Tree ring evidence of rapid development of drunken forest induced by permafrost warming.

ABSTRACT: Black spruce trees growing on warming permafrost lean in all directions due to soil movement, forming a "drunken" forest. Two hypothetical drivers of drunken forest development are (i) loosening of the soil foundation induced by permafrost degradation in warm summers and (ii) mound rising induced by freezing soil in winter. However, no evidence has previously clarified whether recent tree leaning is related to climate warming or is part of a natural hummock formation process. Here, we provide evidence that tree leaning and soil hummock formation have accelerated due to climate warming. We find that trees' leaning events synchronize with the development of soil hummocks as recorded in tree rings with lignin-rich cells. Tree leaning is caused by mound rising in winter due to refreezing of so

SUBMITTER: Fujii K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9324869 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature