The cold range limit of trees.

At high elevation or latitude, trees reach low-temperature range limits. In attempting an explanation, the range limits of individual tree species (set by freezing tolerance) and the general limit of the life-form tree (set by thermal growth constraints) need to be distinguished. The general cold edge of the fundamental niche of trees is termed the treeline, by definition, the lower edge of the alpine belt, a most important bioclimatological reference line. Trees can be absent from the treeline due to disturbances or biotic interactions. The actual local edge of tree distribution, the delineation of the realized niche, is driven by stochastic effects. Therefore, treeline theory and hypothesis testing is inevitably tied to the fundamental niche concept.

• Publication year

  2021

• Venue

  Trends in Ecology & Evolution

• Publication date

  2021-07-13

• Fields of study

  Medicine, Environmental Science

• Identifiers
  DOI 10.1016/j.tree.2021.06.011PMID 34272073
• External record

  Open on Semantic Scholar

• Source metadata

  Semantic Scholar, PubMed

• No claims are published for this paper.

• No concepts are published for this paper.

• ‘Fading of the temperature‐growth coupling’ in treeline trees reflects a conceptual bias

  2021cited by this paper
• Forward Modeling Reveals Multidecadal Trends in Cambial Kinetics and Phenology at Treeline

  2021cited by this paper
• Prioritized carbon allocation to storage of different functional types of species at the upper range limits is driven by different environmental drivers.

  2021cited by this paper
• Temperature and water potential co-limit stem cambial activity along a steep elevational gradient.

  2020cited by this paper
• From treeline to species line: Thermal patterns and growth relationships across the krummholz zone of whitebark pine, Sierra Nevada, California, USA

  2020cited by this paper
• Explaining the exceptional 4,270 m high elevation limit of an evergreen oak in the south-eastern Himalaya.

  2020cited by this paper
• A global framework for linking alpine‐treeline ecotone patterns to underlying processes

  2020cited by this paper
• Reply to Elmendorf and Ettinger: Photoperiod plays a dominant and irreplaceable role in triggering secondary growth resumption

  2020cited by this paper
• Effects of Climate Change at Treeline: Lessons from Space-for-Time Studies, Manipulative Experiments, and Long-Term Observational Records in the Central Austrian Alps

  2019cited by this paper
• Sink limitation of plant growth determines tree line in the arid Himalayas

  2019cited by this paper
• Why tree lines are lower on islands—Climatic and biogeographic effects hold the answer

  2019cited by this paper
• Climatic Controls of the Global High Elevation Treelines

  2019cited by this paper
• A bioclimatic characterization of high elevation habitats in the Alborz mountains of Iran

  2018cited by this paper
• The causes of upper tree limits in the mountain ranges of Central Europe north of the Alps – A stem growth perspective

  2018cited by this paper
• The 90 ways to describe plant temperature

  2017cited by this paper
• Where, why and how? Explaining the low‐temperature range limits of temperate tree species

  2016cited by this paper
• Fast acclimation of freezing resistance suggests no influence of winter minimum temperature on the range limit of European beech.

  2016cited by this paper
• Recruitment patterns and growth of high-elevation pines in response to climatic variability (1883–2013), in the western Great Basin, USA

  2015cited by this paper
• Extreme defoliation reduces tree growth but not C and N storage in a winter-deciduous species.

  2015cited by this paper
• Paradigm shift in plant growth control.

  2015cited by this paper
• Growth and carbon relations of temperate deciduous tree species at their upper elevation range limit

  2014cited by this paper
• A climate-based model to predict potential treeline position around the globe

  2014cited by this paper
• Physiological minimum temperatures for root growth in seven common European broad-leaved tree species.

  2014cited by this paper
• European deciduous trees exhibit similar safety margins against damage by spring freeze events along elevational gradients.

  2013cited by this paper
• Variation of mobile carbon reserves in trees at the alpine treeline ecotone is under environmental control.

  2012cited by this paper
• Global patterns of mobile carbon stores in trees at the high‐elevation tree line

  2012cited by this paper
• Treelines Will be Understood Once the Functional Difference Between a Tree and a Shrub Is

  2012cited by this paper
• Treeline form – a potential key to understanding treeline dynamics

  2011cited by this paper
• Phenology Under Global Warming

  2010cited by this paper
• Growth and carbon relations of tree line forming conifers at constant vs. variable low temperatures

  2009cited by this paper
• Are treelines advancing? A global meta-analysis of treeline response to climate warming.

  2009cited by this paper
• The demography of range boundaries versus range cores in eastern US tree species

  2009cited by this paper
• Winter crop growth at low temperature may hold the answer for alpine treeline formation

  2008cited by this paper
• The use of 'altitude' in ecological research.

