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Treeline Dynamics in Nepal Himalaya in a Response to Complexity of Factors

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Ecology of Himalayan Treeline Ecotone

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Abstract

The Nepal Himalaya is experiencing a higher temperature rise with erratic rainfall and more drought events in recent decades. Alpine treelines are proven bio-indicator and bio-monitor to understand the environmental impacts at high elevation. This chapter provides an overview of studies conducted at treelines of the Nepal Himalaya. Treeline elevation ranges from ~3400 to 4500 masl, regardless of the treeline type. The elevation decreases from east to west and is composed of multiple species, usually three to six species with some exception of mono-species. The studies found that site- and species-specific regeneration has maintained the treeline dynamics. The average rate of upward treeline shift is 0.46 m/year with the site- and species-specific differences in the rate ranging from 0 to 2.6 m/year. Various biotic and abiotic factors including winter and summer temperature and spring month’s precipitation are responsible for the treeline dynamics. The study indicated that unidirectional upward shifting of the treeline is not the sole response of the treeline in the Nepal Himalaya to climate change. For further understanding, integrative research considering multiple species, multiple sites, and the assessment of multiple factors is recommended.

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Acknowledgments

The authors are deeply indebted to the various workers who dedicated a lifetime to treeline studies in Nepal Himalaya. NPG is grateful to the Chinese Academy of Sciences for CAS-PIFI Postdoc Fellowship (2019PC0102). This study was also jointly supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 41661144045). SKS is thankful to the Director, Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences for the kind support given. We thank editors and reviewers for their constructive comments in the earlier version of the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. CAS Key Lab of Tropical Forest Ecology, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Mengla, Yunnan, People’s Republic of China

    Narayan Prasad Gaire, Ze-Xin Fan & Bimal Sharma

  2. Department of Environmental Science, Patan Multiple Campus, Tribhuvan University, Lalitpur, Nepal

    Narayan Prasad Gaire

  3. Department of Earth Science and Geography, California State University, Carson, CA, USA

    Parveen K. Chhetri

  4. Birbal Sahni Institute of Paleosciences, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India

    Santosh K. Shah

  5. Nepal Academy of Science and Technology, Lalitpur, Nepal

    Dinesh Raj Bhuju

  6. Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu, People’s Republic of China

    Jinniu Wang

  7. Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, People’s Republic of China

    Peili Shi

  8. Siddhartha Environmental Services, Kathmandu, Nepal

    Yub Raj Dhakal

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  1. Narayan Prasad Gaire
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Correspondence to Narayan Prasad Gaire or Ze-Xin Fan .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Central Himalayan Environment Association, Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India

    S P Singh

  2. Department of Botany, University of Kashmir, Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, India

    Zafar Ahmad Reshi

  3. G B Pant National Institute of Himalayan Environment, Sikkim Regional Centre, Pangthang, Gangtok, Sikkim, India

    Rajesh Joshi

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Gaire, N.P. et al. (2023). Treeline Dynamics in Nepal Himalaya in a Response to Complexity of Factors. In: Singh, S.P., Reshi, Z.A., Joshi, R. (eds) Ecology of Himalayan Treeline Ecotone. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4476-5_22

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