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Increased stress from compound drought and heat events on vegetation
Shuang Zhou1, Shaohong Wu1, Jiangbo Gao2
1Institute of Geographical Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China.
The Science of the Total Environment
|July 31, 2024
Summary
Compound drought and heat events (CDHEs) are increasing in frequency and duration. These events significantly impact vegetation, with longer events causing the most damage and expanding their geographical reach.
Area of Science:
- Climate Science
- Ecology
- Environmental Science
Background:
- Compound drought and heat events (CDHEs) are frequent extreme climate events with significant ecological impacts.
- Understanding the spatial-temporal dynamics and vegetation responses to CDHEs of varying durations is crucial.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the spatial and temporal characteristics of CDHEs from 1993 to 2020.
- To evaluate the impact of CDHEs on vegetation across different climatic regions and ecosystems.
Main Methods:
- Utilized meteorological observation data from 1993 to 2020.
- Applied Theil-Sen trend test and Mann-Kendall nonparametric test for trend analysis.
- Employed sliding correlation analysis to assess vegetation responses to CDHEs.
Main Results:
- Observed significant increasing trends in CDHE frequency and persistence (13.80%/decade).
- Fractional contribution of CDHEs >3 days increased significantly (2.00%/decade).
- Vegetation most affected by 5-9 day CDHEs; impacted area expanded (0.89%), correlation strength increased (0.02), lag time decreased (0.25 months).
Conclusions:
- CDHEs are increasing in frequency and duration, posing a growing threat to ecosystems.
- Vegetation is increasingly vulnerable to these compound events, with specific durations having the most pronounced effects.
- Findings enhance understanding of vegetation responses to compound extreme climate events under global change.
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