Data and code from: Geomorphological processes shape plant community traits in the Arctic
Creators
- 1. University of Oulu
- 2. University of Helsinki
- 3. University of Gothenburg
- 4. University of Pretoria
- 5. University of Helsinki; Finnish Meteorological Institute
- 6. University of Oulu; University of Bergen
- 7. Finnish Meteorological Institute
Description
Aim
Geomorphological processes profoundly affect plant establishment and distributions, but their influence on functional traits is insufficiently understood. Here, we unveil trait-geomorphology relationships in Arctic plant communities.
Location
High-Arctic Svalbard, low-Arctic Greenland, and sub-Arctic Fennoscandia.
Time period
2011-2018
Major taxa studied
Vascular plants
Methods
We collected field-quantified data on vegetation, geomorphological processes, microclimate, and soil properties from 5280 plots and 200 species across the three Arctic regions. We combined these data with database trait records to relate local plant community trait composition to dominant geomorphological processes of the Arctic, namely cryoturbation, deflation, fluvial processes, and solifluction. We investigated the relationship between plant functional traits and geomorphological processes using hierarchical generalised additive modelling.
Results
Our results demonstrate that community-level traits are related to geomorphological processes, with cryoturbation most strongly influencing both structural and leaf economic traits. These results were consistent across regions, suggesting a coherent biome-level trait response to geomorphological processes.
Main conclusions
The results indicate that geomorphological processes shape plant community traits in the Arctic. We provide empirical evidence for the existence of generalisable relationships between plant functional traits and geomorphological processes. The results indicate that the relationships are consistent across these three distinct tundra regions and that geomorphological processes should be considered in future investigations of functional traits.
Kemppinen, Niittynen, Happonen, le Roux, Aalto, Hjort, Maliniemi, Karjalainen, Rautakoski & Luoto. Provisionally accepted. Geomorphological processes shape plant community traits in the Arctic. Global Ecology and Biogeography.
These are the data and code from Kemppinen et al. (Provisionally accepted).
Files
data.csv
Additional details
Funding
- Spatial ensemble prediction of permafrost thaw, soil carbon and ground-ice in the Arctic (ArcticSHOC) 315519
- Academy of Finland
- Topoclimate, land surface conditions and atmospheric feedbacks 307761
- Academy of Finland
- Atmosphere and Climate Competence Center (ACCC) / Consortium: ACCC 337552
- Academy of Finland