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Current Expansion of Juniperus sibirica Burgsd. to the Mountain Tundras of the Northern Urals

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Abstract—

Ecosystems of high-mountain and high-latitude regions are especially sensitive to changes in climate conditions. A considerable part of recent publications on climatogenic transformation of plant communities deal with the dynamics of the upper treeline, while similar studies on shrub vegetation are scarce. Our study on the age structure of Siberian juniper (Juniperus sibirica Burgsd.) thickets in the Northern Urals (the Chuvalsky Kamen Range) has shown that the upper shrubline has shifted up the altitudinal gradient. The establishment of J. sibirica in windblown areas with little snow at the summits of slopes began as late as the second half of the 20th century and has gained momentum after the 1970s. An analysis of climatic data has revealed a linear trend toward increase in the magnitude of anomalies in average air temperature over the cold season (November–March) by 1.69°С/100 years (R2 = 0.57), with precipitation increasing by 67.3 mm/100 years (R2 = 0.43). The results of correlation analysis between the establishment of J. sibirica and average precipitation by 5-year periods show that the strongest correlations occur in areas with little snow at the early cold season (November–January; R = 0.96). Changes in the pattern of snow accumulation in winter could facilitate the current expansion of J. sibirica to the mountain tundras of the Northern Urals.

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The authors are grateful to Prof. S.G. Shiyatov and Dr. P.A. Moiseev for their advice on the manuscript.

Funding

This study was performed under state contract with the Institute of Plant and Animal Ecology, Ural Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences (no. AAAA-A19-119111990097-4) and supported by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research, project no. 16-05-00454.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Plant and Animal Ecology, Ural Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences, 620144, Yekaterinburg, Russia

    A. A. Grigoriev, Yu. V. Shalaumova & D. S. Balakin

  2. Institute of Industrial Ecology, Ural Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences, 620990, Yekaterinburg, Russia

    Yu. V. Shalaumova

Authors
  1. A. A. Grigoriev
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  2. Yu. V. Shalaumova
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  3. D. S. Balakin
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Correspondence to A. A. Grigoriev.

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Translated by N. Gorgolyuk

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Grigoriev, A.A., Shalaumova, Y.V. & Balakin, D.S. Current Expansion of Juniperus sibirica Burgsd. to the Mountain Tundras of the Northern Urals. Russ J Ecol 52, 376–382 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1134/S1067413621050076

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