Plant Responses to Changing Water Supply and Availability in High Elevation Ecosystems: A Quantitative Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Emma Sumner and Susanna Venn
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Emma Sumner: Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, 221 Burwood Hwy, Burwood, VIC 3125, Australia
Susanna Venn: Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, 221 Burwood Hwy, Burwood, VIC 3125, Australia

Land, 2021, vol. 10, issue 11, 1-17

Abstract: Climate change is expected to lead to changes to the amount, frequency, intensity, and timing of precipitation and subsequent water supply and its availability to plants in mountain regions worldwide. This is likely to affect plant growth and physiological performance, with subsequent effects to the functioning of many important high-elevation ecosystems. We conducted a quantitative systematic review and meta-analysis of the effects of altered water supply on plants from high elevation ecosystems. We found a clear negative response of plants to decreases in water supply (mean Hedges’ g = −0.75, 95% confidence intervals: −1.09 to −0.41), and a neutral response to increases in water supply (mean Hedges’ g = 0.10, 95% confidence intervals: 0.43 to 0.62). Responses to decreases in water supply appear to be related to the magnitude of change in water supply, plant growth form, and to the measured response attribute. Changes to precipitation and water supply are likely to have important consequences for plant growth in high elevation ecosystems, with vegetation change more likely be triggered by reductions than increases in growing season precipitation. High elevation ecosystems that experience future reductions in growing-season precipitation are likely to exhibit plant responses such as reduced growth and higher allocation of carbohydrates to roots.

Keywords: alpine; mountains; climate change; experimental manipulations; PRISMA; precipitation; drought; vegetation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jlands:v:10:y:2021:i:11:p:1150-:d:667503

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