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Climate change experiments in temperate grasslands: synthesis and future directions.

Authors :
White SR
Carlyle CN
Fraser LH
Cahill JF Jr
Source :
Biology letters [Biol Lett] 2012 Aug 23; Vol. 8 (4), pp. 484-7. Date of Electronic Publication: 2011 Nov 02.
Publication Year :
2012

Abstract

The immediate need to understand the complex responses of grasslands to climate change, to ensure food supplies and to mitigate future climate change through carbon sequestration, necessitate a global, synthesized approach. Numerous manipulative experiments have altered temperature or precipitation, often in conjunction with other interacting factors such as grazing, to understand potential effects of climate change on the ecological integrity of temperate grasslands and understand the mechanisms of change. Although the different ways in which temperature and precipitation may change to effect grasslands were well represented, variability in methodology limited generalizations. Results from these experiments were also largely mixed and complex; thus, a broad understanding of temperate grassland responses to these factors remains elusive. A collaboration based on a set of globally dispersed, inexpensive experiments with consistent methodology would provide the data needed to better understand responses of temperate grassland to climate change.

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
1744-957X
Volume :
8
Issue :
4
Database :
MEDLINE
Journal :
Biology letters
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
22048893
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2011.0956