Abstract
Alpine ecosystems in permafrost region are extremely sensitive to climate change. The headwater regions of Yangtze River and Yellow River of the Qinghai-Tibet plateau permafrost area were selected. Spatial-temporal shifts in the extent and distribution of tundra ecosystems were investigated for the period 1967–2000 by landscape ecological method and aerial photographs for 1967, and satellite remote sensing data (the Landsat’s TM) for 1986 and 2000. The relationships were analyzed between climate change and the distribution area variation of tundra ecosystems and between the permafrost change and tundra ecosystems. The responding model of tundra ecosystem to the combined effects of climate and permafrost changes was established by using statistic regression method, and the contribution of climate changes and permafrost variation to the degradation of tundra ecosystems was estimated. The regional climate exhibited a tendency towards significant warming and desiccation with the air temperature increased by 0.4–0.67°C/10a and relative stable precipitation over the last 45 years. Owing to the climate continuous warming, the intensity of surface heat source (HI) increased at the average of 0.45 W/m2 per year, the difference of surface soil temperature and air temperature (DT) increased at the range of 4.1°C–4.5°C, and the 20-cm depth soil temperature within the active layer increased at the range of 1.1°C–1.4°C. The alpine meadow and alpine swamp meadow were more sensitive to permafrost changes than alpine steppe. The area of alpine swamp meadow decreased by 13.6–28.9%, while the alpine meadow area decreased by 13.5–21.3% from 1967 to 2000. The contributions of climate change to the degradation of the alpine meadow and alpine swamp was 58–68% and 59–65% between 1967 and 2000. The synergic effects of climate change and permafrost variation were the major drivers for the observed degradation in tundra ecosystems of the Qinghai-Tibet plateau.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Baker BB, Moseley RK (2007) Advancing treeline and retreating glaciers: implications for conservation in Yunnan. P. R. China Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research 39(2):200–209
Christensen TR, Johansson T, Akerman HJ, Mastepanov M (2004) Thawing sub-arctic permafrost: effects on vegetation and methane emissions. Geophys Res Lett 31:L04501
Esper J, Schweingruber FH (2004) Large-scale treeline changes recorded in Siberia. Geophys Res Lett 31:L06202
Hinzman LD, Bettez ND, Bolton WR, Chapin FS III, Dyurgerov MB, Fastie CL, Griffith DB, Hollister RD, Hope A, Huntington HP, Jensen AM, Jia GJ, Jorgenson T, Kane DL, Klein DR, Kofinas G, Lynch AH, Lloyd AH, McGuire AD, Nelson FE, Nolan M, Oechel WC, Osterkamp TE, Racine CH, Romanovsky VE, Stone RS, Stow DA, Sturm M, Tweedie CE, Vourlitis GL, Walker MD, Walker DA, Webber PJ, Welker J, Winker KS, Yoshikawa K (2005) Evidence and implications of recent climate change in terrestrial regions of the Arctic. Clim Change 72:251–298
Ji G, Yuan F, Ma X (1998) The characteristics of transparency of atmosphere on the Wudaoliang of river source. Advances in Earth Science 13(supp l.):46–51
Jorgenson MT, Roth JE, Raynolds MK, Smith MD (1999) An ecological land survey for Fort Wainwright, Alaska. CRREL, Alaska, Report-9, US Army Corps of Engineers
Jorgenson MT, Racine CH, Walters JC, Osterkamp TE (2001) Permafrost degradation and ecological changes associated with a warming climate in central Alaska. Clim Change 48:551–579
Kaplan JO, New M (2006) Arctic climate change with a 2°C global warming: timing, climate patterns and vegetation change. Clim Change 79:213–241
Klein E, Berg EE, Dial R (2005) Alpine swamp meadow drying and succession across the Kenai Peninsula Lowlands, South-central Alaska. Can J For Res 35:1931–1942
Li R (2005) Analysis and simulation on the relationship between the radiative fields and frozen soil thermodynamics over the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. Thesis for the Doctorate. Cold and Arid Regions Environmental and Engineering Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Li S, Wu T (2004) The methods for permafrost thermal regime research and their utilization. Journal of Glaciology and Geocryology 26(3):337–383
Li S, Wu T (2005) The relation between ground-air temperatures in Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. Journal of Glaciology and Geocryology 27(5):1–6
Li W, Zhou X (1998) The ecosystem of Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and its optimizing utilized model. Guangzhou Science and Technology Press, Guangzhou
Li S, Cheng G, Guo D (1996) The future thermal regime of numerical simulating permafrost on Qinghai-Xizang(Tibet) Plateau, China, under climate warming. Sci China Ser D 39(3):434–441
