Vegetational Relationships With Air Mass Frequencies: Boreal Forest and Tundra

Abstract

Recent studies have demonstrated a striking correspondence between air mass frequencies and the position of the North American forest border. Analysis by principal component techniques demonstrates that relative abundance of certain species in a number of kinds of plant communities found in central northern Canada is strongly correlated with the frequencies of given air mass types. The conclusion is reached that distribution and frequency of occurrence of at least a number of species found in the plant communities of that region are markedly influenced by climate. In addition, the result can be interpreted as evidence supporting the continuum theory of species distribution in vegetation of the region.