Conserving native ecosystems helps sequester carbon and mitigate climate change, but new statistical modeling questions the permanence of California’s carbon-rich forests with climate change.
plants
Posted inResearch Spotlights
A Well-Balanced Ecosystem Uses Water Most Efficiently
Excess of a single nutrient, such as nitrogen, may boost plant productivity, but the imbalance leads to less efficient water use as plants scramble for the nutrients they lack.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Urban Vegetation Key Regulator for Heat Island Intensity
Satellite data reveals that urban vegetation, especially urban forests, is the most important factor regulating Urban Heat Island intensity.
Posted inNews
Global Warming Could Rob Liquors of Their Flavor
A new study examines the impact of glacial extinction on biodiversity in alpine regions.
Posted inNews
Terrestrial Plants Flourished After the Cretaceous–Paleogene Extinction
Compounds in ancient plant leaves tell the story of how an extinction event shaped our planet’s ecosystems.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Water Stress Controls the Capacity of the Terrestrial Carbon Sink
Despite increased photosynthetic activity at northern latitudes in recent decades, plant productivity in tropical zones suffers because of water limitations.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
¿Cómo Afecta el Reverdecimiento del Ártico al Agua Subterránea?
Nuevas investigaciones examinan cómo los cambios en la ecología de la superficie influyen en la hidrología subterránea en el Ártico.
Posted inNews
Drones Help Bridge the Gaps in Assessing Global Change
New instruments in the research tool kit bolster scientific understanding of the ecology of a greening Arctic.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Ideal Temperatures for Carbon Uptake by Subtropical Plants
Air temperatures in coastal ecosystems of Australia routinely exceed the optimum range for photosynthesis, hindering plants’ ability to take up atmospheric carbon.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Sudden Oak Death Taking a Toll on U.S. West Coast
Researchers have been modeling effects of the plant pathogen Phytophthora ramorum on coastal forests in California and Oregon since it arrived on the West Coast 3 decades ago.