NDLI: A Shift in Seasonal Rainfall Reduces Soil Organic Carbon Storage in a Cold Desert

Please wait, while we are loading the content...

Simulated Nitrogen Deposition Causes a Decline of Intra- and Extraradical Abundance of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi and Changes in Microbial Community Structure in Northern Hardwood Forests

Interactive Effects of N Deposition, Land Management and Weather Patterns on Soil Solution Chemistry in a Scottish Alpine Heath

Field Simulation of Global Change: Transplanting Northern Bog Mesocosms Southward

Thermal Heterogeneity in River Floodplains

The Effect of Snow on Plant Chemistry and Invertebrate Herbivory: Experimental Manipulations Along a Natural Snow Gradient

Major Changes in the Ecology of the Wadden Sea: Human Impacts, Ecosystem Engineering and Sediment Dynamics

The Role of Photodegradation in Surface Litter Decomposition Across a Grassland Ecosystem Precipitation Gradient

Erosion, Geological History, and Indigenous Agriculture: A Tale of Two Valleys

Ecosystems : Volume 13, Issue 4, June 2010

Ecosystems : Volume 13, Issue 3, April 2010

Ecosystems : Volume 13, Issue 2, March 2010

Ecosystems : Volume 13, Issue 1, January 2010

Ecosystems : Volume 12

Ecosystems : Volume 11

Ecosystems : Volume 10

Ecosystems : Volume 9

Ecosystems : Volume 8

Ecosystems : Volume 7

Ecosystems : Volume 6

Ecosystems : Volume 5

Ecosystems : Volume 4

Ecosystems : Volume 3

Ecosystems : Volume 2

Ecosystems : Volume 1

A Shift in Seasonal Rainfall Reduces Soil Organic Carbon Storage in a Cold Desert

Content Provider	Springer Nature Link
Author	Aanderud, Zachary T. Richards, James H. Svejcar, Tony James, Jeremy J.
Copyright Year	2010
Abstract	Shifts in the seasonal timing of rainfall have the potential to substantially affect the immense terrestrial stores of soil organic carbon (C, SOC). It remains unclear, however, how changes in the timing of rainfall are influencing SOC storage. We hypothesized that a sustained shift in rainfall timing from winter to a spring-summer regime would reduce desert SOC stores by creating moist and warm soil conditions, thus promoting decomposition. To investigate this, we evaluated how an 11-year seasonal shift in rainfall (winter to spring-summer regime) affected SOC storage (that is, dissolved organic C, light SOC, and heavy SOC) in soils beneath dominant shrub and perennial grass species in a cold desert sagebrush-steppe ecosystem. We also measured the soil C to nitrogen (N) ratios, standing litter stocks, and root biomass C to help interpret the long-term changes in SOC stores. As predicted, a seasonal shift in rainfall caused heavy SOC to decline beneath Artemisia tridentata ssp. wyomingensis by 14%, from 3.1 to 2.7 kg C m−2, and Pseudoroegneria spicata by 19%, from 3.0 to 2.4 kg C m−2. Neither dissolved organic C, nor the light fraction, responded to changes in rainfall. The C to N ratio of heavy SOC beneath Artemisia declined by at least 6% under the warmer and moister conditions of the spring-summer regime, suggesting that alterations in decomposition dynamics contributed to the loss of SOC. Unexpectedly, coarse litter and root C in Artemisia soils were lower under the spring-summer than winter rainfall regime, suggesting that a decline in litter inputs may also have contributed to the loss of SOC. The C to N ratio of heavy SOC, litter stores (that is, coarse litter and thatch), and root C in Pseudoroegneria soils demonstrated similar responses as in Artemisia soils, but these variables were at best only marginally significant. Our results suggest that a sustained seasonal shift in rainfall from winter to spring-summer will reduce heavy SOC across cold deserts, and that this reduction will stem from alterations in decomposition dynamics and net primary production by plants. Further, as global temperatures rise we may see more overlap of moist and warm soil conditions, especially in ecosystems with winter rainfall regimes (for example, Mediterranean-climate ecosystems and temperate forests), that may reduce SOC in the absence of rainfall changes.
Starting Page	673
Ending Page	682
Page Count	10
File Format	PDF
ISSN	14329840
Journal	Ecosystems
Volume Number	13
Issue Number	5
e-ISSN	14350629
Language	English
Publisher	Springer-Verlag
Publisher Date	2010-06-04
Publisher Place	New York
Access Restriction	One Nation One Subscription (ONOS)
Subject Keyword	Artemisia tridentata spp. wyomingensis climate change Great Basin Desert Pseudoroegneria spicata shrub-steppe ecosystem soil organic matter Nature Conservation Geoecology/Natural Processes Environmental Management Zoology Plant Sciences Ecology
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Article
Subject	Ecology Environmental Chemistry Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics

