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Climate warming drives local extinction: Evidence from observation and experimentation.
Anne Marie Panetta1,2, Maureen L Stanton1, John Harte2,3,4
1Department of Evolution and Ecology, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA 95616-5270, USA.
Science Advances
|March 7, 2018
Summary
Climate warming causes local extinction in mountain plants by reducing survival and seed banks. This study confirms climate change impacts on species, potentially leading to widespread losses in subalpine meadows.
Area of Science:
- Ecology
- Climate Change Biology
- Botany
Background:
- Global temperatures are rising, increasing extinction risk.
- Causal links between climate change and extinction are difficult to establish.
- Subalpine meadows face potential species loss due to warming.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify causal, mechanistic links between climate change and local extinction.
- To investigate the impact of climate warming on a widespread mountain plant, *Androsace septentrionalis*.
- To assess the effect of warming on population size, fecundity, survival, and seed banks.
Main Methods:
- Coupling 25 years of in situ climate manipulation.
- Experimental seed introductions.
- Historical and current plant surveys.
Main Results:
- Climate warming caused precipitous declines in population size.
- Reduced fecundity and survival across multiple life stages were observed.
- Climate warming purged belowground seed banks, hindering future recovery.
Conclusions:
- Climate change is a direct driver of local extinction in *Androsace septentrionalis*.
- Warming impacts limit population recovery potential by depleting seed banks.
- Findings foreshadow potentially widespread species losses in subalpine meadows.
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