Tree-ring analysis of wetlands of the upper St. Lawrence River, Quebec: response to hydrology and climate

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
A dendrochronological analysis of three tree species colonizing a swamp along the St. Lawrence River was undertaken to (a) study the extent to which water-level fluctuations have an impact on tree growth in comparison to climatic variations; (b) compare the responses of three species (Acerrubrum L., Larixlaricina (Du Roi) K. Koch, and Thujaoccidentalis L.) with hydrologic and climatic variations; and (c) examine the duration of the influence of water-level fluctuations on tree growth. Tree cores from 78 stands were cross-dated and verified with COFECHA and a master chronology for each species was produced using ARSTAN. Response function analyses were used to measure the influence of climate (temperature and precipitation) and water level on tree growth. Water-level fluctuations have a significant influence on A. rubrum growth, accounting for 30% of the tree growth variation. A significant relationship exists between L. laricina and water-level fluctuations, but only 9% of the tree growth is explained by hydrology. No significant relationship was found between water levels and T. occidentalis growth. Climatic fluctuations are a more important influence on growth for all three species, accounting for 46% to 51% of the tree growth variation not explained by water levels.

This publication has 0 references indexed in Scilit: