Climate Change Impacts in Tropical Regions
Recent research indicates that tropical regions, often perceived as resilient to climate change, are undergoing notable shifts in rainfall and temperature extremes. This study focused on the La Selva research station in Costa Rica and the El Verde field station in Puerto Rico, revealing a significant increase in extreme heat days in 2024 compared to long-term averages dating back to 1992.
The lead author, Alonso Ramirez, a professor at North Carolina State University, highlighted that La Selva recorded an increase from an average of eight days per year exceeding the 95th percentile of temperatures to 30 days in 2024. “These spikes in temperature are becoming more severe and more common,” Ramirez stated.
Contrasting Weather Patterns Observed
While the average temperatures at both research sites remained relatively stable, the precipitation patterns diverged significantly. La Selva experienced an uptick in heavy rainfall events and a decrease in days without rain, whereas El Verde reported an increase in dry days. Specifically, La Selva saw the frequency of extreme rainfall events rise from roughly one per year between 1983 and 1985 to six in 2024. In contrast, El Verde documented a rise in dry days from 152 to 170 per year, without a notable increase in heavy precipitation events.
Marcelo Ardon, a co-author and professor at NC State, remarked on the unexpected nature of these findings given the proximity of the two sites. “We expected to find similar trends across the two sites,” he said, emphasizing that these results illustrate the immediate realities of climate change.
New Insights Into Tropical Ecosystems
The study’s results challenge the common belief that tropical ecosystems are stable and less affected by human-induced climate changes. Ramirez explained that the findings underscore how both La Selva and El Verde, which are considered key research hotspots, are experiencing significant alterations in climate and environmental conditions, impacting ecosystem functions.
The research paper, titled “Shifting climate in Caribbean tropical forests: Long-term trends at La Selva (Costa Rica) and El Verde (Puerto Rico),” was published in PLOS Climate. The study’s co-authors also include Pavel Garcia from Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala, Nicholas S. Marzolf from The Jones Center at Ichauway, and David Genereux from NC State University.
Source: NC State University
