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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Ecol. Evol.
Sec. Biogeography and Macroecology
Volume 12 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fevo.2024.1423063

Effects of Preseason Climate Change on Spring and Summer Phenological Shifts in Inner Mongolian Grasslands

Provisionally accepted
Zexu Nie Zexu Nie 1Chao Wang Chao Wang 2*Na Zhang Na Zhang 1,3*
  • 1 College of Resources and Environment, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (UCAS), Beijing, China
  • 2 Institute of Grassland, Flowers and Ecology, Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, Beijing, China
  • 3 Beijing Yanshan Earth Critical Zone National Research Station, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Other, Beijing, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Grassland vegetation phenology has undergone great changes under the influence of climate, which affects ecosystem functions and services. However, the mechanism of preseason climatic factors in driving phenological shifts is unclear. In this study, we determined the start (SOS) and peak (POS) of the growing season for Inner Mongolian grasslands using gross primary productivity data (2000)(2001)(2002)(2003)(2004)(2005)(2006)(2007)(2008)(2009)(2010)(2011)(2012)(2013)(2014)(2015)(2016)(2017)(2018). We investigated the spatiotemporal changes of SOS and POS and elucidated the mechanisms behind these changes by analyzing how these phenological events were influenced by the specific preseason climatic requirements (precipitation, air temperature, and solar radiation). Our results revealed that the SOS significantly advanced at a rate of 0.65 days/a, while the POS was stable across the study area. At the pixel scale, areas with initially later SOS and POS exhibited stronger advanced trends. An earlier SOS and POS were associated with lower thermal requirements, including air temperature and solar radiation. Conversely, a delayed SOS and POS necessitated higher climatic requirements. The impact of preseason precipitation on both SOS and POS demonstrated notable spatial variability. Moreover, the effects of different climatic factors on phenology were not in sync due to regional environmental disparities. Our study provides insight into the mechanisms underlying phenological shifts in grassland ecosystems under climate change.

    Keywords: Start of the growing season, peak of the growing season, preseason climatic requirement, Meadow steppe, typical steppe, Desert steppe

    Received: 25 Apr 2024; Accepted: 12 Aug 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Nie, Wang and Zhang. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Chao Wang, Institute of Grassland, Flowers and Ecology, Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, Beijing, China
    Na Zhang, College of Resources and Environment, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (UCAS), Beijing, China

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