Life Sciences Commons^™

The Missing Angle: Ecosystem Consequences Of Phenological Mismatch, Karen H. Beard, Katharine C. Kelsey, A. Joshua Leffler, Jeffrey M. Welker

Ecology Center Publications

Climate change leads to unequal shifts in the phenology of interacting species, such as consumers and their resources, leading to potential phenological mismatches. While studies have investigated how phenological mismatch affects wild populations, we still lack studies and a framework for investigating how phenological mismatch affects ecosystems, particularly nutrient cycling.

Phenological Mismatch Between Season Advancement And Migration Timing Alters Arctic Plant Traits, Ryan T. Choi, Karen H. Beard, A. Joshua Leffler, Katharine C. Kelsey, Joel A. Schmutz, Jeffrey M. Welker

Ecology Center Publications

1. Climate change is creating phenological mismatches between herbivores and their plant resources throughout the Arctic. While advancing growing seasons and changing arrival times of migratory herbivores can have consequences for herbivores and forage quality, developing mismatches could also influence other traits of plants, such as above‐ and below‐ground biomass and the type of reproduction, that are often not investigated.
2. In coastal western Alaska, we conducted a 3‐year factorial experiment that simulated scenarios of phenological mismatch by manipulating the start of the growing season (3 weeks early and ambient) and grazing times (3 weeks early, typical, 3 weeks late, or no‐grazing) …