Experimental warming decouples plant-fungal symbiont interactions and leads to a more conservative ecosystem.
Souza L, Classen AT, Rudgers JA, Miller CML, Pyle JAM
Climate Adaptation
Mountain meadows and wildflower-rich grasslands many people hike through and depend on for clean water and biodiversity are quietly transforming underground as well as above — and once the beneficial fungal networks that sustain diverse plant communities break down, those ecosystems may be very hard to restore.
Scientists warmed a patch of Rocky Mountain meadow for 29 years and watched it slowly transform: the colorful wildflowers and grasses disappeared while shrubs took over. Underground, the helpful fungi that normally plug into plant roots and trade nutrients for sugar — keeping the whole plant community thriving — started dying off. The warming essentially cut the underground supply lines that diverse meadow plants rely on, pushing the ecosystem toward something more like a dry desert scrubland.
Key Findings
Shrubs increased by 150% in warmed plots over 29 years, while forbs and grasses each declined by approximately 28%.
Beneficial root-colonizing fungi (mycorrhizal associations) declined 17–20% under warming, while decomposer fungi in the soil increased by 10%.
Warming decoupled above- and belowground communities: plants became less reliant on mycorrhizal fungi even as soil phosphorus availability increased, reversing the typical driver of the partnership.
chevron_right Technical Summary
After nearly 30 years of experimental warming in a Colorado mountain meadow, grasses and wildflowers gave way to shrubs, and the underground fungal partnerships plants depend on for nutrients collapsed — suggesting warming transforms grasslands into shrubland-like ecosystems both above and below ground.
Abstract Preview
Climate forecasts project rising temperatures for every land surface on Earth. Predicting the consequences of climate warming poses a challenge for science and society. Shifts in plant-microbial in...
open_in_new Read full abstractAbstract copyright held by the original publisher.
Was this useful?
Want to tell us more? (optional)
Thanks for the note!
Something went wrong — please try again.
Too many submissions. Try again in an hour.
Urban Tree Canopy Reduces Heat-Related Mortality by 39% in European Cities
Trees in your local park or street aren't just pretty — they are literally keeping people alive during heatwaves, and planting even a modest number of the ri...
Mycorrhizal networks are underground fungal systems that connect plant roots together, forming symbiotic relationships where fungi provide essential nutrients and water in exchange for sugars produced by photosynthesis. These networks fundamentally reshape how plants acquire resources and interact
arrow_forward Explore topic