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Central Vietnam climate over the past five centuries from cypress tree rings

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Abstract

We present the first crossdated tree ring record from central Vietnam, derived from the growth rings of the rare cypress Fokienia hodginsii from the mountains of Quang Nam Province near the Laos border. The Quang Nam Fokienia hodginsii time series (QNFH), based on the crossdated sequences of 71 increment core samples from 37 mature trees, is the third published dendrochronological record from this species. The record extends 667 years from AD 1347 to 2013 and exhibits a mean series intercorrelation of 0.526, similarly significant with the first two published Fokienia hodginsii records: 0.474 for Mu Cang Chai (MCFH) and 0.578 for Bidoup-Nui Ba National Park (BDFH) in the north and south of Vietnam, respectively. The Expressed Population Signal (EPS) for the QNFH record exceeds the generally accepted threshold of 0.85 back to AD 1567, but remains above 0.8 back to 1550. Similar to the MCFH and BDFH records, QNFH expresses statistically significant linkages to regional hydroclimate metrics and the El Niño-Southern Oscillation. Here we present a reconstruction of the Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index for the month of April, averaged over a large region of Southeast Asia. As with prior studies we demonstrate that cool phase (La Niña) and warm phase (El Niño) events are linked to regional wet and dry conditions, respectively, with linkages to modulation of the surface water temperature over the adjacent sea to the east of Vietnam as well as the Indian Ocean. A late eighteenth century megadrought that is expressed widely across South and Southeast Asia, and notably from the MCFH and BDFH records described above, is not as pronounced in Central Vietnam and we explore the reasons why.

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Source ERA-interim data from the European Center for Medium-Range Weather Forecasting

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Acknowledgments

This research was conducted with the support of the US National Science Foundation Grants AGS 12-03818 and AGS 13-03976 and of the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology Grant VAST.HTQT.HOAKY.01/12. The Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh is funded by the Rural and Environment Science and Analytical Services division (RESAS) in the Scottish Government. The authors wish to thank the managers and staff from the Quang Nam Province and Tay Giang District, especially Mr. Phan Tuan, Mr. Briu Liec and Mr. Bhling Mia, for all of their support and cooperation. The local Co Tu villagers are thanked for their kindness, good cheer and their assistance with the fieldwork. We also thank the staff and directorship of Bidoup - Nui Ba National Park in Lam Dong Province and the Southern Institute of Ecology in HCMC for logistical help, and acknowledge the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory’s Climate and Life Initiative as well as the Lamont-Doherty Climate Center for their support. We thank Dr. Edward Cook for his review of, and comments on, our section about the SFS method. Lamont-Doherty Contribution No. 8031.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Tree Ring Laboratory, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University, Palisades, NY, 10964, USA

    Brendan M. Buckley & Daniel K. Stahle

  2. Southern Institute of Ecology, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, HCMC, Vietnam

    Hong Truong Luu & Tran Quoc Trung Nguyen

  3. Utah Climate Center, Utah State University, Logan, UT, 84322, USA

    S.-Y. Simon Wang

  4. International Conifer Conservation Programme of the Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK

    Philip Thomas

  5. Forest Science Institute of Central Highlands and South of Central Vietnam, Dalat City, Lam Dong Province, Vietnam

    Canh Nam Le

  6. International Center for Tropical Highlands Ecosystems Research, Bidoup - Nui Ba National Park, Đam Rông, Lam Dong Province, Vietnam

    That Minh Ton & The Hoang Bui

  7. Forest Science Institute of South Vietnam, HCMC, Vietnam

    Van Thiet Nguyen

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  1. Brendan M. Buckley
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Correspondence to Brendan M. Buckley.

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Buckley, B.M., Stahle, D.K., Luu, H.T. et al. Central Vietnam climate over the past five centuries from cypress tree rings. Clim Dyn 48, 3707–3723 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00382-016-3297-y

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