Annual increments of juniper dwarf shrubs above the tree line on the central Tibetan Plateau: a useful climatic proxy

摘要: †Background and Aims Dendroclimatology is playing an important role in understanding past climatic changes on the Tibetan Plateau. Forests, however, are mainly confined to eastern On central Plateau, contrast, shrubs dwarf need be studied instead of trees as a source climate information. The objectives this study were check dendrochronological potential shrub Wilson juniper (Juniperus pingii var. wilsonii) growing from 4740 4780 m a.s.l. identify factors controlling its radial growth. †Methods Forty-three discs 33 stems sampled near north-eastern shore Nam Co (Heavenly Lake). Cross-dating was performed along two directions each stem, avoiding compression-wood side far possible. A ring-width chronology developed after negative exponential function or straight line any slope had been fit raw measurements. Then, correlations calculated between standard monthly data recorded by weather station around 100 km away. †Key Results Our has shown high juniper, based longevity (one individual 324 years old), well-defined growth rings, reliable cross-dating individuals distinct signals reflected variability. Unlike circum-arctic tundra ecosystem which positively responded above-average temperature season, moisture turned out limiting for particularly loss caused maximum temperatures May‐June. †Conclusions Because wide distribution species exciting prospect opened up extend presently existing tree-ring networks into one largest regions world.