- UAB-CREAF, Global Ecology Unit (GEU), Faculty Memberadd
- Global Ecology, Global change, Climate Change, Macroecology, Plant Ecophysiology, Chemical Ecology, and 8 moreRemote Sensing, Functioning and structure of terrestrial plants and ecosystems, Atmospheric pollution, Biogenic Volatile Organic Compounds emissions, Environmental Sustainability, Biogeochemistry, Food Security, and Ecometabolomicsedit
- Prof. Josep Peñuelas is a Research Professor of the National Research Council of Spain (CSIC) and CREAF (Center for E... moreProf. Josep Peñuelas is a Research Professor of the National Research Council of Spain (CSIC) and CREAF (Center for Ecological Research and Forestry Applications).
Director of the Global Ecology Unit CREAF-CSIC-UB-UAB in CREAF -Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona,
Lab Web: http://globalecology.creaf.cat/
ORCID Number: 0000-0002-7215-0150
Ex-President of Institució Catalana d’Història Natural, and Ex-Advisor of the Council for Sustainable Development of Catalunya (CADS) Catalan Government. He was Titular Professor of Ecology in the University of Barcelona until 1990.
Prof Peñuelas is highly cited scientist in ecology/environment, in plant and animal sciences, agricultural sciences, geosciences and in all science fields of the ISI essential science indicatorsedit
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Stilbene synthases (STSs) are enzymes that play a critical role in the biosynthesis of stilbenes, phytoalexins that are induced by various biotic and abiotic stressors like pathogen attack, UV radiation or ozone exposure. To investigate... more
Stilbene synthases (STSs) are enzymes that play a critical role in the biosynthesis of stilbenes, phytoalexins that are induced by various biotic and abiotic stressors like pathogen attack, UV radiation or ozone exposure. To investigate the molecular basis for ozone-and ...
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Un estudi del Centre de Recerca Ecologica i Aplicacions Forestals (CREAF), de la Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, dut a terme per Alistair Jump, investigador postdoctoral, i Josep Penuelas, professor d'investigacio del CREAF i del... more
Un estudi del Centre de Recerca Ecologica i Aplicacions Forestals (CREAF), de la Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, dut a terme per Alistair Jump, investigador postdoctoral, i Josep Penuelas, professor d'investigacio del CREAF i del Consell Superior d'Investigacions Cientifiques (CSIC), ha demostrat que la fragmentacio de les masses forestals redueix la seva diversitat genetica.
Research Interests: Philosophy and Humanities
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Research Interests: Evolutionary Biology, Environmental Science, Ecosystem Services, Ecology, Ecological Networks, and 9 moreSocial Ecological Systems, Medicine, Biological Sciences, Environmental Sciences, Science Technology, Ecology and Environmental Sciences, service Business, Archaeology of Natural Places, and Life Sciences & Biomedicine
<p>Increasing climate change and nitrogen deposition are altering vegetation structure and functioning globally, yet the changes in species diversity, vegetation cover and functioning of global shrublands to... more
<p>Increasing climate change and nitrogen deposition are altering vegetation structure and functioning globally, yet the changes in species diversity, vegetation cover and functioning of global shrublands to these environmental changes are not systematically quantified. We conducted a global meta-analysis to quantify the shrubland responses relating to plant cover and density, species diversity and shrub encroachment as well as the functions for the shrub communities across 77 study sites to experimental warming, precipitation shifts and nitrogen addition. A sensitivity index was applied to account for the net vegetation responses of these vegetation metrics to the simulated drivers and explore the associations with the site background climate and soil nutrient variables. We observe that all the metrics were vulnerable to the treatments, the sensitivity was negative for most vegetation metrics under drought. Few vegetation metrics had sensitivity differences for the temporal scales (short-term vs long-term) of manipulations and successional stages (mature vs disturbed communities). Vegetation sensitivities to the environmental variables were associated with the site background climate and soil nutrient availability. Given the increasing challenges for future climate and nitrogen enrichment, quantifying the patterns of shrubland sensitivity and exploring their correlations with the site water and soil nutrient availability have important implications for management strategies and conservation of global shrublands.</p>
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Flash droughts pose large threats to crop yields and ecosystem services due to their sudden onset and rapid intensification, arousing wide public concern in a warming climate. Their long-term characteristics of change, underlying... more
Flash droughts pose large threats to crop yields and ecosystem services due to their sudden onset and rapid intensification, arousing wide public concern in a warming climate. Their long-term characteristics of change, underlying mechanisms, and especially potential impacts on agriculture, forests, and populations at a global scale, however, remain largely unknown. We used in situ observations, two observation-based global reanalysis data sets, and 22 Earth system models to determine that flash droughts are shifting toward more frequent, accelerated-onset, and longer duration. These changes increased the exposure of agricultural areas, forested areas, and populations to flash droughts by 20.3%, 17.1%, and 30.0%, respectively, during 2001–2020 compared to 1981–2000, with a disproportionate increase in integrated risks across the Amazon Basin and eastern and southern Asia. The increase in concurrent hot and dry climatic conditions driven by warming has been mostly responsible for enab...
