temperature of the preceding season (De Réaumur 1735). Temperature, which is an
abiotic component of the environment, is found to primarily control phenological
events in plants (Cleland et al. 2007; Chuine 2010). As global warming has the
capability to increase global Earth temperature by 1
to 3
C in upcoming years
(Solomon et al. 2007), it has the potential to change regional weather patterns, which
may reshape the timing, duration, and synchronisation of the events of forest
phenology (Valdez-Hernández et al. 2010). Warming caused by an increase in
greenhouse gases is not equally distributed over the globe but at higher altitudes
will force more positive change in temperature than at equatorial regions, with mean
annual temperatures in the Arctic region predicted to be warmer by 8.3
C when
greenhouse emission is at the highest, by year 2010 (Stocker 2014).
Increase in temperature caused by global warming may facilitate the poleward
movement of species distribution; green vegetation may increase in Arctic and
Antarctic regions as a result of the global rise in average temperature. Atmospheric
temperature and soil temperature both are found to control forest community assemblage in the tropical moist deciduous forests, which differs based on the type of
species in the forest (Bajpai et al. 2020). The emergence of new leaves and the end of
the leafing season are governed by the environmental temperature. Liu et al.
observed that warming preseason temperature was positively linked with the rate
of leaf fall, except for arid or semiarid regions (Liu et al. 2016). Most experimental
research on establishing a relationship between temperature and plant phenology has
shown that elevation in environmental temperature results in earlier spring and later
autumn seasons (Menzel et al. 2006), whereas decrease in temperature delays the
timing of spring and accelerates the autumn season (Piao et al. 2019). Thus, the
average increase of this abiotic factor increases the growing period of plants, which
in turn will alter the carbon sequestration (carbon cycle) as well as the hydrological
cycle of the biosphere. Increase in temperature not only elongated the growing
season of plants but also changed the development trajectories, by increasing more
biomass in the leaves compared to the roots. Also, at elevated temperatures, plants
grow taller relative to specific stem diameter (Way and Oren 2010).
Temperature, which regulates plant development, was found to impact more
importantly on some phenophases such as leaf bud break in spring night temperatures or the minimum temperature (Wielgolaski 1974), whereas other phenophases
such as bud break and flowering are mainly dependent on day temperature or
maximum temperature (Wielgolaski 2003). Various studies using different methods
have been done in areas of plant phenology to find the appropriate threshold or basic
temperature for the growth and development of different phenophases of perennial
plants.
In temperate regions, the areas between latitudes 23.50
N and 66.32
S, the
phenophase of plant vegetation is primarily dependent on atmospheric temperature
(Wielgolaski 1999) because large differences in temperature variation and sunlight
availability throughout the year compared to tropical regions, where plant
phenophases are less affected by atmospheric temperature. It has been found that
elevated temperatures magnify shoot height, stem diameter, and biomass in a
8 Forest Phenology as an Indicator of Climate Change: Impact and Mitigation. . .
191
abiotic component of the environment, is found to primarily control phenological
events in plants (Cleland et al. 2007; Chuine 2010). As global warming has the
capability to increase global Earth temperature by 1
to 3
C in upcoming years
(Solomon et al. 2007), it has the potential to change regional weather patterns, which
may reshape the timing, duration, and synchronisation of the events of forest
phenology (Valdez-Hernández et al. 2010). Warming caused by an increase in
greenhouse gases is not equally distributed over the globe but at higher altitudes
will force more positive change in temperature than at equatorial regions, with mean
annual temperatures in the Arctic region predicted to be warmer by 8.3
C when
greenhouse emission is at the highest, by year 2010 (Stocker 2014).
Increase in temperature caused by global warming may facilitate the poleward
movement of species distribution; green vegetation may increase in Arctic and
Antarctic regions as a result of the global rise in average temperature. Atmospheric
temperature and soil temperature both are found to control forest community assemblage in the tropical moist deciduous forests, which differs based on the type of
species in the forest (Bajpai et al. 2020). The emergence of new leaves and the end of
the leafing season are governed by the environmental temperature. Liu et al.
observed that warming preseason temperature was positively linked with the rate
of leaf fall, except for arid or semiarid regions (Liu et al. 2016). Most experimental
research on establishing a relationship between temperature and plant phenology has
shown that elevation in environmental temperature results in earlier spring and later
autumn seasons (Menzel et al. 2006), whereas decrease in temperature delays the
timing of spring and accelerates the autumn season (Piao et al. 2019). Thus, the
average increase of this abiotic factor increases the growing period of plants, which
in turn will alter the carbon sequestration (carbon cycle) as well as the hydrological
cycle of the biosphere. Increase in temperature not only elongated the growing
season of plants but also changed the development trajectories, by increasing more
biomass in the leaves compared to the roots. Also, at elevated temperatures, plants
grow taller relative to specific stem diameter (Way and Oren 2010).
Temperature, which regulates plant development, was found to impact more
importantly on some phenophases such as leaf bud break in spring night temperatures or the minimum temperature (Wielgolaski 1974), whereas other phenophases
such as bud break and flowering are mainly dependent on day temperature or
maximum temperature (Wielgolaski 2003). Various studies using different methods
have been done in areas of plant phenology to find the appropriate threshold or basic
temperature for the growth and development of different phenophases of perennial
plants.
In temperate regions, the areas between latitudes 23.50
N and 66.32
S, the
phenophase of plant vegetation is primarily dependent on atmospheric temperature
(Wielgolaski 1999) because large differences in temperature variation and sunlight
availability throughout the year compared to tropical regions, where plant
phenophases are less affected by atmospheric temperature. It has been found that
elevated temperatures magnify shoot height, stem diameter, and biomass in a
8 Forest Phenology as an Indicator of Climate Change: Impact and Mitigation. . .
191