Sl.	Authority	Responsibilities	Communication Details
1	Ministry of Education (GoI), Department of Higher Education	Sanctioning Authority	https://www.education.gov.in/ict-initiatives
2	Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur	Host Institute of the Project: The host institute of the project is responsible for providing infrastructure support and hosting the project	https://www.iitkgp.ac.in
3	National Digital Library of India Office, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur	The administrative and infrastructural headquarters of the project	Dr. B. Sutradhar bsutra@ndl.gov.in
4	Project PI / Joint PI	Principal Investigator and Joint Principal Investigators of the project	Dr. B. Sutradhar bsutra@ndl.gov.in Prof. Saswat Chakrabarti will be added soon
5	Website/Portal (Helpdesk)	Queries regarding NDLI and its services	support@ndl.gov.in
6	Contents and Copyright Issues	Queries related to content curation and copyright issues	content@ndl.gov.in
7	National Digital Library of India Club (NDLI Club)	Queries related to NDLI Club formation, support, user awareness program, seminar/symposium, collaboration, social media, promotion, and outreach	clubsupport@ndl.gov.in
8	Digital Preservation Centre (DPC)	Assistance with digitizing and archiving copyright-free printed books	dpc@ndl.gov.in
9	IDR Setup or Support	Queries related to establishment and support of Institutional Digital Repository (IDR) and IDR workshops	idr@ndl.gov.in

Exotic plant communities shift water-use timing in a shrub-steppe ecosystem

Microclimate, freezing tolerance, and cold acclimation along an elevation gradient for seedlings of the Great Basin Desert shrub, Artemisia tridentata

A Shift in Seasonal Rainfall Reduces Soil Organic Carbon Storage in a Cold Desert

Data from: Climate drives adaptive genetic responses associated with survival in big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata) (Dataset)

Physical disturbance shapes vascular plant diversity more profoundly than fire in the sagebrush steppe of southeastern Idaho, U.S.A

Sorex monticolus in shrub steppe habitat in the northern Great Basin

Visualization of Xylary Rings of Stems of Artemisia tridentata spp. Wyomingensis.

Comparison of water use by Artemisia tridentata spp. wyomingensis and Chrysothamnus viscidiflorus spp. viscidiflorus

Influence of mowing Artemisia tridentata ssp. wyomingensis on winter habitat for wildlife.

A Shift in Seasonal Rainfall Reduces Soil Organic Carbon Storage in a Cold Desert

Similar Documents

Exotic plant communities shift water-use timing in a shrub-steppe ecosystem

Microclimate, freezing tolerance, and cold acclimation along an elevation gradient for seedlings of the Great Basin Desert shrub, Artemisia tridentata

A Shift in Seasonal Rainfall Reduces Soil Organic Carbon Storage in a Cold Desert

Data from: Climate drives adaptive genetic responses associated with survival in big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata) (Dataset)

Physical disturbance shapes vascular plant diversity more profoundly than fire in the sagebrush steppe of southeastern Idaho, U.S.A

Sorex monticolus in shrub steppe habitat in the northern Great Basin

Visualization of Xylary Rings of Stems of Artemisia tridentata spp. Wyomingensis.

Comparison of water use by Artemisia tridentata spp. wyomingensis and Chrysothamnus viscidiflorus spp. viscidiflorus

Influence of mowing Artemisia tridentata ssp. wyomingensis on winter habitat for wildlife.

A Shift in Seasonal Rainfall Reduces Soil Organic Carbon Storage in a Cold Desert