Rapid ecological change outpaces climate warming in Tibetan glacier lakes
Chenliang Du, Ke Zhang, Qi Lin, Shixin Huang, Yaoyao Han, Junming Ren, Peng Xing, Jianbao Liu, David Taylor, Ji Shen
Abstract
The rapid warming of the Tibetan Plateau, at more than twice the global average, raises urgent questions about how quickly alpine aquatic ecosystem can respond. Here, using lake sedimentary ancient DNA (sedaDNA) and photosynthetic pigment analysis, we investigated algal productivity and diversity (alpha, beta) changes in a Tibetan glacier lake, Guozha Co, China, and by integrating regional lake records, we further estimated the rate of change (RoC) associated with lake ecosystem and temperature over the past two centuries. Our findings reveal that while the RoC of algal communities historically tracked temperature trends, a significant divergence emerged in the 1980s, with the ecological RoC surpassing that of climate warming. The observed shift from cold-tolerant to warm-adapted algal species, alongside enhanced primary productivity, is closely linked to rising temperatures and the cascading effects of glacier retreat. This rate mismatch signals a significant disruption in the long-standing equilibrium between climate and aquatic ecosystems, with potentially far-reaching consequences for alpine biodiversity conservation under accelerating global change. A shift in algal species from cold-tolerant to warm-adapted and increased primary productivity in lake Guozha Co, China, suggest rapid ecological changes outpacing climate change in Tibetan glacial lakes, according to combined analysis of lake sedimentary ancient DNA and remote sensing records.