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Henry D. Adams

Dissertation Title

Global change and drought-induced tree mortality: temperature sensitivity, mechanism, and ecohydological implications.

Dissertation Summary

The aim of my dissertation research is to understand the temperature sensitivity, mechanism, and implications of drought-induced mortality in trees, so that better predictions of vegetation and ecosystem response to global change can be made.

I am currently engaged in research quantifying the physiological threshold of drought-induced mortality in pinyon pine (Pinus edulis). We are using the unique environmental controls of the Biosphere 2 Facility and an elevation gradient in northern Arizona to compare tree physiological response and mortality under a warmer, global-change-type drought with that of current climate conditions.

Why my research is important

Global climate change has enormous potential to disrupt natural systems. Many attempts at predicting vegetation response to global change are based on models which include simplistic assumptions. For example, some models predict future species ranges by pairing current ranges with current climate, predicting future climate shifts, and assuming that communities will follow. Many have expressed a need to improve such models by including more complex plant responses to climatic stress. The goal of my research is to provide results that can be used in this way.

Funding

My research is funded by a U.S. Department of Agriculture Ecohydrology Fellowship (Grant 2005-02335: Multidisciplinary Training in Ecohydrology for Addressing National Watershed Needs), the Biosphere 2 Earthscience Program (via the Philecology Foundation) and, the U.S. Department of Energy NICCR Program: DOE#DE-FC02-06ER64159.

Publications

Adams HD, Guardiola-Claramonte M, Barron-Gafford GA, Villegas JC, Breshears DD, Zou CB, Troch PA, Huxman TE. 2009. Temperature sensitivity of drought-induced tree mortality portends increased regional die-off under global change-type drought. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA In Press.

Breshears, DD, Huxman TE, Adams HD, Zou CB, Davison JE. 2008. Commentary: Vegetation synchronously leans upslope as climate warms. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA 105:11591-11592.

McDowell NG, Adams HD, Bailey JD, Kolb TE.  2007.  The role of stand density on growth efficiency, leaf area index, and resin flow in southwestern ponderosa pine forests.  Canadian Journal of Forest Research 37:343-355.

McDowell NG, Adams HD, Bailey JD, Hess M, Kolb TE. 2006. Homeostatic maintenance of ponderosa pine gas exchange in response to stand density changes. Ecological Applications 16:1164-1182.

Adams HD and Kolb TE. 2005. Tree growth response to drought and temperature in a mountain landscape in northern Arizona, USA. Journal of Biogeography 32:1629-1640.

Adams HD and Kolb TE. 2004. Drought responses of conifers in ecotone forests of northern Arizona: tree ring growth and leaf δ 13C. Oecologia 140:217-225.

 

Advisors
David D. Breshears
Travis E. Huxman
Committee 
David D. Breshears
Travis E. Huxman
Lisa J.Graumlich
Scott Saleska
Starting date
6/15/2007
Contact details

Henry D. Adams
PhD Student
Terrestrial Ecology Laboratory
& The Huxman Laboratory
Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
University of Arizona
Tucson, Arizona, USA

Curriculum Vitae

henry@email.arizona.edu

Ph:520-621-8220
or 520-626-7131

Terrestrial Ecology Lab

228 Biological Science Building East

University of Arizona, 1311 E 4th Street, Tucson, AZ 85721

Ph: 520-621-7259

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