Presentation Type
Poster
Faculty Mentor’s Full Name
Meredith Zettlemoyer
Faculty Mentor’s Department
Division of Biological Sciences
Abstract / Artist's Statement
Alpine ecosystems, a high-elevation habitat found above treeline, are experiencing rapid rates of climate change. Climate change results in warmer, drier conditions and increasingly early snowmelt. However, we have a limited understanding of how climate change affects alpine plant population dynamics, including flower, fruit, and seed production. Recent evidence suggests that seed production declines as snow melt occurs earlier. In summer 2023, we monitored populations of three alpine plants, Minuartia obtusiloba, Phlox condensata, and Silene acaulis. These three species are long-lived, low-growing cushion plants commonly found in alpine habitats across the globe. We quantified fruit production of these species at five sites at Niwot Ridge LTER, Colorado, that vary in their timing of snowmelt. On average, fruit production was lower at sites that experienced earlier snowmelt. This indicates that earlier snowmelt negatively impacts plant reproduction, potentially threatening these species’ persistence under future climate change.
Category
Life Sciences
Earlier Snowmelt Adversely Affects Alpine Plant Reproduction
UC South Ballroom
Alpine ecosystems, a high-elevation habitat found above treeline, are experiencing rapid rates of climate change. Climate change results in warmer, drier conditions and increasingly early snowmelt. However, we have a limited understanding of how climate change affects alpine plant population dynamics, including flower, fruit, and seed production. Recent evidence suggests that seed production declines as snow melt occurs earlier. In summer 2023, we monitored populations of three alpine plants, Minuartia obtusiloba, Phlox condensata, and Silene acaulis. These three species are long-lived, low-growing cushion plants commonly found in alpine habitats across the globe. We quantified fruit production of these species at five sites at Niwot Ridge LTER, Colorado, that vary in their timing of snowmelt. On average, fruit production was lower at sites that experienced earlier snowmelt. This indicates that earlier snowmelt negatively impacts plant reproduction, potentially threatening these species’ persistence under future climate change.