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- Title
Simulated Tree‐Grass Competition in Drylands Is Modulated by CO<sub>2</sub> Fertilization.
- Authors
Verbruggen, Wim; Schurgers, Guy; Meunier, Félicien; Verbeeck, Hans; Horion, Stéphanie
- Abstract
Interannual variability in climatic drivers can have a strong impact on dryland ecosystem functioning globally. While interannual variations in dryland ecosystem processes are mainly driven by rainfall, other global change drivers such as CO2 fertilization and rising temperatures can play an increasingly important role for these ecosystems. Yet, the high complexity of dryland ecosystems makes it difficult to unravel the individual and interactive impacts of these different drivers. In this work we study the impacts of interannual climatic variability on the dryland ecosystems of the Sudano‐Sahel region for the period 1950–2022. By using a dynamic vegetation model (LPJ‐GUESS v4.0), we show that the year‐to‐year variability in dryland ecosystems that originates from interannual variability in rainfall is modulated by effects of CO2 fertilization, which can strongly impact woody encroachment and resource competition between vegetation types. In contrast, we found that increased temperatures had a relatively low influence at the ecosystem level. We also show that this response varies with aridity subtype, depending on the amount and type of woody cover. By untangling the impacts of climatic drivers on dryland vegetation, this study helps us to understand the different sensitivities of dryland ecosystems to climatic variability under global change. Plain Language Summary: Dryland ecosystems are globally important as they cover 40% of Earth's land surface and house a third of the human population. While the functioning of these ecosystems is mainly driven by rainfall, other global change drivers such as CO2 fertilization and rising temperatures can play an important role for these ecosystems. However, it is difficult to separate the individual influence of each driver. This study tries to resolve this problem by using an ecosystem model, applied to the Sahel region. We isolated the effect of year‐to‐year variations in each driver on the Sahel vegetation by artificially turning off the variations in all other drivers. We found that CO2 fertilization can have a large impact on these rainfall‐driven ecosystems. Our model showed that increased CO2 can promote woody plant cover in the Sahel, while negatively influencing grass cover by competition for resources. We also showed that this influence is more pronounced in wetter parts of the region. By untangling the impacts of climatic drivers on dryland vegetation, this study helps us to understand the different sensitivities of dryland ecosystems to climatic variability under global change. Key Points: By using a dynamic vegetation model we untangled the impacts of interannual climatic variability on dryland ecosystemsCO₂ fertilization strongly modulates woody encroachment and resource competition between dryland vegetation typesDryland vegetation has a contrasting response to interannual variability in the climatic drivers along an aridity gradient
- Subjects
SAHEL; WOODY plants; ECOSYSTEMS; ARID regions; SURFACE of the earth; COMPETITION (Biology); GROUND cover plants
- Publication
Earth's Future, 2024, Vol 12, Issue 1, p1
- ISSN
2328-4277
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1029/2023EF004096