PHENOLOGY OF MIXED WOODY–HERBACEOUS ECOSYSTEMS FOLLOWING EXTREME EVENTS: NET AND DIFFERENTIAL RESPONSES
We present responses of a mixed woody–herbaceous ecosystem type to an extreme event: regional-scale pinon pine mortality following an extended drought and the subsequent herbaceous green-up following the first wet period after the drought. This example highlights how reductions in greenness of the slower, more stable evergreen woody component can rapidly be offset by increases associated with resources made available to the relatively more responsive herbaceous component. We hypothesize that such two-phase phenological responses to extreme events are characteristic of many mixed woody– herbaceous ecosystems.
Key words: die-off; disturbance; drought; extreme events; fire; Mesita del Buey; mortality; normalized difference vegetation index; phenology; pin ̃on; semiarid woodlands; woody and herbaceous plants.
Credits: Ecology, 89(2), 2008,
Fair Use OK
DOWNLOAD FILE — PDF document, 741 kB (759,166 bytes)
