Smith R I Lewis
British Antarctic Survey, Natural Environment Research Council, Madingley Road, CB3 OET, Cambridge, UK.
Oecologia. 1994 Sep;99(3-4):322-328. doi: 10.1007/BF00627745.
Monitoring selected populations of the only two native Antarctic vascular plant species (Colobanthus quitensis andDeschampsia antarctica) over a 27-year period has revealed a significant and relatively rapid increase in numbers of individuals and populations at two widely separated localities in the maritime Antarctic. There is strong evidence that this increase is a response to a warming trend in summer air temperatures, which has been evident throughout the region since the late 1940s, enhancing seed maturation, germination and seedling survival. This study provides the only known long-term monitoring data for any terrestrial organisms in Antarc-tica. Because their response to ameliorating conditions is more rapid than that of the dominant cryptogamic groups, Antarctic phanerogams may be useful bioindicators of climate change in West Antarctica.
在长达27年的时间里，对南极仅有的两种本土维管植物（南极漆姑草和南极发草）的特定种群进行监测，结果显示，在南极海洋性地区两个相距甚远的地点，这两种植物的个体数量和种群数量都出现了显著且相对快速的增长。有强有力的证据表明，这种增长是对夏季气温上升趋势的一种响应，自20世纪40年代末以来，整个地区的这种升温趋势就很明显，它促进了种子成熟、发芽以及幼苗存活。这项研究提供了南极任何陆地生物已知的唯一长期监测数据。由于南极显花植物对环境改善的响应比占主导地位的隐花植物群更快，它们可能是西南极气候变化的有用生物指标。
