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Cloud Cover And Delayed Herbivory Relative To Timing Of Spring Onset Interact To Dampen Climate Change Impacts On Net Ecosystem Exchange In A Coastal Alaskan Wetland, A. Joshua Leffler, Karen H. Beard, Katharine C. Kelsey, Ryan T. Choi, Joel A. Schmutz, Jeffrey M. Welker

Wildland Resources Faculty Publications

Rapid warming in northern ecosystems over the past four decades has resulted in earlier spring, increased precipitation, and altered timing of plant–animal interactions, such as herbivory. Advanced spring phenology can lead to longer growing seasons and increased carbon (C) uptake. Greater precipitation coincides with greater cloud cover possibly suppressing photosynthesis. Timing of herbivory relative to spring phenology influences plant biomass. None of these changes are mutually exclusive and their interactions could lead to unexpected consequences for Arctic ecosystem function. We examined the influence of advanced spring phenology, cloud cover, and timing of grazing on C exchange in the Yukon–Kuskokwim Delta …