Photo: Chihuahuan Desert, Beg Bend National Park, Texas. © 2017 Delena Norris-Tull.
The Potential Impacts of Climate Change on Native and Introduced Plants
Research summary and commentary by Dr. Delena Norris-Tull, Professor Emerita of Science Education, University of Montana Western, October 2021, Updated November 2024.
Mooney & Cleland, 2001, describe numerous instances wherein evolutionary changes in an invasive species, as a result of living in a new environment, have had an impact on native species. While most of the species described by Mooney and Cleland are animal species, they provide various examples among invasive plants as well. They point out that, “It is commonly acknowledged that the abiotic environment is being greatly altered because of massive land-use alteration and emerging climate change... However, an equally drastic alteration is occurring in the composition of biotic communities. The kinds of physical and biotic environments that exist now are quite different from those that have existed in recent geological times.”
Mooney & Cleland, 2001, describe instances wherein “invasive species have altered the evolutionary trajectory of native species with which they interact. While it is not surprising that an invasive species would evolve in their new habitat in response to a new set of selective pressures, it is surprising that there are a number of clear examples of evolutionary shifts in native species in response to the presence of invaders.”
Mooney & Cleland, 2001, state that, “There are examples of invasive species altering the evolutionary pathway of native species by competitive exclusion, niche displacement, hybridization, introgression, predation, and ultimately extinction.” And they point out that, “Invasive species not only alter competitive interactions and reduce native populations within a community but they can also lead to extinctions. Overall they are considered the second greatest threat to imperiled species in the United States.”
Booth and Vogel, 2006, have made the case that native plants may be poorly adapted to survive future changes in environmental conditions, due to climate change. Within this website, refer to the section on Native Plants for a discussion of their research on the possibility that native-plant cultivars may be better adapted to climatic changes. Also, that chapter describes various projects in the West that are examining the potential impact of climate change on native plant species.
In particular, go to the website for the Great Basin Native Plant Project. Their annual reports, posted on their website, provide details of their research in this ever-more important field. On page 10 of the 2017 Annual Report, the researchers state: “Given the speed and severity with which natural communities are being altered by anthropogenic factors, the application of an evolutionary perspective to restoration ecology is more important than ever. Adjusting seed-selection priorities to account for the existence of locally adapted, intraspecific variation in the Great Basin will promote the maintenance and recovery of resilient, self-sustaining vegetation communities in this region.”
Schierenbeck (2017) attempted to examine the impacts that climate change potentially will have on native plant species in California. To predict future changes to plant populations, it will be crucial to understand the extent to which species have high levels of genetic variation within and across populations, and to understand the relationships between a species’ life history, and the ecological parameters that impact that genetic variation. Species with low genetic variation that are distributed across large landscapes are more likely to be negatively impacted by climate change. And species with very limited ranges that experience frequent severe disturbances, will likely end up with low genetic variation (such as happens with plant communities high in endemic species) and are very likely to suffer severely from climate change. It is very challenging to predict impacts of climate change on whole plant communities. One is forced to examine the adaptability of individual species within the community, and focus on “conserving regions that contain high levels of diversity.” Schierenbeck conducted a meta-analysis using multiple datasets related to plant fitness and heterozygosity. She concluded that loss of heterozygosity “does indeed reflect a negative impact on fitness.” And she found that “high levels of genetic diversity within a taxon dispersed across a diverse array of climate zones and habitat types should confer resilience to varying temperatures. Taxa with low or fragmented patterns of genetic diversity, limited geographic ranges or high habitat specificity are those most in danger of population extirpation or extinction loss due to anthropogenic change.” She also pointed to the necessity of examining ecological relationships between native plants and the insects that interact with them, as insects “are important conduits of gene flow in many plant species.” Insects are particularly susceptible to changes in temperature and CO2 levels. Her meta-analysis includes a variety of specific examples to exemplify her points.
The World Economic Forum developed a report, Transforming Food Systems with Farmers, to assist the European Union nations in developing sustainable agricultural practices, practices the WEF calls Climate-Smart Agriculture. The report states that, “if just an additional 20% of farmers adopted climate-smart agriculture, by 2030, the EU could reduce its annual agricultural GHG (Greenhouse Gas) emissions by 6% and improve soil health over an area equivalent to 14% of EU’s agricultural land while improving farmer livelihoods by between €1.9 and €9.3 billion annually” (WEF, 2022, page 4).
The WEF recommends 28 climate-smart agricultural practices, which are listed on page 7 of the report. A number of those practices are also elaborated on in within this website.
Commentary by Dr. Delena Norris-Tull: While Schierenbeck focused on native species, it is useful to note that many crop species have low genetic variation and are planted across large landscapes, and thus are also more susceptible to the impacts of climate change.
References:
Next Sections:
The Potential Impacts of Climate Change on Native and Introduced Plants
Research summary and commentary by Dr. Delena Norris-Tull, Professor Emerita of Science Education, University of Montana Western, October 2021, Updated November 2024.
