Bruce P. Finney

Reduced growth of Alaskan white spruce in the twentieth century from temperature-induced drought stress.

The extension of growing season at high northern latitudes seems increasingly clear from satellite observations of vegetation extent and duration. This extension is also thought to explain the observed increase in amplitude of seasonal variations in atmospheric CO2 concentration. Increased plant respiration and photosynthesis both correlate well with increases in temperature this century and are therefore the most probable link between the vegetation and CO2 observations. From these observations, it has been suggested that increases in temperature have stimulated carbon uptake in high latitudes and for the boreal forest system as a whole. Here we present multi-proxy tree-ring data (ring width, maximum late-wood density and carbon-isotope composition) from 20 productive stands of white spruce in the interior of Alaska. The tree-ring records show a strong and consistent relationship over the past 90 years and indicate that, in contrast with earlier predictions, radial growth has decreased with increasing temperature. Our data show that temperature-induced drought stress has disproportionately affected the most rapidly growing white spruce, suggesting that, under recent climate warming, drought may have been an important factor limiting carbon uptake in a large portion of the North American boreal forest. If this limitation in growth due to drought stress is sustained, the future capacity of northern latitudes to sequester carbon may be less than currently expected.

Fisheries productivity in the northeastern Pacific Ocean over the past 2,200 years

Historical catch records suggest that climatic variability has had basin-wide effects on the northern Pacific and its fish populations, such as salmon, sardines and anchovies. However, these records are too short to define the nature and frequency of patterns. We reconstructed ∼2,200-year records of sockeye salmon abundance from sediment cores obtained from salmon nursery lakes on Kodiak island, Alaska. Large shifts in abundance, which far exceed the decadal-scale variability recorded during the past 300 years, occurred over the past two millennia. A marked, multi-centennial decline in Alaskan sockeye salmon was apparent from ∼100 BC to AD 800, but salmon were consistently more abundant from AD 1200 to 1900. Over the past two millennia, the abundances of Pacific sardine and Northern anchovy off the California coast, and of Alaskan salmon, show several synchronous patterns of variability. But sardines and anchovies vary out of phase with Alaskan salmon over low frequency, which differs from the pattern detected in historical records. The coherent patterns observed across large regions demonstrate the strong role of climatic forcing in regulating northeastern Pacific fish stocks.

A Coherent Signature of Anthropogenic Nitrogen Deposition to Remote Watersheds of the Northern Hemisphere

Deposition of reactive nitrogen from human activities occurred in the preindustrial era. Humans have more than doubled the amount of reactive nitrogen (Nr) added to the biosphere, yet most of what is known about its accumulation and ecological effects is derived from studies of heavily populated regions. Nitrogen (N) stable isotope ratios (15N:14N) in dated sediments from 25 remote Northern Hemisphere lakes show a coherent signal of an isotopically distinct source of N to ecosystems beginning in 1895 ± 10 years (±1 standard deviation). Initial shifts in N isotope composition recorded in lake sediments coincide with anthropogenic CO2 emissions but accelerate with widespread industrial Nr production during the past half century. Although current atmospheric Nr deposition rates in remote regions are relatively low, anthropogenic N has probably influenced watershed N budgets across the Northern Hemisphere for over a century.

Geographic and temporal variations in fire history in boreal ecosystems of Alaska

Charcoal and pollen analyses were used to determine geographic and temporal patterns of fire importance in boreal forests of the Kenai Peninsula and interior Alaska. Sieved, large charcoal particles were measured in continuously sampled cores of Rock, Portage, and Arrow Lakes (Kenai Peninsula) and Dune and Deuce Lakes (interior Alaska) to estimate regional fire importance and fire occurrence. Charcoal accumulation rates have been low for the past 1000 years in both regions with slightly higher values in interior Alaska than on the Kenai Peninsula. An exception to this general pattern was the period of post-European settlement on the Kenai Peninsula, where charcoal accumulation rates increased by 10-fold. This increase most likely reflected increased fire occurrence due to human ignition. The Holocene charcoal and pollen records from Dune Lake indicate low fire occurrence during the early (9000 to 5500 calibrated year before present (yr BP)) birch-white spruce-alder (Betula-Picea glauca-Alnus) communities and high fire occurrence as black spruce (Picea mariana) became established after 5500 yr BP. Increased fires probably resulted from a change to fire-prone black spruce forests. For the past 5500 yr BP, two distinct fire regimes occurred. Frequent fires, with an average fire return interval of 98 years, characterized the period from 5500-2400 yr BP. Fewer fires, with an average fire interval of 198 years, characterized the period after 2400 yr BP. Fuel accumulation, stand structure, and vegetation species contributed to the natural variability in fire regimes during past changes in climate.

