Flexible Phenology of a C4 Grass Linked to Resiliency to Seasonal and Multiyear Drought Events in the American Southwest
ABSTRACT Rising temperatures are predicted to further limit dryland water availability as droughts become more intense and frequent and seasonal precipitation patterns shift. Vegetation drought stress may increase mortality and cause declines and delays in phenological events, thereby impacting spec...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2025-05-01
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| Series: | Ecology and Evolution |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.71435 |
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| author | Rebecca A. Finger Higgens David L. Hoover Anna C. Knight Daniel R. Schlaepfer Michael C. Duniway |
| author_facet | Rebecca A. Finger Higgens David L. Hoover Anna C. Knight Daniel R. Schlaepfer Michael C. Duniway |
| author_sort | Rebecca A. Finger Higgens |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | ABSTRACT Rising temperatures are predicted to further limit dryland water availability as droughts become more intense and frequent and seasonal precipitation patterns shift. Vegetation drought stress may increase mortality and cause declines and delays in phenological events, thereby impacting species' capacity to persist and recover from extreme drought conditions. We compare phenological responses of two common dryland perennial grass species, Achnatherum hymenoides (C3) and Pleuraphis jamesii (C4), to 4 years of experimentally imposed precipitation drought treatments (cool season, warm season, ambient), followed by 2 years of recovery on the Colorado Plateau, United States of America. Tagged individual grasses from both species were monitored biweekly and assessed for phenological metrics and mortality. The C3 grass exhibited less phenological flexibility to both seasonal and interannual drought conditions and experienced high rates of mortality, thus reducing resiliency. Conversely, the C4 grass showed more phenological plasticity during imposed drought treatments, with treatment effects diminishing in the two‐year recovery period during a severe ambient drought. Synthesis: Results suggest that plant photosynthetic strategies may impact plant resistance and resiliency to drought. Here, C3 grass populations may decline, potentially shifting cool dryland ecosystems into a system comprised predominantly of warm‐season adapted species. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-306dcd7e98ce4945b87ecc39128d3a88 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2045-7758 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Ecology and Evolution |
| spelling | doaj-art-306dcd7e98ce4945b87ecc39128d3a882025-08-20T02:08:58ZengWileyEcology and Evolution2045-77582025-05-01155n/an/a10.1002/ece3.71435Flexible Phenology of a C4 Grass Linked to Resiliency to Seasonal and Multiyear Drought Events in the American SouthwestRebecca A. Finger Higgens0David L. Hoover1Anna C. Knight2Daniel R. Schlaepfer3Michael C. Duniway4US Geological Survey Southwest Biological Science Center Moab Utah USAUSDA‐ARS Rangeland Resources and Systems Research Unit Fort Collins Colorado USAUS Geological Survey Southwest Biological Science Center Moab Utah USAUS Geological Survey Southwest Biological Science Center Flagstaff Arizona USAUS Geological Survey Southwest Biological Science Center Moab Utah USAABSTRACT Rising temperatures are predicted to further limit dryland water availability as droughts become more intense and frequent and seasonal precipitation patterns shift. Vegetation drought stress may increase mortality and cause declines and delays in phenological events, thereby impacting species' capacity to persist and recover from extreme drought conditions. We compare phenological responses of two common dryland perennial grass species, Achnatherum hymenoides (C3) and Pleuraphis jamesii (C4), to 4 years of experimentally imposed precipitation drought treatments (cool season, warm season, ambient), followed by 2 years of recovery on the Colorado Plateau, United States of America. Tagged individual grasses from both species were monitored biweekly and assessed for phenological metrics and mortality. The C3 grass exhibited less phenological flexibility to both seasonal and interannual drought conditions and experienced high rates of mortality, thus reducing resiliency. Conversely, the C4 grass showed more phenological plasticity during imposed drought treatments, with treatment effects diminishing in the two‐year recovery period during a severe ambient drought. Synthesis: Results suggest that plant photosynthetic strategies may impact plant resistance and resiliency to drought. Here, C3 grass populations may decline, potentially shifting cool dryland ecosystems into a system comprised predominantly of warm‐season adapted species.https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.71435C3 grassC4 grassdroughtmonsoonphenologyresiliency |
| spellingShingle | Rebecca A. Finger Higgens David L. Hoover Anna C. Knight Daniel R. Schlaepfer Michael C. Duniway Flexible Phenology of a C4 Grass Linked to Resiliency to Seasonal and Multiyear Drought Events in the American Southwest Ecology and Evolution C3 grass C4 grass drought monsoon phenology resiliency |
| title | Flexible Phenology of a C4 Grass Linked to Resiliency to Seasonal and Multiyear Drought Events in the American Southwest |
| title_full | Flexible Phenology of a C4 Grass Linked to Resiliency to Seasonal and Multiyear Drought Events in the American Southwest |
| title_fullStr | Flexible Phenology of a C4 Grass Linked to Resiliency to Seasonal and Multiyear Drought Events in the American Southwest |
| title_full_unstemmed | Flexible Phenology of a C4 Grass Linked to Resiliency to Seasonal and Multiyear Drought Events in the American Southwest |
| title_short | Flexible Phenology of a C4 Grass Linked to Resiliency to Seasonal and Multiyear Drought Events in the American Southwest |
| title_sort | flexible phenology of a c4 grass linked to resiliency to seasonal and multiyear drought events in the american southwest |
| topic | C3 grass C4 grass drought monsoon phenology resiliency |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.71435 |
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