North Atlantic Oscillation seesaw effect in leaf morphological records from dwarf birch shrubs in Greenland and Finland
The North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) determines wind speed and direction, seasonal heat, moisture transport, storm tracks, cloudiness and sea-ice cover through atmospheric mass balance shifts between the Arctic and the subtropical Atlantic. The NAO is characterized by the typical, yet insufficiently...
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2021
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ftunivutrecht:oai:dspace.library.uu.nl:1874/418274 2023-07-23T04:17:20+02:00 North Atlantic Oscillation seesaw effect in leaf morphological records from dwarf birch shrubs in Greenland and Finland Ercan, Fabian E.Z. Blok, Daan Weijers, Stef Odé, Astrid Wagner-Cremer, Friederike Environmental Sciences Physical Geography Research Institute Coastal dynamics, Fluvial systems and Global change Global Ecohydrology and Sustainability Dep Fysische Geografie Palaeo-ecologie 2021-12 application/pdf https://dspace.library.uu.nl/handle/1874/418274 en eng 0800-0395 https://dspace.library.uu.nl/handle/1874/418274 info:eu-repo/semantics/OpenAccess Arctic Betula nana Climate Epidermal cell morphology Herbarium Palaeoecology Oceanography Environmental Chemistry Environmental Science(all) Earth and Planetary Sciences (miscellaneous) Article 2021 ftunivutrecht 2023-07-02T03:36:21Z The North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) determines wind speed and direction, seasonal heat, moisture transport, storm tracks, cloudiness and sea-ice cover through atmospheric mass balance shifts between the Arctic and the subtropical Atlantic. The NAO is characterized by the typical, yet insufficiently understood, seesaw pattern of warmer winter and spring temperatures over Scandinavia and cooler temperatures over Greenland during the positive phase of the NAO, and vice versa during the negative phase. We tested the potential to reconstruct NAO variation beyond the meteorological record through the application of a microphenological proxy. We measured the Undulation Index (UI) in Betula nana epidermal cells from herbarium leaf samples and fossil peat fragments dating back to 1865—exceeding most meteorological records in the Arctic—to estimate imprints of spring thermal properties and NAO in Greenland and Finland. We found negative relations between Greenland UI and late winter, spring and early summer NAO, and mostly positive, but not significant, relations between Finland UI and NAO in years with pronounced NAO expression. The direction of the UI response in this common circumpolar species is, therefore, likely in line with the NAO seesaw effect, with leaf development response to NAO fluctuations in northern Europe opposing the response in Greenland and vice versa. Increased knowledge of the UI response to climate may contribute to understanding ecological properties of key Arctic species, whilst additionally providing a proxy for NAO dynamics. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Betula nana Dwarf birch Greenland North Atlantic North Atlantic oscillation Sea ice Utrecht University Repository Arctic Greenland |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Utrecht University Repository |
op_collection_id |
ftunivutrecht |
language |
English |
topic |
Arctic Betula nana Climate Epidermal cell morphology Herbarium Palaeoecology Oceanography Environmental Chemistry Environmental Science(all) Earth and Planetary Sciences (miscellaneous) |
spellingShingle |
Arctic Betula nana Climate Epidermal cell morphology Herbarium Palaeoecology Oceanography Environmental Chemistry Environmental Science(all) Earth and Planetary Sciences (miscellaneous) Ercan, Fabian E.Z. Blok, Daan Weijers, Stef Odé, Astrid Wagner-Cremer, Friederike North Atlantic Oscillation seesaw effect in leaf morphological records from dwarf birch shrubs in Greenland and Finland |
topic_facet |
Arctic Betula nana Climate Epidermal cell morphology Herbarium Palaeoecology Oceanography Environmental Chemistry Environmental Science(all) Earth and Planetary Sciences (miscellaneous) |
description |
The North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) determines wind speed and direction, seasonal heat, moisture transport, storm tracks, cloudiness and sea-ice cover through atmospheric mass balance shifts between the Arctic and the subtropical Atlantic. The NAO is characterized by the typical, yet insufficiently understood, seesaw pattern of warmer winter and spring temperatures over Scandinavia and cooler temperatures over Greenland during the positive phase of the NAO, and vice versa during the negative phase. We tested the potential to reconstruct NAO variation beyond the meteorological record through the application of a microphenological proxy. We measured the Undulation Index (UI) in Betula nana epidermal cells from herbarium leaf samples and fossil peat fragments dating back to 1865—exceeding most meteorological records in the Arctic—to estimate imprints of spring thermal properties and NAO in Greenland and Finland. We found negative relations between Greenland UI and late winter, spring and early summer NAO, and mostly positive, but not significant, relations between Finland UI and NAO in years with pronounced NAO expression. The direction of the UI response in this common circumpolar species is, therefore, likely in line with the NAO seesaw effect, with leaf development response to NAO fluctuations in northern Europe opposing the response in Greenland and vice versa. Increased knowledge of the UI response to climate may contribute to understanding ecological properties of key Arctic species, whilst additionally providing a proxy for NAO dynamics. |
author2 |
Environmental Sciences Physical Geography Research Institute Coastal dynamics, Fluvial systems and Global change Global Ecohydrology and Sustainability Dep Fysische Geografie Palaeo-ecologie |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Ercan, Fabian E.Z. Blok, Daan Weijers, Stef Odé, Astrid Wagner-Cremer, Friederike |
author_facet |
Ercan, Fabian E.Z. Blok, Daan Weijers, Stef Odé, Astrid Wagner-Cremer, Friederike |
author_sort |
Ercan, Fabian E.Z. |
title |
North Atlantic Oscillation seesaw effect in leaf morphological records from dwarf birch shrubs in Greenland and Finland |
title_short |
North Atlantic Oscillation seesaw effect in leaf morphological records from dwarf birch shrubs in Greenland and Finland |
title_full |
North Atlantic Oscillation seesaw effect in leaf morphological records from dwarf birch shrubs in Greenland and Finland |
title_fullStr |
North Atlantic Oscillation seesaw effect in leaf morphological records from dwarf birch shrubs in Greenland and Finland |
title_full_unstemmed |
North Atlantic Oscillation seesaw effect in leaf morphological records from dwarf birch shrubs in Greenland and Finland |
title_sort |
north atlantic oscillation seesaw effect in leaf morphological records from dwarf birch shrubs in greenland and finland |
publishDate |
2021 |
url |
https://dspace.library.uu.nl/handle/1874/418274 |
geographic |
Arctic Greenland |
geographic_facet |
Arctic Greenland |
genre |
Arctic Betula nana Dwarf birch Greenland North Atlantic North Atlantic oscillation Sea ice |
genre_facet |
Arctic Betula nana Dwarf birch Greenland North Atlantic North Atlantic oscillation Sea ice |
op_relation |
0800-0395 https://dspace.library.uu.nl/handle/1874/418274 |
op_rights |
info:eu-repo/semantics/OpenAccess |
_version_ |
1772178941077880832 |