Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 22, 2026
09:36
The Use of High-resolution Infrared Thermography (HRIT) for the Study of Ice Nucleation and Ice Propagation in Plants
Published on: May 8, 2015
Leaf temperatures mediate alpine plant communities' response to a simulated extended summer
Katherine F Wentz1, Jason C Neff2, Katharine N Suding3
1Remote Sensing Systems Santa Rosa California.
Ecology and Evolution
|February 27, 2019
Summary
Alpine tundra plants are sensitive to nitrogen content, not soil moisture. Future warming may decrease carbon assimilation due to higher leaf temperatures, impacting dry meadow species most.
Area of Science:
- Ecology
- Plant Physiology
- Climate Change Biology
Background:
- Alpine tundra ecosystems face changing climate conditions, including longer, warmer, and drier growing seasons.
- Understanding plant responses to these changes is crucial for predicting ecosystem stability and function.
- Niwot Ridge Long Term Ecological Research Site provides a valuable setting for studying alpine plant communities.
Purpose of the Study:
- To quantitatively model leaf-level limitations to plant growth in alpine tundra under projected climate change.
- To assess the sensitivity of dry and wet meadow plant communities to variations in soil moisture, foliar nitrogen, and temperature.
- To predict the impact of altered growing seasons and temperatures on photosynthesis and carbon assimilation.
Main Methods:
- Utilized a quantitative model of photosynthesis, parameterized with abiotic and leaf trait data from dry and wet meadows at Niwot Ridge.
- Simulated gas exchange processes, including photosynthesis, nitrogen-use efficiency, and water-use efficiency.
- Analyzed the influence of soil moisture, foliar nitrogen content, leaf temperature, and plant height on plant productivity.
Main Results:
- Model simulations yielded realistic estimates of photosynthetic and gas exchange processes in alpine tundra.
- Plant species showed limited response to soil moisture but were sensitive to foliar nitrogen content.
- Differences in leaf temperature, influenced by plant height and environment, led to varying maximum assimilation rates between dry and wet meadow species.
Conclusions:
- Alpine tundra plant communities exhibit distinct responses to environmental changes, with dry meadow species being more vulnerable to increased temperatures.
- While warmer temperatures may initially boost nitrogen availability and assimilation, excessive heat can reduce carbon assimilation in both communities.
- Future climate scenarios necessitate a nuanced understanding of plant physiological responses to ensure accurate ecosystem projections.
Related Concept Videos
01:50Global Climate Change
Throughout its ~4.5 billion year history, the Earth has experienced periods of warming and cooling. However, the current drastic increase in global temperatures is well outside of the Earth’s cyclic norms, and evidence for human-caused global climate change is compelling. Paleoclimatology, the study of ancient climate conditions, provides ample evidence for human-caused global climate change by comparing recent conditions with those in the past.
02:04Regulation of Transpiration by Stomata
During photosynthesis, plants acquire the necessary carbon dioxide and release the produced oxygen back into the atmosphere. Openings in the epidermis of plant leaves is the site of this exchange of gasses. A single opening is called a stoma—derived from the Greek word for “mouth.” Stomata open and close in response to a variety of environmental cues.
01:57Adaptations that Reduce Water Loss
Though evaporation from plant leaves drives transpiration, it also results in loss of water. Because water is critical for photosynthetic reactions and other cellular processes, evolutionary pressures on plants in different environments have driven the acquisition of adaptations that reduce water loss.
02:45Biological Clocks and Seasonal Responses
The circadian—or biological—clock is an intrinsic, timekeeping, molecular mechanism that allows plants to coordinate physiological activities over 24-hour cycles called circadian rhythms. Photoperiodism is a collective term for the biological responses of plants to variations in the relative lengths of dark and light periods. The period of light-exposure is called the photoperiod.
02:41Responses to Drought and Flooding
Water plays a significant role in the life cycle of plants. However, insufficient or excess of water can be detrimental and pose a serious threat to plants.
02:45Responses to Heat and Cold Stress
Every organism has an optimum temperature range within which healthy growth and physiological functioning can occur. At the ends of this range, there will be a minimum and maximum temperature that interrupt biological processes.