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Non-Abrupt Vegetation Changes due to Altered Nutrient Balance Make Complex Scale-Dependent Warming and Cooling
Bayu Hanggara1,2, Tarek El-Madany1, Arnaud Carrara3
1Department of Biogeochemical Integration, Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry, Jena, Germany.
Global Change Biology
|March 17, 2026
Summary
Nutrient additions in savannas paradoxically cool the globe via increased surface reflectivity, despite causing localized warming. This highlights scale-dependent climate feedbacks from altered nutrient levels, not just abrupt vegetation changes.
Area of Science:
- Earth and Environmental Sciences
- Climate Science
- Ecology
Background:
- Land-atmosphere exchanges influence climate through biophysical and biogeochemical processes, impacting radiative forcing (RF).
- Research on RF typically focuses on abrupt vegetation changes, neglecting gradual shifts from altered nutrient levels like nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) deposition.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the impact of non-abrupt changes in nutrient levels on radiative forcing (RF) and surface temperature (Ts).
- To test the hypothesis of scale-dependent warming and cooling effects due to altered nutrient levels and surface-atmosphere interactions.
Main Methods:
- Utilized a 9-year dataset (2014-2023) from a large-scale nutrient manipulation experiment in a semi-arid savanna, Spain.
- Employed three eddy-covariance sites: control, N-added (NT), and N+P-added (NPT).
- Assessed RF for global effects and Ts for local influence, analyzing changes in albedo and CO2 fluxes.
Main Results:
- Changes in surface albedo dominated over CO2 fluxes, leading to a net global cooling (RF differences: -0.46 ± 0.08 W m⁻² for NT, -0.39 ± 0.09 W m⁻² for NPT).
- Localized warming occurred at the understory (Ts differences: 0.63 ± 0.46°C for NT, 0.80 ± 0.77°C for NPT) due to altered energy partitioning.
- N-only addition showed greater canopy-level Ts cooling than N+P, despite understory warming.
Conclusions:
- Nutrient stoichiometry plays a critical role in shaping climate feedbacks, even without abrupt vegetation changes.
- Surface-atmosphere interactions exhibit scale-dependent effects, causing global cooling but local warming.
- Findings emphasize the complex interplay between nutrient levels, surface properties, and climate regulation.
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