  2007cited by this paper
• Evidence of threshold temperatures for xylogenesis in conifers at high altitudes

  2007cited by this paper
• Low temperature limits of root growth in deciduous and evergreen temperate tree species

  2007cited by this paper
• A model‐based reconstruction of Holocene treeline dynamics in the Central Swiss Alps

  2006cited by this paper
• Photosynthesis during an Episodic Drought in Abies lasiocarpa and Picea engelmannii across an Alpine Treeline

  2006cited by this paper
• An ecological ‘footprint’ of climate change

  2005cited by this paper
• A world‐wide study of high altitude treeline temperatures

  2004cited by this paper
• Plant height and evolutionary games

  2003cited by this paper
• Uppermost Limit, Extent, and Fluctuations of the Timberline and Treeline Ecocline in the Swiss Central Alps during the Past 11,500 Years

  2003cited by this paper
• Regeneration of trees in the treeline ecotone: northern Finnish Lapland

  2003cited by this paper
• Carbon limitation in trees

  2003cited by this paper
• Source/sink removal affects mobile carbohydrates in Pinus cembra at the Swiss treeline

  2002cited by this paper
• GIS-analysis of tree-line elevation in the Swiss Alps suggests no exposure effect

  2001cited by this paper
• Sky exposure, crown architecture, and low‐temperature photoinhibition in conifer seedlings at alpine treeline

  1999cited by this paper
• Early Holocene tree growth at a high elevation site in the northernmost scandes of Sweden (Lapland) : A palaeobiogeographical case study based on megafossil evidence

  1999cited by this paper
• Height growth rate tradeoffs determine northern and southern range limits for trees

  1998cited by this paper
• An experimental test of limits to tree establishment in Arctic tundra

  1998cited by this paper
• Climate and growth of Pinus sylvestris at its upper altitudinal limit in Scotland: evidence from tree growth-rings.

  1990cited by this paper
• Climate and the meristem temperatures of plant communities near the tree-line

  1989cited by this paper
• Chilling susceptibility of different organs and tissues of Saintpaulia ionantha and Coffea arabica

  1987cited by this paper
• Viscum, Hedera and Ilex as Climate Indicators

  1944cited by this paper

• Global elevational shifts and drivers of alpine treelines

  2026cites this paper
• Integrating species' niches to understand treeline shifts.

  2026cites this paper
• Contrasting growth responses of alpine Rhododendron shrubs are mediated by topography on the Tibetan Plateau

  2026cites this paper
• Transcriptome wide evidence of interspecies differences in the regulation of photoprotection between chilling-tolerant and -sensitive mangrove species.

  2026cites this paper
• A century of treeline and forest line data for Betula pubescens subsp. czerepanovii across high elevations in Norway

  2025cites this paper
• Weak global trade‐off between frost and drought resistance in trees

  2025influential citation
• Looking through the microclimate lens: disentangling drivers of litter decomposition in a Himalayan treeline ecotone

  2025cites this paper
• Semi-domesticated Reindeer Inhibit the Recruitment and Expansion of Mountain Birch at the Fennoscandian Treeline

  2025cites this paper
• Using modern pollen assemblages in vegetation and climate reconstructions from the eastern Tibetan Plateau

  2025cites this paper
• Spatial variation in non-structural carbohydrates reserves of pine species along climatic gradients: A global synthesis

  2025cites this paper
• Geographic patterns of upward shifts in treeline vegetation across western North America, 1984–2017

  2025cites this paper
• Decoupling of Radial Growth Phenology From Temperature Constraints in the Clonal Shrub Alnus alnobetula at the Alpine Treeline

  2025cites this paper
• Temperature and nutrient availability influence radial growth of Picea abies at opposite slopes in a treeline ecotone

  2025cites this paper
• A 30-year phenological study of mangrove forests at the species level as a function of climatic drivers using multispectral remote sensing satellites

  2025cites this paper
• Elevation-induced changes in soil sulfur availability in tea plantations

  2025cites this paper
• Keys to the global treeline formation: Thermal limit for its position and moisture for the taxon-specific variation

  2025cites this paper
• Thresholds for spring freeze: measuring risk to improve predictions in a warming world

  2025cites this paper
• Unveiling habitat-specific variations in life-history traits of Swertia thomsonii C. B. Clarke—an endemic medicinal plant of the western Himalaya

  2025cites this paper
• Spatio-temporally explicit reconstruction of upper range limit of trees since the LGM over the Tibetan Plateau

  2025cites this paper
• Age-dependent moisture response of conifers near their cold range limit

  2025cites this paper
• The Himalayan Treeline and the Associated Dynamics: Understanding the Ecological Challenges and Livelihood Threat to the Dependent Population

  2025cites this paper
• Upward Expansion of Trees and Shrubs Leads to Alpine Tundra Contraction and Local Extinction of Species in the Southern Urals

  2025cites this paper
• Ecological thresholds and transformations due to climate change: The role of abiotic stress

  2025cites this paper
• Setting the limit: cold rather than hot temperatures limit intertidal distribution of a coastal foundation species.