Understanding the relationship between plant water status and productivity and between plant water status and plant mortality is required to effectively quantify and predict the effects of drought on plants. Plant water status is closely... more
Understanding the relationship between plant water status and productivity and between plant water status and plant mortality is required to effectively quantify and predict the effects of drought on plants. Plant water status is closely linked to leaf water content that may be estimated using remote sensing technologies. Here, we used an inexpensive miniature hyperspectral spectrometer in the 1550–1950 nm wavelength domain to measure changes in silver birch (Betula pendula Roth) leaf water content combined with leaf gas exchange measurements at a sub-minute time resolution, under increasing vapor pressure deficit, CO2 concentrations, and light intensity within the measurement cuvette; we also developed a novel methodology for calibrating reflectance measurements to predict leaf water content for individual leaves. Based on reflectance at 1550 nm, linear regression modeling explained 98–99% of the variation in leaf water content, with a root mean square error of 0.31–0.43 g cm−2. Th...
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The massive use of fertilizers during the last decades allowed a great increase in the global capacity of food production. However, in the last years, several studies highlight the inefficiency and country asymmetries in the use of these... more
The massive use of fertilizers during the last decades allowed a great increase in the global capacity of food production. However, in the last years, several studies highlight the inefficiency and country asymmetries in the use of these fertilizers that generated environmental problems, soil nutritional imbalances and not optimal food production. We have aimed to summarize this information and identify and disentangle the key caveats that should be solved. Inadequate global management of fertilization produces areas with serious nutrient deficits in croplands linked with insufficient access to fertilizers that clearly limit food production, and areas that are overfertilized with the consequent problems of environmental pollution affecting human health. A more efficient use of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) fertilizers for food security while preserving the environment is thus needed. Nutrient imbalances, particularly the disequilibrium of the N:P ratio due to the un...
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Research Interests: Photosynthesis and Canopy
The current study analyses the evolution of different human stress markers during an 8 h exposure to a Mediterranean Holm oak forest. We conducted a pre-post study with thirty-one subjects in which saliva samples were collected before the... more
The current study analyses the evolution of different human stress markers during an 8 h exposure to a Mediterranean Holm oak forest. We conducted a pre-post study with thirty-one subjects in which saliva samples were collected before the exposure (baseline) and after 1, 2, 4 and 8 h. Our results show: (A) a significant decrease in cortisol saliva concentrations from the second hour until the end compared to basal time; (B) a significant increase in alpha amylase activity after the first hour of exposure compared to basal time that remained elevated during the rest of the study; (C) a significant decrease in IgA from the fourth hour of exposure compared to the basal time. These findings indicate an effect of forest exposure in salivary biomarkers of stress and provide relevant data for the scientific and healthcare community encouraging further research in the field.
