Climate change may alter seed and seedling traits and shift germination and mortality patterns in alpine environments.

ABSTRACT:

Background and aims

The early life-history stages of alpine plants are strongly influenced by climatic factors. Predicted changes in alpine climate could significantly impact the ability of plants to regenerate from seed and thus on the long-term survival of these species. However, our knowledge on this topic has focused predominantly on the effects of warming on germination. Other early life-history stages or other changing environmental factors have been overlooked. Here, we determine the effects of a future warmer and drier climate and post-fire conditions on (1) seed development, (2) germination and (3) seedling establishment of 13 alpine species.

Methods

For 2 years, we conducted a factorial field-based manipulative experiment in the Australian Alps where we created a w

SUBMITTER: Vazquez-Ramirez J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12455718 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature