Article

Diurnal temperature range as a key predictor of plants’ elevation ranges globally

Details

Citation

Gallou A, Jump A, Lynn JS, Field R, Irl SD, Steinbauer MJ, Beierkuhnlein C, Chen J, Chou C, Hemp A, Kidane Y, König C, Kreft H, Naqinezhad A & Nowak A (2023) Diurnal temperature range as a key predictor of plants’ elevation ranges globally. Nature Communications, 14, Art. No.: 7890. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-43477-8

Abstract
A prominent hypothesis in ecology is that larger species ranges are found in more variable climates because species develop broader environmental tolerances, predicting a positive range size-temperature variability relationship. However, this overlooks the extreme temperatures that variable climates impose on species, with upper or lower thermal limits more likely to be exceeded. Accordingly, we propose the ‘temperature range squeeze’ hypothesis, predicting a negative range size-temperature variability relationship. We test these contrasting predictions by relating 88,000 elevation range sizes of vascular plants in 44 mountains to short- and long-term temperature variation. Consistent with our hypothesis, we find that species’ range size is negatively correlated with diurnal temperature range. Accurate predictions of short-term temperature variation will become increasingly important for extinction risk assessment in the future.

Keywords
Diurnal temperature range; plants; key predictors; ecology

Notes
Additional co-authors: Jan-Niklas Nuppenau, Panayiotis Trigas, Jonathan P. Price, Carl A. Roland, Andreas H. Schweiger, Patrick Weigelt, Suzette G.A. Flantua and John-Arvid Grynes

StatusPublished
Publication date30/11/2023
Publication date online30/11/2023
Date accepted by journal10/11/2023
URLhttp://hdl.handle.net/1893/35661
eISSN2041-1723

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Professor Alistair Jump

Professor Alistair Jump

Dean of Natural Sciences, NS Management and Support

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