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Research Interests: Science and Carbon Fibers
More efficient use of soil resources, such as nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P), can improve plant community resistance and resilience against drought in arid and semi-arid lands. Intercropping of legume and non-legumes can be an effective... more
More efficient use of soil resources, such as nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P), can improve plant community resistance and resilience against drought in arid and semi-arid lands. Intercropping of legume and non-legumes can be an effective practice for enhancing P mineralization uptake, and plant nutrient status. However, it remains unclear how intercropping systems using desert plant species impact soil-plant P fractions and how they affect N and water uptake capacity. Alhagi sparsifolia (a legume) and Karelinia caspia (a non-legume) are dominant plant species in the Taklamakan Desert in Xinjiang Province, China. However, there is a lack of knowledge of whether these species, when intercropped, can trigger synergistic processes and mechanisms that drive more efficient use of soil resources. Thus, in a field experiment over two years, we investigated the impact of monoculture and intercropping of these plant species on soil-plant P fractions and soil-plant nutrients. Both plant specie...
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Terrestrial ecosystems, and forests in particular, are important components of land processes because of their key role in reducing atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations by storing a large amount of carbon in tree biomass and soils... more
Terrestrial ecosystems, and forests in particular, are important components of land processes because of their key role in reducing atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations by storing a large amount of carbon in tree biomass and soils [...]
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Reforesting and managing ecosystems have been proposed as ways to mitigate global warming and offset anthropogenic carbon emissions. The intent of our opinion piece is to provide a perspective on how well plants and ecosystems sequester... more
Reforesting and managing ecosystems have been proposed as ways to mitigate global warming and offset anthropogenic carbon emissions. The intent of our opinion piece is to provide a perspective on how well plants and ecosystems sequester carbon. The ability of individual plants and ecosystems to mine carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, as defined by rates and cumulative amounts, is limited by laws of physics and ecological principles. Consequently, the rates and amount of net carbon uptake are slow and low compared to the rates and amounts of carbon dioxide we release by fossil fuels combustion. Managing ecosystems to sequester carbon can also cause unintended consequences to arise. In this paper, we articulate a series of key take‐home points. First, the potential amount of carbon an ecosystem can assimilate on an annual basis scales with absorbed sunlight, which varies with latitude, leaf area index and available water. Second, efforts to improve photosynthesis will come with the c...
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Leaf senescence in winter deciduous species signals the transition from the active to the dormant stage. The purpose of leaf senescence is the recovery of nutrients before the leaves fall. Photoperiod and temperature are the main cues... more
Leaf senescence in winter deciduous species signals the transition from the active to the dormant stage. The purpose of leaf senescence is the recovery of nutrients before the leaves fall. Photoperiod and temperature are the main cues controlling leaf senescence in winter deciduous species, with water stress imposing an additional influence. Photoperiod exerts a strict control on leaf senescence at latitudes where winters are severe and temperature gains importance in the regulation as winters become less severe. On average, climatic warming will delay and drought will advance leaf senescence, but at varying degrees depending on the species. Warming and drought thus have opposite effects on the phenology of leaf senescence, and the impact of climate change will therefore depend on the relative importance of each factor in specific regions. Warming is not expected to have a strong impact on nutrient proficiency although a slower speed of leaf senescence induced by warming could facil...
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Research Interests: Environmental Science, Plant Biology, Regeneration (Biology), Global change, Phosphorus, and 11 moreTrees, Nutrient, Biomass production, Forestry Sciences, Aboveground biomass, Environmental Conditions, Nutrient Use Efficiency, Pinus Halepensis, Nutrient Loss, Nutrient Concentration, and Tree Species
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Predicting climate‐driven changes in plant distribution is crucial for biodiversity conservation and management under recent climate change. Climate warming is expected to induce movement of species upslope and towards higher latitudes.... more
Predicting climate‐driven changes in plant distribution is crucial for biodiversity conservation and management under recent climate change. Climate warming is expected to induce movement of species upslope and towards higher latitudes. However, the mechanisms and physiological processes behind the altitudinal and latitudinal distribution range of a tree species are complex and depend on each tree species features and vary over ontogenetic stages. We investigated the altitudinal distribution differences between juvenile and adult individuals of seven major European tree species along elevational transects covering a wide latitudinal range from southern Spain (37°N) to northern Sweden (67°N). By comparing juvenile and adult distributions (shifts on the optimum position and the range limits) we assessed the response of species to present climate conditions in relation to previous conditions that prevailed when adults were established. Mean temperature increased by 0.86 °C on average a...