Stable isotope analysis of Pacific salmon: insight into trophic status and oceanographic conditions over the last 30 years

Abstract Food web interactions and the response of Pacific salmon to physical processes in the North Pacific Ocean over interannual and interdecadal timescales are explored using naturally occurring stable isotope ratios of carbon (13C/12C) and nitrogen (15N/14N). Stable isotope analyses of five species of sexually mature North Pacific salmon from Alaska (Oncorhynchus spp.) cluster into three groups: chinook salmon (O. tshawytscha) have the highest values, followed by coho (O. kisutch), with chum (O. keta), sockeye (O. nerka), and pink (O. gorbuscha) together having the lowest values. Although detailed isotopic data on salmon prey are lacking, there are limited data on relevant prey items from areas in which they are found in high abundance. These data suggest that the characteristics of the sockeye, pink and chum we have analyzed are compatible with their diets including open ocean squid and zooplankton, which are in general agreement with stomach content analyses. Isotope relationships between muscle and scale show consistent relationships for both δ13C (R2=0.98) and δ15N (R2=0.90). Thus, scales, which have been routinely archived for many systems, can be used for retrospective analyses. Archived sockeye salmon scales spanning 1966–1999 from Red Lake, Kodiak Island, Alaska were analyzed for their stable isotope ratios of carbon and nitrogen. The δ15N record displays a decreasing trend of ~3‰ from 1969–1982 and an increasing trend of ~3‰ from 1982–1992, while the variations in δ13C are relatively minor. These trends may result from factors such as shifts in trophic level of feeding and/or feeding location, or may originate at the base of the food web via changes in processes such as nutrient cycling or primary productivity. Detailed studies on prey isotopic variability and its controls are needed to distinguish between these factors, and thus to improve the use of stable isotope analysis as a tool to learn more about present and past ecosystem change in the North Pacific and its relation to climatic change.

RECONSTRUCTION OF SUMMER TEMPERATURES IN INTERIOR ALASKA FROM TREE-RING PROXIES: EVIDENCE FOR CHANGING SYNOPTIC CLIMATE REGIMES

Maximum latewood density and δ 13C discrimination of Interior Alaska white spruce were used to reconstruct summer (May through August) temperature at Fairbanks for the period 1800–1996, one of the first high-resolution reconstructions for this region. This combination of latewood density and δ 13C discrimination explains 59.9% of the variance in summer temperature during the period of record 1906–1996. The 200-yr. reconstruction is characterized by 7 decadal-scale regimes. Regime changes are indicated at 1816, 1834, 1879, 1916, 1937, and 1974, are abrupt, and appear to be the result of synoptic scale climate changes. The mean of summer temperature for the period of reconstruction (1800–1996) was 13.49 °C. During the period of instrument record (1903–1996) the mean of summer temperature was 13.31 °C for both the reconstruction and the recorded data. The coldest interval was 1916–1937 (12.62 ° C) and the warmest was 1974–1996 (14.23 °C) for the recorded data. The reconstruction differs from records of northern hemisphere temperatures over this period, especially because of Interior Alaska warm periods reconstructed from 1834 to 1851 (14.24 °C) and from 1862 to 1879 (14.19 °C) and because of the cool period in the early part of the 20th century (1917–1974). We show additional tree ring data that support our reconstruction of these warm periods. Alternate hypotheses involving autogenic effect of tree growth on the site, altered tree sensitivity, or novel combinations of temperature and precipitation were explored and while they cannot be ruled out as contributors to the anomalously warm 19th century reconstruction, they were not supported by available data. White spruce radial growth is highly correlated with reconstructed summer temperature, and temperature appears to be a reliable index of carbon uptake in this system.

Potential analogues for paleoclimatic variations in eastern interior Alaska during the past 14,000 yr: atmospheric-circulation controls of regional temperature and moisture responses ☆

The paleoclimatic history of a region can be viewed as a series of surface temperature and moisture anomalies through time. The effects of changes in large-scale climatic controls (e.g., insolation, major circulation controls) can be mediated by the influence of smaller-scale controls (e.g., topographic barriers, coastlines); this may result in heterogenous surface climatic responses at the regional and sub-regional scale. Divergent paleoclimatic trajectories between regions may be explainable in terms of such meso-scale patterns. Using modern analogues for paleoclimate we examine how the sequence of climatic variations in eastern interior Alaska during the interval 12,000–0 14C yr BP could have been generated by specific atmospheric circulation patterns. Fossil-pollen and lake-level records document the long-term trends in temperature and effective moisture for the region. Water-balance modelling provides additional estimates of paleoprecipitation. Synoptic climatological patterns are described using the modern (instrumental) record of upper-level and sea-level pressure, surface temperature, and precipitation. At 12,000 14C yr BP, eastern interior Alaska was cooler and drier than present, a situation generated today by a southward displacement of the jet stream. Conditions warmer and drier than present at 9000 14C yr BP may have been generated by increased ridging north of Alaska and a weakened westerly circulation. Warmer, wetter conditions than present possibly prevailed in the late-middle Holocene; these might reflect ridging over Alaska and troughing further west. Cool, wet conditions feature enhanced westerly flow into Alaska through an eastward shift in the east Asian trough and positive pressure anomalies in the North Pacific; they may be analogous to cold periods of the Little Ice Age. The analogues demonstrate how surface conditions in other parts of Beringia may sometimes be similar to, while at other times different from those in the eastern interior. These broader spatial patterns provide hypotheses about past climates that can be tested with paleoclimatological data. For example, the widespread positive temperature anomalies associated with the warm/dry (9000 14C yr BP) analogue fit with the expansion northward of the eastern Siberian treeline. The anomalously cool conditions in northeast Siberia associated with the warm/wet analogue may explain the continued (late-middle Holocene) treeline advance in Alaska while there was retreat in Siberia.

