Faculty of Biology, Forest Biology Center, Institute of Environmental Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznan, Poland.
Population Ecology Research Unit, Faculty of Biology, Institute of Environmental Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznan, Poland.
Ecol Lett. 2024 Jul;27(7):e14474. doi: 10.1111/ele.14474.
Spatial synchrony may be tail-dependent, meaning it is stronger for peaks rather than troughs, or vice versa. High interannual variation in seed production in perennial plants, called masting, can be synchronized at subcontinental scales, triggering extensive resource pulses or famines. We used data from 99 populations of European beech (Fagus sylvatica) to examine whether masting synchrony differs between mast peaks and years of seed scarcity. Our results revealed that seed scarcity occurs simultaneously across the majority of the species range, extending to populations separated by distances up to 1800 km. Mast peaks were spatially synchronized at distances up to 1000 km and synchrony was geographically concentrated in northeastern Europe. Extensive synchrony in the masting lower tail means that famines caused by beech seed scarcity are amplified by their extensive spatial synchrony, with diverse consequences for food web functioning and climate change biology.
空间同步性可能依赖于尾部，也就是说，它在峰值时比在谷值时更强，或者反之亦然。多年生植物中种子产量的高年度间变化，称为结实高峰，可以在次大陆尺度上同步，引发广泛的资源脉冲或饥荒。我们使用了来自 99 个欧洲山毛榉（Fagus sylvatica）种群的数据，来检验结实高峰的同步性是否不同于种子稀缺年份。我们的结果表明，在大多数物种分布范围内，种子稀缺同时发生，延伸到了相隔长达 1800 公里的种群。结实高峰在长达 1000 公里的距离上空间同步，同步性在北欧集中。结实低谷的广泛同步性意味着山毛榉种子稀缺引起的饥荒通过其广泛的空间同步性被放大，对食物网功能和气候变化生物学产生了多样化的影响。