Li G, Duan T, Wu G (2003) The intensity of surface heat source and surface heat balance on the Western Qinghai-Xizang Plateau. Scientia Geographica Sinica 23(1):13–19
Liu J, Liu M, Zhuang D (2002) Analysis of time-space patterns of recent landuse variations in China. Sci China Ser D 32(12):1031–1040
Lloyd AH, Fastie CL (2003) Recent changes in treeline forest distribution and structure in interior Alaska. Ecoscience 10:176–185
Ma Y, Yao T, Wang J, Hu Z (2006) The study on the land surface heat fluxes over heterogeneous landscape of the Tibetan Plateau. Advances in Earth Science 21(12):1215–1224
McGuire AD, Sturm M, Chapin FS III (2003) Arctic Transitions in the Land-Atmosphere System (ATLAS): background, objectives, results, and future directions. J Geophys Res 108:8166. doi:10.1029/2002JD002367
Osterkamp TE, Romanovsky VE (1999) Evidence for warming and thawing of discontinuous permafrost in Alaska. Permafr Periglac Process 10:17–37
Payette S (2006) Contrasted dynamics of northern Labrador tree lines caused by climate change and migrational lag. Ecology 88(3):770–780
Romanovsky VE, Osterkamp TE (2001) Permafrost: changes and impacts. In: Paepe R, Melnikov V (eds) Permafrost response on economic development, environmental security and natural resources. Kluwer Academic Publishers, pp. 297–315
SAS Institute (2000) SAS 8.1 system for windows. SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC, USA
Stow D, Hope A, McGuire AD, Verbyla D, Gamon J, Huemmrich K, Houston S, Racine C, Sturm M, Tape K, Yoshikawa K, Hinzman L (2004) Remote sensing of vegetation and land-cover changes in Arctic tundra ecosystems. Rem Sens Environ 89:281–308
Sturm M, Racine C, Tape K (2001) Increasing shrub abundance in the Arctic. Nature 411(31):546–547
Tape K, Sturm M, Racine C (2006) The evidence for shrub expansion in Northern Alaska and the Pan-Arctic. Glob Chang Biol 12:686–702
Walker DA, Jia GJ, Epstein HE (2003) Vegetation-soil-thaw-depth relationships along a low-arctic bioclimate gradient, Alaska: synthesis of information from the ATLAS studies. Permafr Periglac Process 14:103–123
Wang G, Cheng G, Shen Y (2001) Research on ecological environmental changes in the source regions of Yangtze–Yellow Rivers and their integrated protection. Lanzhou University Press, Lanzhou
Wang G, Ding Y, Wang J, Liu S (2004) Land ecological changes and evolutional patterns in the source regions of the Yangtze and Yellow River in recent 15 years. Acta Geographic Sinica 59(2):163–173
Wang G, Li Y, Wu Q, Wang Y (2006) The impacts of permafrost changes on alpine ecosystem in Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Sci China Ser D 49(11):1156–1169
Wang G, Wang Y, Li Y (2007) Influences of alpine ecosystem responses to climatic change on soil properties on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Catena, China. doi:10,1016/j.Catena,01,001
Wang G, Li N, Zhang C (2009) The impact of climate change on the alpine grassland ecosystem in the headwater region of Yangtze River. In Xu M, Ma C (eds) Climate change vulnerability and adaptation in the Yangtze River Basin. China Water Power Press, China, pp. 149–192
Wu Q, Liu Y (2004) Ground temperature monitoring and its recent change in Qinghai–Tibet Plateau. Cold Reg Sci Technol 38:85–92
Wu Q, Zhang T (2008) Recent permafrost warming on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. J Geophys Res 113:D13108. doi:10.1029/2007JD009539
Wu Q, Li X, Li W (2001) The response model of permafrost along the Qinghai-Tibetan Highway under climate change. Journal of Glaciology and Geocryology 23(1):1–6
Xiao D, Bu R, Li X (1997) Ecological space theory and landscape heterogeneity. Acta Ecological Sinica 17(4):453–361
Zhang Y, Ohata T, Kadata T (2003) Land surface hydrological processes in the permafrost region of the eastern Tibetan Plateau. J Hydrol 283:41–56
Zhao L, Chen G, Cheng G (2000) Permafrost: status, variation and impacts. In: Zheng D, Zhang Q, Shao H (eds) Mountain geoecology and sustainable development of the Tibetan Plateau. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Netherlands, pp. 113–137
Zhou L, Song S (1990) The vegetation distribution map of Qinghai Province. Chinese Science and Technology Press, Beijing
Zhou X (2001) Chinese Kobresia pygmaea meadow. Science Press, Beijing
Zhou Y, Guo D, Qiu G, Cheng G (2000) Geocryology in China. Science Press, Beijing
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Wang, G., Bai, W., Li, N. et al. Climate changes and its impact on tundra ecosystem in Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, China. Climatic Change 106, 463–482 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-010-9952-0
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-010-9952-0