Dendroclimatic reconstructions in the Carpathians: retrospective and potential for environmental change studies
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31861/geo.2025.854.222-231Keywords:
Carpathians,, dendroclimatic reconstructions,, air temperature,, atmospheric precipitation,, droughts,, climate change,, nature use,, anthropogenic influence.Abstract
The study synthesises and evaluates published dendroclimatic studies of the Carpathian region to determine the suitability and potential of such data for identifying climate change indicators.
A systematic bibliographic analysis of 2,561 publications in the Scopus database was conducted using the search query "(Carpath* AND Climat*), followed by the identification of a cluster of dendroclimatic studies (224 publications) through the construction of network conceptual maps. The interpretation of results is based on the analysis of radial annual tree ring growth using TRW (tree ring width), MXD (maximum density), BI (blue intensity), and isotopic analysis (δ¹³C, δ¹⁸O) parameters.
Uneven spatial coverage of studies was revealed in the Carpathians. The largest number of reconstructions was conducted in the Western Carpathians (10 studies), the smallest in the Southern Carpathians (1 study), while the South-Western Carpathians are not covered at all. The most common species in reconstructions is Swiss stone pine (Pinus cembra).
Dendroclimatic studies confirm that the Medieval Warm Period climate is analogous to modern warming, while the temperature decline during the Little Ice Age was smaller compared to global indicators. Wavelet analysis revealed changes in rhythmicity: from 1350 CE to 16–32-year cycles, and from 1850 CE to 64–128-year cycles. High drought frequency was established during the final phase of the Little Ice Age, especially in the 19th century.
Based on the synthesis of dendroclimatic data, it was established that the decline in air temperature during the Little Ice Age in the Carpathians was lower compared to average global indicators and those for the European territory as a whole. High drought frequency was detected in the final phase of this period, particularly in the 19th century in the Eastern Carpathians.
Dendroclimatic reconstructions of the Carpathians demonstrate good agreement with long-term summer air temperature patterns and the rhythmicity of atmospheric droughts. Methodological limitations of reconstructions depending on the elevation zone of sample collection were determined. Novel methods (isotopic analysis, MXD) demonstrate high potential for detecting climatic extremes.
Dendroclimatic data from the Carpathians are suitable for identifying both regional spatial patterns of climate variability and local extreme climatic events. Their consistency with long-term patterns of summer air temperatures and atmospheric drought rhythmicity has been confirmed, which determines the potential for use in calibrating modern climate models.
Tree-ring data are found to be a potential source for distinguishing the anthropogenic signal in environmental changes.
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