Diverse responses of phenology to global changes in a grassland ecosystem.

ABSTRACT: Shifting plant phenology (i.e., timing of flowering and other developmental events) in recent decades establishes that species and ecosystems are already responding to global environmental change. Earlier flowering and an extended period of active plant growth across much of the northern hemisphere have been interpreted as responses to warming. However, several kinds of environmental change have the potential to influence the phenology of flowering and primary production. Here, we report shifts in phenology of flowering and canopy greenness (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index) in response to four experimentally simulated global changes: warming, elevated CO(2), nitrogen (N) deposition, and increased precipitation. Consistent with previous observations, warming accelerated both flowerin

SUBMITTER: Cleland EE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1560087 | biostudies-literature | 2006 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature