In their book chapter in 2011 Gagen et al. (2011) highlighted the need for stable isotope dendroclimatology to move beyond studies that simply demonstrate ‘potential’. This symposium, more than a decade since this publication, will focus on dendrogeochemical studies that demonstrate that the field has moved beyond studies focused on ‘potential’. In particular, this session will strive to identify compelling new insights into unique aspect...

Recent droughts have highlighted concerns of how rising summer temperatures will increase tree mortality rates across the western United States. However, there remains uncertainty about how summer rain might respond to warming and whether this will ameliorate the moisture stress associated with warming. We analyzed subfossil wood samples from Colorado dating to the last interglacial to assess the response of two common conifers to a previous warm period. The trees experienced comparable gr...