Research Interests: Environmental Science, Climate Change, Biology, Ecology, Global Change Biology, and 15 moreMedicine, Global Warming, Biological Sciences, Environmental Sciences, Europe, Forest, Altitudinal gradient, Fagus Sylvatica, Acer, Fagaceae, Picea abies, Altitude, Pinaceae, Generalized Additive Models, and Plant Dispersal
Shifts in plant species and biome distribution in response to warming have been described in past climate changes. However, reported evidence of such shifts under current climate change is still scarce. By comparing current and 1945... more
Shifts in plant species and biome distribution in response to warming have been described in past climate changes. However, reported evidence of such shifts under current climate change is still scarce. By comparing current and 1945 vegetation distribution in the Montseny mountains (Catalonia, NE Spain), we report here a progressive replacement of cold‐temperate ecosystems by Mediterranean ecosystems. Beech (Fagus sylvatica) forest has shifted altitudinally upwards by ca. 70 m at the highest altitudes (1600–1700 m). Both the beech forests and the heather (Calluna vulgaris) heathlands are being replaced by holm oak (Quercus ilex) forest at medium altitudes (800–1400 m). This beech replacement has been observed to occur through a progressive isolation and degradation of beech stands. In ‘isolated’ (small and surrounded by holm oaks) beech stands, beech trees are 30% more defoliated, beech recruitment is 41% lower, and holm oak recruitment is three times higher than in ‘continental’ (l...
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In this study, we investigated the potential of the photochemical resistance index (PRI) to track photosynthetic activity under water stress conditions by measuring PRI, leaf fluorescence, the xanthophyll cycle and photosynthetic activity... more
In this study, we investigated the potential of the photochemical resistance index (PRI) to track photosynthetic activity under water stress conditions by measuring PRI, leaf fluorescence, the xanthophyll cycle and photosynthetic activity in different forest tree species subjected to progressive drought. The PRI declined with pre-dawn water potential and a significant relationship between PRI and the xanthophyll de-epoxidation state (DEPS) was observed, although with large interspecific variability in the sensitivity of PRI to changes in DEPS. For single tree species, a strong relationship was observed on either PRI light saturated photosynthesis or PRI maximum photochemical efficiency of PSII (ΔF/Fm′); a larger variability in both relationships was apparent when data from different species were pooled together. However, an improved correlation was shown only in the former relationship by plotting the ΔPRI (dawn PRI minus the midday PRI values). Thus, we conclude that PRI is able to...
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Summary We present a unifying model for isoprene emission by photosynthesizing leaves based on the hypothesis that isoprene biosynthesis depends on a balance between the supply of photosynthetic reducing power and the demands of carbon... more
Summary We present a unifying model for isoprene emission by photosynthesizing leaves based on the hypothesis that isoprene biosynthesis depends on a balance between the supply of photosynthetic reducing power and the demands of carbon fixation. We compared the predictions from our model, as well as from two other widely used models, with measurements of isoprene emission from leaves of Populus nigra and hybrid aspen (Populus tremula × P. tremuloides) in response to changes in leaf internal CO2 concentration (Ci) and photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD) under diverse ambient CO2 concentrations (Ca). Our model reproduces the observed changes in isoprene emissions with Ci and PPFD, and also reproduces the tendency for the fraction of fixed carbon allocated to isoprene to increase with increasing PPFD. It also provides a simple mechanism for the previously unexplained decrease in the quantum efficiency of isoprene emission with increasing Ca. Experimental and modelled results supp...
