Terrestrial ecosystem responses to global environmental change across the Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary

Abstract

Investigations of long-term (10 3 -10 5 yr) environmental change across the Cretaceous-Tertiary (K/T) boundary resulting from the impact of a large bolide indicate increases in temperature and precipitation due to the impact-related release of CO 2. We evaluate the effects of these long-term changes in the global environment on terrestrial ecosystems using a vegetation-biogeochemistry model forced with a 'best guess' modified latest Cretaceous climate simulation by the GENESIS atmospheric general circulation model. The imposition of long-term global environmental changes after the K/T impact resulted in spatially heterogeneous increases in canopy leaf area index, net primary productivity, and soil carbon concentrations, relative to the latest Cretaceous pre-impact situation. Terrestrial carbon storage increased by circa 2000 Gt.