Ecology of treeline advance from a holistic perspective

Elucidating the ecological manifestations of climate change within upper treeline ecotones is challenging because changes in topography create sharp environmental gradients that produce ecologically-meaningful differences in both temperature and moisture availability over relatively short distances. Yet, this talk draws from extensive research in the U.S. Rocky Mountains that suggests adopting a holistic perspective on the numerous process interactions responsible for governing upper treeline advance across space and time can improve future projections of the uppermost extent of high-elevation forests in this region.