Seabird establishment during regional cooling drove a terrestrial ecosystem shift 5000 years ago
Groff, D.V.; Hamley, K.M.; Lessard, T.J.R.; Greenawalt, K.E.; Yasuhara, M.; Brickle, P.; Gill, J.L. (2020). Seabird establishment during regional cooling drove a terrestrial ecosystem shift 5000 years ago. Science Advances 6(43): eabb2788. https://dx.doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.abb2788
In: Science Advances. AAAS: New York. ISSN 2375-2548; e-ISSN 2375-2548, more
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| Authors | | Top |
- Groff, D.V.
- Hamley, K.M.
- Lessard, T.J.R.
- Greenawalt, K.E.
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- Yasuhara, M.
- Brickle, P.
- Gill, J.L.
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| Abstract |
The coastal tussac (Poa flabellata) grasslands of the Falkland Islands are a critical seabird breeding habitat but have been drastically reduced by grazing and erosion. Meanwhile, the sensitivity of seabirds and tussac to climate change is unknown because of a lack of long-term records in the South Atlantic. Our 14,000-year multiproxy record reveals an ecosystem state shift following seabird establishment 5000 years ago, as marine-derived nutrients from guano facilitated tussac establishment, peat productivity, and increased fire. Seabird arrival coincided with regional cooling, suggesting that the Falkland Islands are a cold-climate refugium. Conservation efforts focusing on tussac restoration should include this terrestrial-marine linkage, although a warming Southern Ocean calls into question the long-term viability of the Falkland Islands as habitat for low-latitude seabirds. |
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