supplemental material to the manuscript:

The interior climate and its microclimatic variation of temperate forests in northern Patagonia, Argentina

authors:
Alois SIMON¹, Jonas FIERKE^1,2, Ernesto J. REITER³, Gabriel A. LOGUERCIO^4,5, Steffi HEINRICHS^1,6, Birgitta PUTZENLECHNER², Natalia Z. JOELSON^1,7, Helge WALENTOWSKI^1*

1 HAWK University of Applied Sciences and Arts, Faculty of Resource Management, Göttingen, Germany
2 University of Göttingen, Institute of Geography, Department of Cartography, GIS and Remote Sensing, Germany
3 University of Göttingen, Plant Ecology and Ecosystems Research, Germany
4 Andean Patagonian Forest Research and Extension Center (CIEFAP), Argentina
5 Faculty of Engineering, Department of Forestry, National University of Patagonia San Juan Bosco, Argentina
6 University of Göttingen, Silviculture and Forest Ecology of the Temperate Zones, Germany
7 University of Göttingen, Faculty of Biology and Psychology, Germany

*corresponding author
email: helge.walentowski@hawk.de

Keywords:
air temperature, stand microclimate, vapour pressure deficit, elevational zonation, successional stages, mountain forests

Abstract:

Knowledge on mesoclimatic zonation and microclimatic variations within mountain forest ecosystems is crucial for understanding regional species turnover and effects of climate change on these systems. The temperate mountain forests in the Andean region of South America are among the largest and contiguous natural deciduous forest areas in the world. Due to their pronounced disturbance regime and different successional stages, a climatic zonation combined with the characterisation of its microclimatic variation is important to identify thresholds of species occurrences. We used micro-loggers to measure air temperature and relative humidity for one year at 40 measurement locations along longitudinal and elevation gradients in mountain forests in northern Patagonia, Argentina. Our results unveil mesoclimatic patterns within these forests characterised by variations in temperature and vapour pressure deficit along the elevational gradient in general, but also at different times of the year. For example, Austrocedrus chilensis and Nothofagus dombeyi forests differed mainly by temperature and its diurnal range in the warmest months of the year. Also differences between forest stands and gaps were more pronounced in the warmest months of the year and at lower elevations, with up to 2.5 K higher temperatures in the second half of the day in gaps. We found clear indications that shrubland of Nothofagus antarctica representing a successional stage after disturbances alters the mesoclimatic pattern, favouring forest fire ignition. Such mesoclimatic variations have a major influence on tree species turnover and ecological processes within these forest ecosystems. The findings contribute to our understanding of the complex interplay between topography, climate, and vegetation in shaping the spatial patterns of species occurrences.

Acknowledgments:

The study was part of the international and interdisciplinary research project “Sustainable forest management of temperate deciduous forests – Northern hemisphere beech and southern hemisphere beech forests” (KLIMNEM). The project is supported by funds of the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL) based on a decision of the Parliament of the Federal Republic of Germany via the Federal Office for Agriculture and Food (BLE, grant No. 28I-042-01).

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.