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| Study shows global warming reduces plant diversity at high altitude |
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2005/1/18
Global warming is the major factor behind the sharp reduction of plant diversity for ecosystems at high altitude, according to the study of Northwest Institute of Plateau Biology(NIPB), Chinese Academy of Sciences.
It is one of the significant progress jointly made by NIPB and the University of California, Berkley on the impact of global change and land use change on the alpine meadow ecosystems in Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.
Based in the northeastern Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, an area vulnerable to climate and land use changes, the study focused on the effects of experimental warming and grazing on plant diversity. The results indicated that 26%-36% of plant diversity was reduced due to experimental warming, and the same was true for experimental grazing. But more plant diversity was lost at the arid experimental sites with less content of nitrogen. It was also found that the indirect impact of climate change on plant diversity might be weakened by the interactions of plants. Meanwhile, the dead grass accumulation due to heating efficiency and global warming is an evident reflection of the response of plant species to experimental warming.
It is believed that the study result will provide support to the modeling and prediction on species loss under the context of human-induced climate change.
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| Source:CERN |
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