title: Forests synchronize their growth in contrasting Eurasian regions in response to climate warming.
abstract: Forests play a key role in the carbon balance of terrestrial ecosystems. One of the main uncertainties in global change predictions lies in how the spatiotemporal dynamics of forest productivity will be affected by climate warming. Here we show an increasing influence of climate on the spatial variability of tree growth during the last 120 y, ultimately leading to unprecedented temporal coherence in ring-width records over wide geographical scales (spatial synchrony). Synchrony in growth patterns across cold-constrained (central Siberia) and drought-constrained (Spain) Eurasian conifer forests have peaked in the early 21st century at subcontinental scales (∼ 1,000 km). Such enhanced synchrony is similar to that observed in trees co-occurring within a stand. In boreal forests, the combined effects of recent warming and increasing intensity of climate extremes are enhancing synchrony through an earlier start of wood formation and a stronger impact of year-to-year fluctuations of growing-season temperatures on growth. In Mediterranean forests, the impact of warming on synchrony is related mainly to an advanced onset of growth and the strengthening of drought-induced growth limitations. Spatial patterns of enhanced synchrony represent early warning signals of climate change impacts on forest ecosystems at subcontinental scales.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ecology, University of Barcelona, E-08028 Barcelona, Spain;
authors.forename: Tatiana A
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Shestakova
authors.affiliation: Department of Ecology, University of Barcelona, E-08028 Barcelona, Spain;
authors.forename: Emilia
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Gutiérrez
authors.affiliation: Sukachev Institute of Forest, 660036 Krasnoyarsk, Russia; Math Methods and IT Department, Siberian Federal University, 660041 Krasnoyarsk, Russia;
authors.forename: Alexander V
authors.initials: AV
authors.lastname: Kirdyanov
authors.affiliation: Pyrenean Institute of Ecology, E-50059 Zaragoza, Spain;
authors.forename: Jesús Julio
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Camarero
authors.affiliation: Department of Natural Systems and Resources, Technical University of Madrid, E-28040 Madrid, Spain;
authors.forename: Mar
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Génova
authors.affiliation: Sukachev Institute of Forest, 660036 Krasnoyarsk, Russia;
authors.forename: Anastasia A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Knorre
authors.affiliation: Department of Physical, Chemical, and Natural Systems, Pablo de Olavide University, E-41013 Sevilla, Spain;
authors.forename: Juan Carlos
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Linares
authors.affiliation: Department of Crop and Forest Sciences and Agrotecnio Center, University of Lleida, E-25198 Lleida, Spain.
authors.forename: Víctor
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5721-1656
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Resco de Dios
authors.affiliation: Department of Physical, Chemical, and Natural Systems, Pablo de Olavide University, E-41013 Sevilla, Spain;
authors.forename: Raúl
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Sánchez-Salguero
authors.affiliation: Department of Crop and Forest Sciences and Agrotecnio Center, University of Lleida, E-25198 Lleida, Spain jvoltas@pvcf.udl.cat.
authors.forename: Jordi
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Voltas
mesh_terms: D057231:Climate Change; D065928:Forests; D016014:Linear Models; D012800:Siberia; D013030:Spain; D013045:Species Specificity; D013997:Time Factors; D014197:Trees / Q000254:growth & development*
keywords: Mediterranean forests; boreal forests; global warming; spatial synchrony; tree rings