Abstract

The impact of future climate change on the native vegetation of subtropical Andes is relatively unknown. The semiarid region of north-central Chile (30-34 degrees S) has experienced a mega-drought over the last decade, with a partial recovery during the 2015 El Nino year. To characterize the vegetation response to climate variability, we analyzed the seasonal precipitation, potential evapotranspiration, temperature extremes, and high-resolution normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) data at five altitudinal floors above 2500 m.