Climate sensitivity and resilience of Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco to drought events
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.29298/rmcf.v17i93.1596Keywords:
Dendroecological, basal area increment, resilience indices, climate variability, extreme droughts, Sierra Madre OccidentalAbstract
Climate change poses a threat to the dynamics and resilience of temperate forests, with profound implications for species sensitive to drought and water stress. The objective was to evaluate the sensitivity of the radial growth of Pseudotsuga menziesii to climate variability, as well as the resilience of the Basal Area Increment (BAI) to drought events as dendroecological proxies. A residual chronology (1948–2021) was developed with 40 series of 20 trees in a high conservation value forest (HCVF) in Durango, Mexico, using standard dendrochronological techniques. Climate data for maximum and minimum temperature, precipitation, and vapor pressure deficit (Tmax, Tmin, PP, and VPD) were obtained from TerraClimate for the period from 1958 to 2024, and the six-month Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI) from the SPEI Drought Monitor. Radial growth was positively associated with PP and Tmin in winter and early spring. In contrast, December Tmax and spring VPD negatively affected growth, as did SPEI, on 3- to 11-month scales. The BAI had an upward trend interrupted by severe droughts in 1974, 1999, 2006, and 2011. Resilience indices showed a reduction in resistance and resilience to droughts; 1965 registered the event with the significantly shortest recovery time. These results confirm that P. menziesii is sensitive to winter and spring water availability, and droughts compromise its resistance and resilience to recent extreme weather events
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