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Effects of extreme volcanic eruptions on tree-ring growth in temperate Mexican forests: Dendrochronological evidence.

Nahir Guadarrama1, Osvaldo Franco Ramos1, Julián Cerano Paredes2, Lucia Capra3

  • Affiliations:  1Instituto de Geografía, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), Ciudad de México, México; 2INIFAP CENID RASPA, Gómez Palacio, Durango, México; 3Instituto de Geociencias, Campus UNAM-Juriquilla, Querétaro, México. 

  • Presentation type: Poster

  • Presentation time: Monday 16:30 - 18:30, Room Poster Hall

  • Poster Board Number: 2

  • Programme No: 6.1.8

  • Theme 6 > Session 1

Abstract

Extreme volcanic eruptions, such as Mount Pinatubo eruption of 1991, release millions of tons of sulfur dioxide into the atmosphere. This gas form reflective sulfate aerosols in the stratosphere, causing temporary global cooling by reflecting sunlight back into space. These eruptions can disrupt global climate patterns, leading to extreme weather events such as frosts, droughts, and floods. Although the large-scale effects of volcanic eruptions are well-known, the specific impacts on particular ecosystems, such as low-latitude temperate forests, remain largely unknown. Dendrochronology, by allowing us to analyze tree responses to climatic variations, emerges as a fundamental tool to unravel the effects of volcanic aerosols on these ecosystems and better understand their environmental implications. In this study, dendrochronological techniques were employed to analyze tree-ring series of five conifer species (Abies religiosa, Pinus hartwegii, Pinus pseudostrobus, Pinus rudis, and Pinus oocarpa) in temperate forests of central and southern Mexico. The results obtained reveal significant disturbances in tree growth, characterized primarily by a decrease in annual ring width. These disturbances are associated with potential historical volcanic eruptions such as Krakatoa (1883), El Chichón (1982), Mount Pinatubo (1991), and Eyjafjallajökull (2010). The disturbances, observed one to three years after each volcanic event, suggest a physiological response of trees to reduced solar radiation and changes in precipitation patterns caused by volcanic aerosols, potentially indicating water stress or reduced photosynthesis. These findings underscore the sensitivity of forest ecosystems to global climatic disturbances and the importance of trees as indicators of environmental change.