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1 May 2011 Climate Warming and the Recent Treeline Shift in the European Alps: The Role of Geomorphological Factors in High-Altitude Sites
Giovanni Leonelli, Manuela Pelflni, Umberto Morra di Cella, Valentina Garavaglia
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Abstract

Global warming and the stronger regional temperature trends recently recorded over the European Alps have triggered several biological and physical dynamics in high-altitude environments. We defined the present treeline altitude in three valleys of a region in the western Italian Alps and reconstructed the past treeline position for the last three centuries in a nearly undisturbed site by means of a dendrochronological approach. We found that the treeline altitude in this region is mainly controlled by human impacts and geomorphological factors. The reconstruction of the altitudinal dynamics at the study site reveals that the treeline shifted upwards of 115 m over the period 1901–2000, reaching the altitude of 2505 m in 2000 and 2515 m in 2008. The recent treeline shift and the acceleration of tree colonization rates in the alpine belt can be mainly ascribed to the climatic input. However, we point out the increasing role of geomorphological factors in controlling the future treeline position and colonization patterns in high mountains.

© Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences 2010
Giovanni Leonelli, Manuela Pelflni, Umberto Morra di Cella, and Valentina Garavaglia "Climate Warming and the Recent Treeline Shift in the European Alps: The Role of Geomorphological Factors in High-Altitude Sites," AMBIO: A Journal of the Human Environment 40(3), 264-273, (1 May 2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13280-010-0096-2
Received: 15 April 2010; Accepted: 27 September 2010; Published: 1 May 2011
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KEYWORDS
climate change
European Alps
geomorphology
Larix decidua
tree rings
treeline
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