Abstract
Theory indicates that correlated weather may synchronize populations1, but the extent to which this holds for non-identical, nonlinear systems is uncertain. Post and Forchhammer2 claim to have shown climate-induced synchrony for musk oxen and caribou that are separated by the Greenland ice sheet. However, logical and mathematical errors undermine their finding. Whether or not large-scale weather can be a major synchronizing factor across species remains an open question.
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References
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Hurrell, J. W. Science 269, 676–679 (1995).
Forchhammer, M. C., Post, E., Stenseth, N. C. & Boertmann, D. M. Population Ecol. 44, 113–120 (2002).
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Vik, J., Stenseth, N., Tavecchia, G. et al. Living in synchrony on Greenland coasts?. Nature 427, 697–698 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1038/427697a
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/427697a
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