title: Tundra in the rain: differential vegetation responses to three years of experimentally doubled summer precipitation in Siberian shrub and Swedish bog tundra.
abstract: Precipitation amounts and patterns at high latitude sites have been predicted to change as a result of global climatic changes. We addressed vegetation responses to three years of experimentally increased summer precipitation in two previously unaddressed tundra types: Betula nana-dominated shrub tundra (northeast Siberia) and a dry Sphagnum fuscum-dominated bog (northern Sweden). Positive responses to approximately doubled ambient precipitation (an increase of 200 mm year(-1)) were observed at the Siberian site, for B. nana (30 % larger length increments), Salix pulchra (leaf size and length increments) and Arctagrostis latifolia (leaf size and specific leaf area), but none were observed at the Swedish site. Total biomass production did not increase at either of the study sites. This study corroborates studies in other tundra vegetation types and shows that despite regional differences at the plant level, total tundra plant productivity is, at least at the short or medium term, largely irresponsive to experimentally increased summer precipitation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ecological Science, VU University Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. fridakeuper@gmail.com
authors.forename: Frida
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Keuper
authors.forename: Frans-Jan W
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: Parmentier
authors.forename: Daan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Blok
authors.forename: Peter M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: van Bodegom
authors.forename: Ellen
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Dorrepaal
authors.forename: Jurgen R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: van Hal
authors.forename: Richard S P
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: van Logtestijn
authors.forename: Rien
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Aerts
mesh_terms: D057914:Agricultural Irrigation; D017753:Ecosystem; D063245:Plant Development; D010944:Plants / Q000145:classification; D011891:Rain; D012800:Siberia; D013045:Species Specificity; D013548:Sweden