Oulehle Filip, Šamonil Pavel, Urban Otmar, Čáslavský Josef, Ač Alexander, Vašíčková Ivana, Kašpar Jakub, Hubený Pavel, Brázdil Rudolf, Trnka Miroslav
Czech Geological Survey, Prague, Czech Republic.
Global Change Research Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic.
Glob Chang Biol. 2025 Mar;31(3):e70147. doi: 10.1111/gcb.70147.
Human-induced environmental changes are altering forest productivity and species composition, significantly impacting tree physiology, growth, water uptake, and nutrient acquisition. Investigating the intricate interplay between plant physiology and environmental shifts, we analyzed tree-ring isotopes (δC, δO, and δN) to track long-term trends in intrinsic water-use efficiency (iWUE) and nitrogen availability for European beech, Norway spruce, and silver fir in a unique old-growth temperate mountain forest since 1501 ce. Our findings reveal that Norway spruce, a dominant species, exhibited iWUE saturation, exacerbated by acidic precipitation, resulting in growth declines during periods of high acidic air pollution and increased drought frequency. In contrast, deep-rooted, deciduous European beech demonstrated physiological resilience to acid deposition, benefiting from lower dry deposition of precipitation acidity and thriving under conditions of increased nitrogen deposition and elevated air temperatures, thereby sustaining stem growth regardless of potential climatic limitations. Silver fir showed the most dynamic response to acidic air pollution, with contemporary adaptations in leaf gas exchange allowing accelerated stem growth under cleaner air conditions. These different species responses underscore shifts in species competition, with European beech gaining dominance as Norway spruce and silver fir decline. Furthermore, the influence of ontogeny is evident, as tree-rings exhibited lower initial iWUE values and higher δN, reflecting changes in nitrogen uptake dynamics and the ecological role of tree age. Our study integrates tree-growth dynamics with physiological and nutrient availability trends, revealing the pivotal role of atmospheric chemistry changes in shaping the competitive dynamics and long-term growth trajectories of dominant tree species in temperate forests.
人为引起的环境变化正在改变森林生产力和物种组成，对树木生理、生长、水分吸收和养分获取产生重大影响。为了研究植物生理与环境变化之间的复杂相互作用，我们分析了年轮同位素（δC、δO和δN），以追踪自公元1501年以来，在一片独特的原始温带山地森林中，欧洲山毛榉、挪威云杉和银枞的内在水分利用效率（iWUE）和氮有效性的长期趋势。我们的研究结果表明，优势物种挪威云杉表现出iWUE饱和，酸性降水加剧了这种情况，导致在高酸性空气污染和干旱频率增加期间生长下降。相比之下，根深的落叶欧洲山毛榉对酸沉降表现出生理弹性，受益于较低的降水酸度干沉降，并在氮沉降增加和气温升高的条件下茁壮成长，从而无论潜在的气候限制如何都能维持茎干生长。银枞对酸性空气污染表现出最动态的响应，当代叶片气体交换的适应性变化使其在空气更清洁的条件下茎干生长加速。这些不同的物种反应突出了物种竞争的变化，随着挪威云杉和银枞数量下降，欧洲山毛榉逐渐占据优势。此外，个体发育的影响很明显，因为年轮显示出较低的初始iWUE值和较高的δN，反映了氮吸收动态的变化以及树龄的生态作用。我们的研究将树木生长动态与生理和养分有效性趋势相结合，揭示了大气化学变化在塑造温带森林中优势树种的竞争动态和长期生长轨迹方面的关键作用。
