Document Type
Honors Project - Open Access
Abstract
Topographic heterogeneity structures Arctic plant communities, impacting broader ecosystem responses to climate change. The role of topography in shaping leaf physiological, nutritional, and structural traits in the Arctic is important, yet not well characterized across diverse tundra landscapes. To address these controls, we examined plant community composition and measured leaf traits in a few representative species along a heath-slope-valley gradient in Varanger, Norway. Our results indicated that valleys are more biodiverse, driven by forb and graminoid dominance, whereas slopes and heaths had less diversity with high shrub abundance. Leaf physiology and structural traits did not vary across topographic positions, though Vaccinium myrtillus (deciduous shrub) and Cornus suecica (herbaceous shrub) showed significantly different trait means and variance, particularly on the slope, reflecting the complexity of this environment. Aspect modulates plant function on both sides of the valley through different mechanisms: it creates more microclimatic variation on the south-facing side with increased insolation, and shapes nutritional conditions indirectly through small herbivore activity on the north-facing side. This work shows that topography strongly shapes Arctic plant communities and biodiversity, but its influence on leaf traits is less direct, perhaps mediated by both species differences and microenvironmental heterogeneity inherent to complex landscapes.
Recommended Citation
Dunlap, Ruth S., "The Highs and Lows of Life in a Valley: Topographic Controls on Tundra Vegetation in a Warming Arctic" (2026). Biology Honors Projects. 36.
https://digitalcommons.macalester.edu/biology_honors/36
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