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Seasonal timing determines how warming affects mast-driven food webs.
Michał Bogdziewicz1, Jessie J Foest1
1Forest Biology Center, Institute of Environmental Biology, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznan, Poland.
The Journal of Animal Ecology
|May 22, 2026
Summary
Climate warming impacts forest ecosystems, affecting acorn production and rodent populations. Long-term studies reveal that climate effects on these mast-driven food webs depend on seasonal changes and reproductive specifics.
Area of Science:
- Ecology
- Climate Change Biology
- Animal Ecology
Background:
- Mast seeding by forest trees influences consumer populations and food web dynamics.
- Climate-driven shifts in seed production can have cascading ecosystem effects.
- Long-term datasets linking seed production and consumer responses are crucial but rare.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the generality of climate effects on mast-driven food webs.
- To compare long-term acorn and rodent data from New York and Maine.
- To investigate how climate warming influences acorn production and rodent population dynamics.
Main Methods:
- Combined a 33-year New York dataset with a 39-year Maine dataset on acorn and rodent populations.
- Analyzed long-term trends in acorn production, mouse abundance, and mouse body mass.
- Compared responses between the two study sites despite observed warming and forest growth.
Main Results:
- Acorn production, mouse abundance, and mouse body mass increased in Maine but not in New York.
- New York acorn production showed no directional increase over time.
- Mouse abundance in New York remained closely tied to interannual seed production variation.
Conclusions:
- Climate effects on mast-driven food webs are not uniform and depend on the timing of warming during the reproductive stage.
- The acorn-mouse interaction is robust, but the pathway from climate warming to seed production is influenced by seasonal climate and species-specific reproduction.
- Understanding these nuances is critical for predicting ecosystem responses to climate change.
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