Arid ecosystems show how temperate systems will adapt to climate change, study says

30 Aug. () –

The climate change is causing mechanisms considered hitherto “exclusive” of arid zones are increasingly “more frequent” in more humid and temperate zones of the planetaccording to a study led by an international team in which the researcher from the National Museum of Natural Sciences of Madrid (MNCN-CSIC), Ana Rey, participates.

The results of the study, published in the journal ‘Nature Ecology and Evolution’, suggest that arid areas will increase by about 17 million square kilometers by the end of the century, which will reduce soil moisture by 74 percent in classified areas, so far, as not dry.

“Extreme weather events are becoming more frequent: melting ice in high mountain areas is getting earlier and earlier and severe fires, torrential rains or periods of drought are becoming more frequent and intense. We wonder what the future of the planet’s temperate forests and crop regions would be if these trends continue,” says Ana Rey.

Similarly, the team led by the researcher from the University of Jerusalem, José Grünzweig, has analyzed how species and ecosystems adapt to life in arid zones and deserts. “We have compiled a list of processes currently operating in arid ecosystems. Mechanisms that affect the distribution of vegetation, plant growth, water flow, energy balance, carbon cycling and nutrients or to the decomposition of plant material and are considered exclusive and relevant for the functioning of these areas“Grünzweig explains.

These ‘arid’ mechanisms are controlled by environmental factors such as solar radiation, high temperatures, or the intermittent availability of water. Factors that global warming is changing in large areas of the planet.

“To understand how these processes affect the distribution of vegetation or the decomposition of plant material, we have modeled their dynamics at a global level, including temperate zones, to show that in the future they will also act in more humid areas of the planet,” explains Rey. “The results show a huge increase in arid areas and a 74% decrease in soil moisture in temperate and humid areas that are currently densely populated and dedicated to growing food.“, keep going.

“Historically, arid and desert ecosystems have been studied less because in countries with these climatic conditions they tend to have less scientific infrastructure. This study shows that climate change is causing processes that were considered exclusive of arid and dry ecosystems to start operating in temperate and humid zones,” he continues.

“This analysis of the evolution of temperate areas, which has in the functioning of the mechanisms that operate in arid zones, It can contribute to advancing knowledge about the adaptive capacity of ecosystems to extreme weather events and mitigate their impact on nature and its inhabitants.. In short, it can help us improve the adaptation processes that we must undertake in the face of the climate crisis,” concludes Rey.