  2025cites this paper
• How phenology interacts with frost tolerance in Southeastern Himalayan Rhododendron species.

  2025cites this paper
• Global patterns in plant environmental breadths

  2025cites this paper
• Long-term tree growth-climate relationships of Fagus orientalis Lipsky at high-elevation forest edges in the Alborz Mountains, northern Iran

  2025cites this paper
• Late Quaternary fluctuation in upper range limit of trees shapes endemic flora diversity on the Tibetan Plateau

  2025influential citation
• Different growth response of mountain rangeland habitats to inter-annual weather fluctuations

  2025cites this paper
• Physiological adjustments of temperate tree species and herbs in response to low root temperatures

  2025cites this paper
• Warming-driven shifts in dominant tree species potentially reduce aboveground biomass in northeastern United States forests

  2025cites this paper
• Strong volcanic-induced climatic shocks on historical Moselle wine production

  2025cites this paper
• Climate, not land-use, drives a recent acceleration of larch expansion at the forest-grassland ecotone in the southern French alps.

  2025cites this paper
• Elevational patterns of multidimensional plant diversity and community structure in a subtropical karst mountain system

  2025cites this paper
• Tree structural diversity mediates vegetation carbon storage in dry-hot valley savannas along an elevational gradient

  2025cites this paper
• Traditional Removal Strategies Mitigate Shrub Encroachment Driven by Canopy Competition on the Tibetan Plateau

  2025cites this paper
• Tree-ring Blue Intensity measurements from treeline sites in the Ural Mountains exhibit a strong summer temperature signal

  2024cites this paper
• Quantifying the roles of climate, herbivory, topography, and vegetation on tree establishment in the treeline ecotone

  2024cites this paper
• Beyond source and sink control - toward an integrated approach to understand the carbon balance in plants.

  2024cites this paper
• Experimental evidence, global patterns of treeline position and climate provide no substance for a lignin limitation hypothesis of tree growth

  2024cites this paper
• Multiomics analyses reveal the mechanisms of the responses of subalpine treeline trees to phenology and winter low-temperature stress.

  2024cites this paper
• Arctic sea ice retreat fuels boreal forest advance

  2024cites this paper
• Winter greening on the Tibetan Plateau induced by climate warming over 2000-2021

  2024cites this paper
• The sensitivity of root water uptake to cold root temperature follows species-specific upper elevational distribution limits of temperate tree species.

  2024cites this paper
• Uppermost global tree elevations are primarily limited by low temperature or insufficient moisture

  2024cites this paper
• Density-dependent species interactions modulate alpine treeline shifts.

  2024cites this paper
• Introducing the concepts of range‐pinning and Allee effects to explain reduced temperature sensitivity of global treeline dynamics

  2024cites this paper
• The Thermal Equator on Earth and Mars

  2024cites this paper
• Rapid advance of climatic tree limits in the Eastern Alps explained by on-site temperatures

  2024cites this paper
• Arrested Succession on Fire-Affected Slopes in the Krummholz Zone and Subalpine Forest of the Northern Limestone Alps

  2024cites this paper
• Temperature-induced germination pulses above the alpine tree line

  2024influential citation
• Spatial Pattern and Environmental Driving Factors of Treeline Elevations in Yulong Snow Mountain, China

  2024cites this paper
• Climate and soil nutrients generate distinct diversity patterns across four elevational gradients within the same region

  2024cites this paper
• The potential for an increasing threat of unseasonal temperature cycles to dormant plants.

  2024cites this paper
• Potential migration pathways of broadleaved trees across the receding boreal biome under future climate change

  2024cites this paper
• Temperatures and treeline elevation in the Sierra Nevada de Mérida of the Venezuelan Andes

  2024influential citation
• Local and regional climatic constraints of shrub and tree growth near the treeline

  2024cites this paper
• The combination of high leaf hydraulic safety and water use efficiency allows alpine shrubs to adapt to high‐altitude habitats

  2024cites this paper
• Using UAV RGB Images for Assessing Tree Species Diversity in Elevation Gradient of Zao Mountains

  2024cites this paper
• Incorporating climatic extremes using the GEV distribution improves SDM range edge performance

