the Mexican neotropics during the last 1300 years |
| title_full_unstemmed | Cloud forest dynamics in the Mexican neotropics during the last 1300 years |
| title_short | Cloud forest dynamics in the Mexican neotropics during the last 1300 years |
| title_sort | cloud forest dynamics in the mexican neotropics during the last 1300 years |
| topic | Environmental change Climate systems and policy Environment |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT figueroarangelb cloudforestdynamicsinthemexicanneotropicsduringthelast1300years AT willisk cloudforestdynamicsinthemexicanneotropicsduringthelast1300years AT olveravargasm cloudforestdynamicsinthemexicanneotropicsduringthelast1300years |