PARENT SESSION
Symposium 1: The boreal forest and global change
Organized by: EA Johnson, K Miyanishi, and K Ruckstuhl
Monday, August 8, 8:00 AM - 11:30 AM, Meeting Room 517 A, Level 5, Palais des congrès de Montréal

Effects of climate change on life history traits of large mammals in the boreal region.

Post, Eric^*,1, ¹ Penn State University, University Park, PA

ABSTRACT- Many studies have documented adverse population consequences of climate change for animal species across the globe. Yet, mechanisms through which climatic warming precipitates population declines are difficult to ascertain through analyses of population data alone. One potential mechanism is a reduction in reproductive success resulting from a mismatch between the timing of offspring production and the availability of forage resources necessary for offspring provisioning. Research on birds has revealed, for instance, that long-term changes in the timing of migration to breeding grounds have lagged behind warming-induced advances in the timing of plant growth and insect emergence on breeding grounds. I have monitored plant phenology and caribou calving in Greenland for several years since 1993. These data indicate that changes in spring weather have elicited a shift in plant phenology, a decoupling of the relationship between the timing of calving by caribou and the onset and progression of the season of plant growth, and a consequent marked reduction in production of caribou calves. Though limited in scope, these observations, together with analyses of century-scale data on the population dynamics of caribou throughout West Greenland, offer insight into potential consequences of the role of life history response to climate change in population dynamics of large herbivores.

Key words: caribou, climate change, parturition, plant phenology