  2024cites this paper
• Late spring-early summer drought and soil properties jointly modulate two pine species’ decline and climatic sensitivity in temperate Northern China

  2024cites this paper
• Microclimate Comparison Between Different Growth Forms at the Treeline Ecotone of Jiaozi Mountain, China

  2024cites this paper
• Altitudinal shifting of major forest tree species in Italian mountains under climate change

  2023cites this paper
• Sheltered or suppressed? Tree regeneration in unmanaged European forests

  2023cites this paper
• Contrasting impacts of climate change on protection forests of the Italian Alps

  2023cites this paper
• Plastic and adaptive response of carbon allocation to temperature change in alpine treeline trees

  2023cites this paper
• Expansion of Treeline in North China and Its Relationship with Altitude Sensitivity Gradient of Larix gmelinii

  2023cites this paper
• Much faster northward shift of latitudinal forest lines in North America than in Eurasia under the early 21st century's warming

  2023cites this paper
• Climate warming could free cold‐adapted trees from C‐conservative allocation strategy of storage over growth

  2023cites this paper
• Effects of freezing temperatures on early life stages of native trees of different elevational origin: implications for tree recruitment in seasonally dry mountain forests.

  2023cites this paper
• Indicator of climate variability: low treeline displacement in arid valleys of mountain areas, China

  2023cites this paper
• Positive and negative plant−plant interactions influence seedling establishment at both high and low elevations

  2023cites this paper
• Differences in photosynthetic and water use characteristics of four co-existing tree species at the treeline of the Japanese Alps

  2023cites this paper
• NYUS.2: an Automated Machine Learning Prediction Model for the Large-scale Real-time Simulation of Grapevine Freezing Tolerance in North America

  2023cites this paper
• Growth increases but regeneration declines in response to warming and drying at Arctic treeline in white spruce (Picea glauca)

  2023cites this paper
• Climate impacts on tree-ring stable isotopes across the Northern Hemispheric boreal zone.

  2023cites this paper
• Global patterns of mobile carbon partitioning in mountain trees in response to elevation

  2023cites this paper
• Unsuspected prevalence of Pinus cembra in the high-elevation sky islands of the western Alps

  2023influential citation
• Leaf carbon and nitrogen stoichiometric variation along environmental gradients

  2023cites this paper
• Daily Climatic Data Better Explain the Radial Growth of Swiss Stone Pine (Pinus cembra L.) in High-Elevation Cliffs in the Carpathians

  2023cites this paper
• NYUS.2: an automated machine learning prediction model for the large-scale real-time simulation of grapevine freezing tolerance in North America

  2023cites this paper
• Biogeographic implications of plant stature and microclimate in cold regions

  2023cites this paper
• Four ways to define the growing season.

  2023cites this paper
• Establishing the Position and Drivers of the Eastern Andean Treeline with Automated Transect Sampling

  2023cites this paper
• Late Pleistocene Paramylodon harlani (Xenarthra, Mylodontidae) from Térapa, Sonora, Mexico

  2023cites this paper
• South American mountain ecosystems and global change – a case study for integrating theory and field observations for land surface modelling and ecosystem management

  2023cites this paper
• Provenance trials in the service of forestry assisted migration: A review of North American field trials and experiments

  2023cites this paper
• Not every high‐latitude or high‐elevation forest edge is a treeline

  2023cites this paper
• Chronic in situ tissue cooling does not reduce lignification at the Swiss treeline but enhances the risk of ‘blue’ frost rings

  2023cites this paper
• Responses of Physiological, Morphological and Anatomical Traits to Abiotic Stress in Woody Plants

  2023cites this paper
• What do we know about treelines of the Anthropocene in High Asia?

  2023cites this paper
• Sufficient conditions for rapid range expansion of a boreal conifer

  2022cites this paper
• Assessment of the TREELIM model in predicting present treeline along a longitudinal continentality-maritimity gradient in south-western Norway

  2022cites this paper
• Low winter temperatures and divergent freezing resistance set the cold range limit of widespread alpine graminoids

  2022influential citation
• Thermal remote sensing for plant ecology from leaf to globe

  2022cites this paper
• Enhanced habitat loss of the Himalayan endemic flora driven by warming-forced upslope tree expansion

  2022cites this paper
• Mesoscale refugia for European alpine grasslands based on climatic envelopes

  2022cites this paper
• Alpine treelines as ecological indicators of global climate change: Who has studied? What has been studied?

  2022cites this paper
• Cold-season freeze frequency is a pervasive driver of subcontinental forest growth

  2022cites this paper
• A Chromosome-Level Genome of the Camphor Tree and the Underlying Genetic and Climatic Factors for Its Top-Geoherbalism

  2022cites this paper