(Dis)connecting the Globe Through Water‐Driven Ecological and Biogeochemical Corridors in the Polar‐Alpine Biome

作者：Pilar Hurtado, Asunción de los Rı́os, Rebeca Arias‐Real · 发表于：Global Change Biology · 年份：2024 · DOI：10.1111/gcb.17606 · 被引用次数：4 · 研究领域：Climate change and permafrost、Geology and Paleoclimatology Research、Geological Studies and Exploration

Global change is causing the melting of ice masses, permafrost thawing, and the shrinking of glaciers, thereby reshaping nature's rhythms. Longer thaw phases and more frequent dry periods are transforming water-driven transitional ecosystems (e.g., glacier-fed streams) in the Polar-Alpine biome. This shift risks replacing unique, specialist species with more generalist ones, leading to "biotic homogenization"-a loss of diversity that reduces ecosystems' adaptability to change. While more species may be present at local levels, this often comes at the expense of the critical roles that specialists play. These changes disrupt nature's balance and the provision of vital ecosystem services.