W. Matthaeus, S. Macarewich, J. Richey, I. Montañez, J. McElwain, Joseph White, Jonathan P. Wilson, C. Poulsen
{"title":"A Systems Approach to Understanding How Plants Transformed Earth's Environment in Deep Time","authors":"W. Matthaeus, S. Macarewich, J. Richey, I. Montañez, J. McElwain, Joseph White, Jonathan P. Wilson, C. Poulsen","doi":"10.1146/annurev-earth-080222-082017","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"Terrestrial plants have transformed Earth's surface environments by altering water, energy, and biogeochemical cycles. Studying vegetation-climate interaction in deep time has necessarily relied on modern-plant analogs to represent paleo-ecosystems—as methods for reconstructing paleo- and, in particular, extinct-plant function were lacking. This approach is potentially compromised given that plant physiology has evolved through time, and some paleo-plants have no clear modern analog. Advancements in the quantitative reconstruction of whole-plant function provide new opportunities to replace modern-plant analogs and capture age-specific vegetation-climate interactions. Here, we review recent investigations of paleo-plant performance through the integration of fossil and geologic data with process-based ecosystem- to Earth system–scale models to explore how early vascular plants responded to and influenced climate. First, we present an argument for characterizing extinct plants in terms of ecological and evolutionary theory to provide a framework for advancing reconstructed vegetation-climate interactions in deep time. We discuss the novel mechanistic understanding provided by applying these approaches to plants of the late Paleozoic ever-wet tropics and at higher latitudes. Finally, we discuss preliminary applications to paleo-plants in a state-of-the-art Earth system model to highlight the potential implications of different plant functional strategies on our understanding of vegetation-climate interactions in deep time. ▪ For hundreds of millions of years, plants have been a keystone in maintaining the status of Earth's atmosphere, oceans, and climate. ▪ Extinct plants have functioned differently across time, limiting our understanding of how processes on Earth interact to produce climate. ▪ New methods, reviewed here, allow quantitative reconstruction of extinct-plant function based on the fossil record. ▪ Integrating extinct plants into ecosystem and climate models will expand our understanding of vegetation's role in past environmental change.","PeriodicalId":8034,"journal":{"name":"Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences","volume":"121 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":11.3000,"publicationDate":"2023-05-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"2","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences","FirstCategoryId":"89","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-earth-080222-082017","RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"ASTRONOMY & ASTROPHYSICS","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 2
Abstract
Terrestrial plants have transformed Earth's surface environments by altering water, energy, and biogeochemical cycles. Studying vegetation-climate interaction in deep time has necessarily relied on modern-plant analogs to represent paleo-ecosystems—as methods for reconstructing paleo- and, in particular, extinct-plant function were lacking. This approach is potentially compromised given that plant physiology has evolved through time, and some paleo-plants have no clear modern analog. Advancements in the quantitative reconstruction of whole-plant function provide new opportunities to replace modern-plant analogs and capture age-specific vegetation-climate interactions. Here, we review recent investigations of paleo-plant performance through the integration of fossil and geologic data with process-based ecosystem- to Earth system–scale models to explore how early vascular plants responded to and influenced climate. First, we present an argument for characterizing extinct plants in terms of ecological and evolutionary theory to provide a framework for advancing reconstructed vegetation-climate interactions in deep time. We discuss the novel mechanistic understanding provided by applying these approaches to plants of the late Paleozoic ever-wet tropics and at higher latitudes. Finally, we discuss preliminary applications to paleo-plants in a state-of-the-art Earth system model to highlight the potential implications of different plant functional strategies on our understanding of vegetation-climate interactions in deep time. ▪ For hundreds of millions of years, plants have been a keystone in maintaining the status of Earth's atmosphere, oceans, and climate. ▪ Extinct plants have functioned differently across time, limiting our understanding of how processes on Earth interact to produce climate. ▪ New methods, reviewed here, allow quantitative reconstruction of extinct-plant function based on the fossil record. ▪ Integrating extinct plants into ecosystem and climate models will expand our understanding of vegetation's role in past environmental change.
期刊介绍:
Since its establishment in 1973, the Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences has been dedicated to providing comprehensive coverage of advancements in the field. This esteemed publication examines various aspects of earth and planetary sciences, encompassing climate, environment, geological hazards, planet formation, and the evolution of life. To ensure wider accessibility, the latest volume of the journal has transitioned from a gated model to open access through the Subscribe to Open program by Annual Reviews. Consequently, all articles published in this volume are now available under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license.