Research Interests: Environmental Science, Climate Change, Carbon Dioxide, Carbon, Photosynthesis, and 15 moreModelling, Medicine, Biological Sciences, Populus, Atmospheric sciences, Plant sciences, Isoprene, Photosynthetic electron transport, In Vivo, Ecosystem, Science Technology, Carbon Fixation, Quantum Yield, Tropospheric Chemistry, and Plant Leaves
Research Interests: Botany, Carbon, Biology, Ecology, Medicine, and 15 moreHumans, Delta, Nitrogen, Evolutionary History, leaf mass per Area, Oecologia, Intraspecific Variation, Fagaceae, Functional Type, Mediterranean region, Interspecific competition, Intraspecific Competition, Gas Exchange, Interspecific Variation, and Dry Season
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Research Interests: Geography, Biogeochemistry, Principal Component Analysis, Environmental Monitoring, Public Health, and 15 moreMedicine, Multidisciplinary, Spain, Humans, Herbarium, Plants, Pollution, Human health, Ecosystem, Retrospective Studies, Human Activity, Environmental Pollutants, Vascular Plants, Oil Pollution, and Public Policy
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Research Interests: Environmental Engineering, Chemistry, Drought, Atmospheric sciences, Human health, and 14 moreQuercus ilex, Mediterranean Climate, Plant species, Water soluble polymers, Aleppo Pine, Pinus Halepensis, Formaldehyde, Emission, Uptake, Diurnal Cycle, Stomatal Conductance, Tree Species, Atmospheric Environment, and Biogenic
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Can be found in: http://www.medpan.org/documents/10180/0/Study+of+Marine+Invasive+species+in+Montgri+Natural+Park,%20Spain/9822eaaf-2ab5-48d5-bef8-c633cf2e509d;jsessionid=CEC4764593392CC142826C8872EC9F9F Weitzmann, B., García M.,... more
Can be found in: http://www.medpan.org/documents/10180/0/Study+of+Marine+Invasive+species+in+Montgri+Natural+Park,%20Spain/9822eaaf-2ab5-48d5-bef8-c633cf2e509d;jsessionid=CEC4764593392CC142826C8872EC9F9F Weitzmann, B., García M., Casanovas R. (2013). Estudi de les espècies marines invasores al Parc Natural del Montgrí, les Illes Medes i el Baix Ter. Informe tècnic. Parc Natural del Montgrí, les Illes Medes i el Baix Ter. Departament d'Agricultura, Ramaderia, Pesca, Alimentació i Medi Natural, Generalitat de Catalunya i Ecological Analytics and Consultants
Spring phenology is mainly driven by temperature in extratropical ecosystems. Contrasting responses of foliar phenology to climatic warming, however, have been reported in recent decades, raising important questions about the role of... more
Spring phenology is mainly driven by temperature in extratropical ecosystems. Contrasting responses of foliar phenology to climatic warming, however, have been reported in recent decades, raising important questions about the role of other environmental constraints, especially light. In fact, temperatures differ substantially between plant tissues and the air because plants absorb and lose energy. Yet, phenology studies always substitute plant tissue temperature by air temperature. Here, we explored how solar radiation, wind, and bud traits might affect spring phenology of deciduous forests through the energy budget of buds. We show that air temperature might be an imprecise and biased predictor of bud temperature. Our current interpretation of the plant phenological response to warming should be reconsidered, which will require new observations of bud traits and temperature for accurately quantifying their energy budget.
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The canker-causing fungus Seiridium cardinale is the major threat to Cupressus sempervirens worldwide. We investigated the production of terpenes by canker-resistant and susceptible cypresses inoculated with S. cardinale, the effect of... more
The canker-causing fungus Seiridium cardinale is the major threat to Cupressus sempervirens worldwide. We investigated the production of terpenes by canker-resistant and susceptible cypresses inoculated with S. cardinale, the effect of these terpenes on fungal growth and the defensive biotransformation of the terpenes conducted by the fungus. All infected trees produced de novo terpenes and strongly induced terpenic responses, but the responses were stronger in the canker-resistant than the susceptible trees. In vitro tests for the inhibition of fungal growth indicated that the terpene concentrations of resistant trees were more inhibitory than those of susceptible trees. The highly induced and de novo terpenes exhibited substantial inhibition (more than a fungicide reference) and had a high concentration-dependent inhibition, whereas the most abundant terpenes had a low concentration-dependent inhibition. S. cardinale biotransformed three terpenes and was capable of detoxifying the...
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ABSTRACT http://www.icp-forests.org/RepEx.htm