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Volume 8 Journal of Ecosystem & Ecography
ISSN: 2157-7625 Ecology 2018
March 19-20, 2018
March 19-20, 2018 | Berlin, Germany
World Conference on Ecology
At the limits of growth? – Evidence for impacts of recent climate change on the growth of Quercus
robur in relic upland Atlantic oak woodland, Wistman’s Wood, Dartmoor National Park
Thomas Murphy
Plymouth University, UK
C limate change is perhaps the most important issue of our time with the effects starting to become apparent in altered regional
temperature and precipitation regimes. In the context of future climate change projections, it will be critical to understand the
response of semi-natural habitats to current changes. Upland oak woodlands in the UK are home to a unique assemblage of plant
and animal communities, with Wistman’s wood on Dartmoor perhaps the most famous. The woods stunted growth is often cited
as an example of a species at its physiological limits, yet its response to recent climate changes has yet to be investigated. This study
makes use of weather records from one of the UK’s longest upland observation stations at Princetown (>400 m) and other local
stations. Data was obtained from the Met Office Integrated Data Archive System (MIDAS) database via the British Atmospheric
Data Centre (BADC) and the National Meteorological Archive via the UKMeteorological Office. Cores from Quercus robur trees
at Wistman’s wood were collected using an increment borer in July 2017. Results show the climate on Dartmoor has experienced
an increase in precipitation over the last 40 years, all seasons apart from spring show positive trends in total precipitation with
autumn, winter and annual trends significant (P<0.05) between 1961–2015. There has also been a significant (P<0.05) increase in
mean annual, autumn and winter temperature during 1928-2015. Findings show total precipitation increases whilst not significant
at sea level (Plymouth), are (P<0.05) at four upland (>300 m) Dartmoor stations. The study uses dendroclimatic calibration
via treeclim in R statistics to analyse the annual growth response of mature Quercus robur to evidenced changes in monthly
precipitation and temperature over the last 80 years. The results will be presented.
Recent Publications
1. Burt T P and Holden J (2010) Changing temperature and rainfall gradients in British Uplands. Climate Research 5:57-70.
2. Christy M, Worth R H (1922) The ancient dwarfed oakwoods of Dartmoor. Transactions of the Devonshire Association,
54:291-342.
3. Maddock A (ed.) (2016) UK Biodiversity action plan Priority Habitats Description, Upland Oak wood. JNCC
4. Scharnweber T, Manthey M, Wilmking M (2013) Differential radial growth patterns between beech (Fagus sylvatica L.)
and oak (Quercus robur L.) on periodically waterlogged soils. Tree Physiology 33:425-437.
5. Zang C and Biondi F (2013) Dendroclimatic calibration in R: The bootres package for response and correlation function
analysis. Dendrochronologia, 31:68-74.
Biography
Thomas Murphy is the winner of the Coker memorial prize 2016; Santander seed–corn scholarship 2017 and Scientific Coordinator at Moor Trees. He is a
young research Ecologist currently undertaking an Environmental Science Research Master’s (ResM) at Plymouth University. He is currently developing a citizen
science program for the UK based charity Moor Trees to better understand the impacts of tree planting on floral ecology and subsequent seedling recruitment. His
Postgraduate research concentrates on analysing changes in climate at one of England’s best known national parks (Dartmoor) and looks to quantify the impacts of
altered temperature and precipitation regimes on the recruitment and survival of pedunculate oak (Quercus robur), as well as the character of upland oak woodland
habitats. He has a strong interest in plant ecology and to understand the implications of climate change on community structure.
Thomas Murphy, J Ecosyst Ecography 2018, Volume 8
DOI: 10.4172/2157-7625-C1-032