Mooney & Cleland, 2001, describe numerous instances wherein evolutionary changes in an invasive species, as a result of living in a new environment, have had an impact on native species. While most of the species described by Mooney and Cleland are animal species, they provide various examples among invasive plants as well. They point out that, “It is commonly acknowledged that the abiotic environment is being greatly altered because of massive land-use alteration and emerging climate change... However, an equally drastic alteration is occurring in the composition of biotic communities. The kinds of physical and biotic environments that exist now are quite different from those that have existed in recent geological times.”
Mooney & Cleland, 2001, describe instances wherein “invasive species have altered the evolutionary trajectory of native species with which they interact. While it is not surprising that an invasive species would evolve in their new habitat in response to a new set of selective pressures, it is surprising that there are a number of clear examples of evolutionary shifts in native species in response to the presence of invaders.”
Mooney & Cleland, 2001, state that, “There are examples of invasive species altering the evolutionary pathway of native species by competitive exclusion, niche displacement, hybridization, introgression, predation, and ultimately extinction.” And they point out that, “Invasive species not only alter competitive interactions and reduce native populations within a community but they can also lead to extinctions. Overall they are considered the second greatest threat to imperiled species in the United States.”
Booth and Vogel, 2006, have made the case that native plants may be poorly adapted to survive future changes in environmental conditions, due to climate change. Within this website, refer to the section on Native Plants for a discussion of their research on the possibility that native-plant cultivars may be better adapted to climatic changes. Also, that chapter describes various projects in the West that are examining the potential impact of climate change on native plant species.
In particular, go to the website for the Great Basin Native Plant Project. Their annual reports, posted on their website, provide details of their research in this ever-more important field. On page 10 of the 2017 Annual Report, the researchers state: “Given the speed and severity with which natural communities are being altered by anthropogenic factors, the application of an evolutionary perspective to restoration ecology is more important than ever. Adjusting seed-selection priorities to account for the existence of locally adapted, intraspecific variation in the Great Basin will promote the maintenance and recovery of resilient, self-sustaining vegetation communities in this region.”
Schierenbeck (2017) attempted to examine the impacts that climate change potentially will have on native plant species in California. To predict future changes to plant populations, it will be crucial to understand the extent to which species have high levels of genetic variation within and across populations, and to understand the relationships between a species’ life history, and the ecological parameters that impact that genetic variation. Species with low genetic variation that are distributed across large landscapes are more likely to be negatively impacted by climate change. And species with very limited ranges that experience frequent severe disturbances, will likely end up with low genetic variation (such as happens with plant communities high in endemic species) and are very likely to suffer severely from climate change. It is very challenging to predict impacts of climate change on whole plant communities. One is forced to examine the adaptability of individual species within the community, and focus on “conserving regions that contain high levels of diversity.” Schierenbeck conducted a meta-analysis using multiple datasets related to plant fitness and heterozygosity. She concluded that loss of heterozygosity “does indeed reflect a negative impact on fitness.” And she found that “high levels of genetic diversity within a taxon dispersed across a diverse array of climate zones and habitat types should confer resilience to varying temperatures. Taxa with low or fragmented patterns of genetic diversity, limited geographic ranges or high habitat specificity are those most in danger of population extirpation or extinction loss due to anthropogenic change.” She also pointed to the necessity of examining ecological relationships between native plants and the insects that interact with them, as insects “are important conduits of gene flow in many plant species.” Insects are particularly susceptible to changes in temperature and CO2 levels. Her meta-analysis includes a variety of specific examples to exemplify her points.
The World Economic Forum developed a report, Transforming Food Systems with Farmers, to assist the European Union nations in developing sustainable agricultural practices, practices the WEF calls Climate-Smart Agriculture. The report states that, “if just an additional 20% of farmers adopted climate-smart agriculture, by 2030, the EU could reduce its annual agricultural GHG (Greenhouse Gas) emissions by 6% and improve soil health over an area equivalent to 14% of EU’s agricultural land while improving farmer livelihoods by between €1.9 and €9.3 billion annually” (WEF, 2022, page 4).
The WEF recommends 28 climate-smart agricultural practices, which are listed on page 7 of the report. A number of those practices are also elaborated on in within this website.
Commentary by Dr. Delena Norris-Tull: While Schierenbeck focused on native species, it is useful to note that many crop species have low genetic variation and are planted across large landscapes, and thus are also more susceptible to the impacts of climate change.
References:
- Booth, D.T., & Vogel, K.P. (Oct., 2006). Revegetation priorities. Rangelands, 28(5): 24-30.
- Mooney, H.A., & Cleland, E.E. (May 8, 2001). The evolutionary impact of invasive species. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 98 (10) 5446-5451.
- Schierenbeck, K.A. (2017). Population-level genetic variation and climate change in a biodiversity hotspot. Annals of Botany, 119, 215-228. Oxford University Press.
- World Economic Forum. (April 2022). Transforming Food Systems with Farmers: A Pathway for the EU. World Economic Forum, in collaboration with Deloitte & NTT Data.
Next Sections: