Remarkable Variation in the Process of Hg Accumulation in Timberline Forests Indicates an Aggravated Hg Burden in Alpine Forests Under Climate Warming

Significant knowledge gaps in mercury (Hg) cycling challenge our ability to assess the effectiveness of the Minamata Convention on Mercury in reducing human and wildlife Hg exposure due to the complicated impacts of climate change. In this study, we comprehensively quantified the Hg spatial distribution and determined the Hg stable isotopes to understand the Hg sources and accumulation pathways in forests along the timberline ecotone, an ecosystem that provides an early bellwether of global warming effects. Our results show that although there were subtle variations in meteorological and environmental conditions among the