Climate–Growth Sensitivity Reveals Species-Specific Adaptation Strategies of Montane Conifers to Warming in the Wuyi Mountains

Subtropical montane conifers exhibit distinct, species-specific adaptation strategies to climate change, with Pinus taiwanensis showing consistent temperature sensitivity and increasing growth response to summer warming, while Cryptomeria fortunei's growth is primarily regulated by moisture availability. This study employed dendroclimatological methods to analyze long-term climate-growth relationships in the Wuyi Mountains, revealing divergent responses: P. taiwanensis' radial growth positively correlated with summer temperatures (current and previous year), whereas C. fortunei's growth was influenced by precipitation patterns from the previous autumn and winter. These findings underscore the need for species-specific adaptive forest management strategies to maintain ecosystem services under future climate change.

Zheng, X., Yu, J., Hu, Y., Zhou, X., Ding, H., & Ge, X. (2025). Climate–Growth Sensitivity Reveals Species-Specific Adaptation Strategies of Montane Conifers to Warming in the Wuyi Mountains. Forests, 16(8), 1299. https://doi.org/10.3390/f16081299