Effects of holocene Alnus expansion on aquatic productivity, nitrogen cycling, and soil development in Southwestern Alaska

Numerous pollen records provide evidence for the widespread range expansion of Alnus throughout Alaska and adjacent Canada during the middle Holocene. Because Alnus can fix atmospheric N2, this vegetational change probably had a profound effect on N availability and cycling. To assess this effect, we analyzed a sediment core from Grandfather Lake in southwestern Alaska for a suite of geochemical indicators, including elemental composition, biogenic silica (BSi) content, and carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) isotopes of organic matter. These data, in conjunction with a pollen record from the same site, are used to infer biogeochemical processes associated with the mid-Holocene Alnus expansion. The increase in Alnus pollen percentages from 10% to 70% circa 8000-7000 BP (14C years before present) suggests the rapid spread of Alnus shrub thickets on mountain slopes and riparian zones in the Grandfather Lake region. Coincident with this vegetational change, the mean value of the sediment BSi content increases from 20.4 to 106.2 mg/g, reflecting increased diatom productivity within the lake as a result of Alnus N2 fixation in the watershed soils and the associated N flux to the lake. Elevated aquatic productivity at this time is also supported by increased percentages of organic C and N, decreased C:N ratios, and decreased values of δ13C. Furthermore, the δ15N values of sediments increase substantially with the establishment of Alnus shrub thickets, suggesting enhanced N availability and accelerated N cycling within the lake and its watershed. Superimposed on a general trend of soil acidification throughout the postglacial period, soil acidity probably increased as a result of the Alnus expansion, as can be inferred from decreasing ratios of authigenic base cations to allogenic silica (Si) and increasing ratios of authigenic aluminum (Al) to allogenic Si. The ultimate cause of these mid-Holocene ecosystem changes was an increase in effective moisture in the region.

Late Quaternary paleoclimatic reconstructions for interior Alaska based on paleolake-level data and hydrologic models*

Hydrologic models are developed for two lakes in interior Alaska to determine quantitative estimates of precipitation over the past 12,500 yrs. Lake levels were reconstructed from core transects for these basins, which probably formed prior to the late Wisconsin. Lake sediment cores indicate that these lakes were shallow prior to 12,500 yr B.P. and increased in level with some fluctuation until they reached their modern levels 4,000-8,000 yr B.P. Evaporation (E), evapotranspiration (ET), and precipitation (P) were adjusted in a water-balance model to determine solutions that would maintain the lakes at reconstructed levels at key times in the past (12,500, 9,000 and 6,000 yr B.P.). Similar paleoclimatic solutions can be obtained for both basins for these times. Results indicate that P was 35-75% less than modern at 12,500 yr B.P., 25-45% less than modern at 9,000 yr B.P. and 10-20% less than modern at 6,000 yr B.P. Estimates for E and ET in the past were based on modern studies of vegetation types indicated by fossil pollen assemblages. Although interior Alaska is predominantly forested at the present, pollen analyses indicate tundra vegetation prior to about 12,000 yr B.P. The lakes show differing sensitivities to changing hydrologic parameters; sensitivity depends on the ratio of lake area (AL) to drainage basin (DA) size. This ratio also changed over time as lake level and lake area increased. Smaller AL to DA ratios make a lake more sensitive to ET, if all other factors are constant.

New AMS dates, stratigraphic correlations and decadal climatic cycles for the past 4 ka at Lake Turkana, Kenya

Abstract New AMS radiocarbon dates and stratigraphic correlations of 7 piston cores recovered from Lake Turkana, East Africa, show that the frequency of cyclic variability is greater than previously reported for a single piston core. Almost 60 new AMS dates of various carbonate fractions indicate that large (150 μm) ostracode carapaces yield the most accurate chronology for the sediment record due to the input of “old” fine-grained carbonate. Stratigraphic correlations among the cores by carbonate abundance and magnetic susceptibility profiles provide supporting evidence for the ostracode-based chronology. This chronology refines earlier estimates of sediment accumulation that impacts the recurrence interval of lamination deposition from one lamination every two years to one lamination per year in two north basin cores. The record of carbonate content within the north basin of the lake reflect its dilution with terrigenous sediments input from the Omo River but direct paleoclimatic interpretations are complicated by lateral migrations of the delta channels with changing lake levels. Time-series analysis of both individual cores and a combined carbonate profile show significant spectral peaks at 1000, 76, 32, 22, 18.6 and 11 yr. The latter three suggest an important link between the sediments accumulating in Lake Turkana and global cycles of climatic variability.