What determines the timberline?
Both the northern (latitudinal) and the upper (altitudinal) timberlines are phytogeographic transitions between the forested boreal vegetation zone and treeless areas. These two timberlines, which intermingle in northern Fennoscandia, are mainly controlled by the cold climate, although other natural...
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Geographical Society of Finland
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:818e636da35e4b9bbd8c692a8d108e77 2023-05-15T16:11:56+02:00 What determines the timberline? Olavi Heikkinen Mervi Tuovinen Jyrki Autio 2002-01-01T00:00:00Z https://doaj.org/article/818e636da35e4b9bbd8c692a8d108e77 EN eng Geographical Society of Finland https://fennia.journal.fi/article/view/3765 https://doaj.org/toc/1798-5617 1798-5617 https://doaj.org/article/818e636da35e4b9bbd8c692a8d108e77 Fennia: International Journal of Geography, Vol 180, Iss 1-2 (2002) Geography (General) G1-922 article 2002 ftdoajarticles 2022-12-31T02:10:32Z Both the northern (latitudinal) and the upper (altitudinal) timberlines are phytogeographic transitions between the forested boreal vegetation zone and treeless areas. These two timberlines, which intermingle in northern Fennoscandia, are mainly controlled by the cold climate, although other natural and anthropogenic factors are of noticeable importance at least locally. The roles of the various controlling factors are discussed in this article. The timberline and tree line in northern Finland are usually formed by the mountain birch (Betula pubescens ssp. tortuosa), which extends further than the Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) or the Norway spruce (Picea abies). The northern coniferous timberline in Finland follows approximately an isoline that represents an effective temperature sum of 600 degree days. Hazardous events also regulate the growth and occurrence of trees in addition to average conditions. Trees growing at the timberline have adapted themselves in many ways to the prevailing harsh circumstances. Pollen research and megafossil analyses (such as tree ring studies) show that the timberline has moved and its tree species composition has changed, primarily due to climatic fluctuations. This is one clear indication that the timberline is a dynamic ‘combat zone’. Article in Journal/Newspaper Fennoscandia Northern Finland Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Norway |
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Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
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ftdoajarticles |
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English |
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Geography (General) G1-922 |
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Geography (General) G1-922 Olavi Heikkinen Mervi Tuovinen Jyrki Autio What determines the timberline? |
topic_facet |
Geography (General) G1-922 |
description |
Both the northern (latitudinal) and the upper (altitudinal) timberlines are phytogeographic transitions between the forested boreal vegetation zone and treeless areas. These two timberlines, which intermingle in northern Fennoscandia, are mainly controlled by the cold climate, although other natural and anthropogenic factors are of noticeable importance at least locally. The roles of the various controlling factors are discussed in this article. The timberline and tree line in northern Finland are usually formed by the mountain birch (Betula pubescens ssp. tortuosa), which extends further than the Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) or the Norway spruce (Picea abies). The northern coniferous timberline in Finland follows approximately an isoline that represents an effective temperature sum of 600 degree days. Hazardous events also regulate the growth and occurrence of trees in addition to average conditions. Trees growing at the timberline have adapted themselves in many ways to the prevailing harsh circumstances. Pollen research and megafossil analyses (such as tree ring studies) show that the timberline has moved and its tree species composition has changed, primarily due to climatic fluctuations. This is one clear indication that the timberline is a dynamic ‘combat zone’. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Olavi Heikkinen Mervi Tuovinen Jyrki Autio |
author_facet |
Olavi Heikkinen Mervi Tuovinen Jyrki Autio |
author_sort |
Olavi Heikkinen |
title |
What determines the timberline? |
title_short |
What determines the timberline? |
title_full |
What determines the timberline? |
title_fullStr |
What determines the timberline? |
title_full_unstemmed |
What determines the timberline? |
title_sort |
what determines the timberline? |
publisher |
Geographical Society of Finland |
publishDate |
2002 |
url |
https://doaj.org/article/818e636da35e4b9bbd8c692a8d108e77 |
geographic |
Norway |
geographic_facet |
Norway |
genre |
Fennoscandia Northern Finland |
genre_facet |
Fennoscandia Northern Finland |
op_source |
Fennia: International Journal of Geography, Vol 180, Iss 1-2 (2002) |
op_relation |
https://fennia.journal.fi/article/view/3765 https://doaj.org/toc/1798-5617 1798-5617 https://doaj.org/article/818e636da35e4b9bbd8c692a8d108e77 |
_version_ |
1765997147413544960 |