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English to Portuguese: Climate change could kill off Andean cloud forests, home to thousands of species found nowhere else General field: Science Detailed field: Environment & Ecology
Source text - English Climate change could kill off Andean cloud forests, home to thousands of species found nowhere else
One of the richest ecosystems on the planet may not survive a hotter climate without human help, according to a sobering new paper in the open source journal PLoS ONE. Although little-studied compared to lowland rainforests, the cloud forests of the Andes are known to harbor explosions of life, including thousands of species found nowhere else. Many of these species—from airy ferns to beautiful orchids to tiny frogs—thrive in small ranges that are temperature-dependent. But what happens when the climate heats up?
"Shifts in temperature will require upslope migration for most species to remain in equilibrium with climate and therefore potentially avoid extinction," the scientists write in the paper.
However looking at aerial photos and satellite imagery of Manu National Park from 1963 to 2005, the researchers found that Andean cloud forests may run into an insurmountable border as they attempt to migrate up mountain sides: puna grasslands. Although the temperature has warmed significantly since the 1960s, the researchers found that the treeline bordering the Andean cloud forests and high-altitude grasslands had hardly moved. In fact, according to the research, 80 percent of this border remained stable in the study area since 1963. This transition area between one ecosystem (cloud forest) and another (puna grasslands) is known to scientists as an ecotone.
"Previous work we've done shows that the trees in the forest are migrating upwards [in response to climate change], but this work shows the ecotone isn't," notes co-author Miles Silman with Wake Forest University. "The ecotone presents a wall to species migration."
While Andean trees are already moving rapidly upslope in response to climate change, they have not been able yet to penetrate the ecotone barrier, according to the study. The scientists aren't certain why the puna grasslands aren't making way for cloud forests more rapidly as temperatures rise, but it appears that this colonization needs considerably more time than cloud forests species have under current climate predictions. (...)
Translation - Portuguese Mudança climática pode destruir as florestas montanhosas andinas, lar de milhares de espécies endêmicas
Um dos ecossistemas mais abundantes do planeta talvez não sobreviva a um aquecimento climático caso não conte com ajuda humana, relata um novo e elucidativo estudo do periódico livre PloS ONE. Embora menos estudadas do que as florestas tropicais de terras baixas, as florestas montanhosas andinas são conhecidas por abrigar irrupções de vida, incluindo milhares de espécies endêmicas. Muitas dessas espécies, de graciosas samambaias a belas orquídeas e pequeninos sapos, proliferam-se em pequenas áreas que dependem das temperaturas. Mas o que acontece quando o clima aquece?
“Alterações de temperatura exigirão cada vez mais migrações para que a maioria das espécies continue em equilíbrio com o clima, e portanto, evitem uma possível extinção” dizem os cientistas no estudo.
No entanto, ao olhar fotos aéreas e imagens de satélite do Parque Nacional Manu de 1963 até 2005, os pesquisadores descobriram que as florestas montanhosas andinas talvez encontrem uma fronteira intransponível ao tentar migrar montanha acima: as pastagens de Puna. Embora a temperatura venha aumentando significativamente desde os anos 60, os pesquisadores descobriram que a série de árvores que circunda as florestas montanhosas andinas e as pastagens de grande altitude mal se deslocaram. De fato, de acordo com a pesquisa, 80% dessa fronteira permaneceu estável na área estudada desde 1963. Essa área de transição entre um ecossistema (floresta montanhosa) e outro (pastagens de Puna) é conhecida pelos cientistas como ecótono.
“Os trabalhos que realizamos anteriormente mostram que as árvores da floresta estão migrando para o alto (devido à mudança climática), mas este trabalho mostra que o ecótono não está”, nota o co-autor Miles Silman, da Wake Forest University. “O ecótono é uma barreira contra a migração das espécies”.
Embora as árvores andinas já estejam se movendo rapidamente em direção ao topo em resposta à mudança climática, ainda não foram capazes de penetrar a barreira do ecótono, de acordo com o estudo. Os cientistas não sabem por que as pastagens de Puna não estão abrindo caminho para as florestas montanhosas com mais rapidez enquanto as temperaturas sobem, mas parece que essa colonização precisa de muito mais tempo do que as espécies dessas florestas têm sob as atuais previsões climáticas. (...)
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