Alpine and Arctic tundra shrub populations show similar ontogenetic growth trends but differing absolute growth rates and lifespan ...

• Main Authors: Lehejček, Jiří, Trkal, František, Doležal, Jiří, Čada, Vojtěch
• Format: Dataset
• Language: English
• Published: Dryad 2022
• Subjects: FOS: Earth and related environmental sciences; black crowberry; Climate change; Empetrum nigrum; growth ecology; Population dynamics; shrub dendrochronology; tundra shrub ontogeny; Arctic Population; Crowberry; Longyearbyen; Svalbard; Tundra
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.5061/dryad.w9ghx3frk; https://datadryad.org/stash/dataset/doi:10.5061/dryad.w9ghx3frk

The majority of terrestrial primary production is performed by plants, the ontogenetic growth trends of which greatly influence biomass and carbon dynamics. Here, we study ontogenetic trends of primary (apical) and secondary (stem thickening) growth in Arctic (Svalbard, Norway) and alpine (Krkonoše, Czechia) populations of black crowberry (Empetrum nigrum), the dominant plant species of certain tundra communities. The environmental conditions in alpine areas are more favourable for plant growth than those in the High Arctic, where temperatures are lower, there is less precipitation and soils are shallower, among other differences. These differences were reflected in significant differences in absolute growth rates and shrub age between the populations under study. However, we found almost no differences in ontogenetic growth trends between the populations. In both populations, primary growth and secondary (stem base) growth decrease throughout ontogeny whereas secondary (stem top) growth and basal area ... : Study sites and sampling Arctic and alpine populations of the black crowberry (Empetrum nigrum L.), be it the nominal subspecies or E. nigrum subsp. hermaphroditum (Hagerup) Böcher, is exposed to different climatic, soil, and vegetation conditions. We sampled forty individuals from an Arctic population at the end of August 2018 in the Colesdalen valley (78°6′ N; 15°5′ E), Svalbard, Norway. The average annual precipitation in the valley is 190 mm, mostly in the form of snow. From 1969 to 1990, the average annual temperature was −6.7°C, the coldest month was February, with an average temperature of −16.2°C, and the warmest month was July, with an average temperature of 5.9°C (Longyearbyen Airport station, 18 km north of the site; Norwegian Meteorological Institute, 2010). The onset of the growing season spans between days number 165 and 174 (12–23 June) in the Svalbard Islands. Samples were taken at elevations between 40 to 80 m a.s.l. on a south-facing slope with an inclination of 10–20%. Shallow and poor ...