scholarly journals A climosequence of chronosequences in southwestern Australia

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin L. Turner ◽  
Patrick E. Hayes ◽  
Etienne Laliberté
Keyword(s):  
Nutrient Availability ◽  
Soil Development ◽  
Early Pleistocene ◽  
Middle Pleistocene ◽  
Annual Rainfall ◽  
Ecosystem Development ◽  
Area Index ◽  
Southwestern Australia ◽  
Total P

AbstractTo examine how climate affects soil development and nutrient availability over long timescales, we studied a series of four long-term chronosequences along a climate gradient in southwestern Australia. Annual rainfall ranged from 533 mm to 1185 mm (water balance from –900 mm to +52 mm) and each chronosequence included Holocene (≤6.5 ka), Middle Pleistocene (120–500 ka), and Early Pleistocene (∼2000 ka) dunes. Vegetation changed markedly along the climosequence, from shrubland at the driest site toEucalyptusforest at the wettest. The carbonate and P content of the parent sand declined along the climosequence, presumably linked to variation in offshore productivity. However, soil development and associated nutrient status followed remarkably consistent patterns along the four chronosequences. Pedogenesis involved decalcification and secondary carbonate precipitation in Holocene soils and leaching of iron oxides from Middle Pleistocene soils, ultimately yielding bleached quartz sands on the oldest soils. Along all chronosequences soil pH and total P declined, while C:P and N:P ratios increased, consistent with the predicted shift from N to P limitation of vegetation during ecosystem development. The expected unimodal pattern of leaf area index was most pronounced along wetter chronosequences, suggesting an influence of climate on the expression of retrogression. The four chronosequences do not appear to span a pedogenic climate threshold, because exchangeable phosphate and base cations declined consistently during long-term pedogenesis. However, the proportion of the total P in organic form was greater along wetter chronosequences. We conclude that soils and nutrient availability on the coastal sand plains of southwestern Australia change consistently during long-term pedogenesis, despite marked variation in modern vegetation and climate. The four chronosequences provide a rare soil-age × climate framework within which to study long-term ecosystem development.

scholarly journals Cosmogenic burial dating of in cave-deposited alluvium: unravelling long-term incision rates and complex speleogenesis in multi-level cave systems

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gilles Rixhon ◽  
Didier L. Bourlès ◽  
Régis Braucher ◽  
Alexandre Peeters ◽  
Alain Demoulin
Keyword(s):  
Early Pleistocene ◽  
Middle Pleistocene ◽  
Fluvial Terrace ◽  
Base Level ◽  
Cave System ◽  
River Incision ◽  
Order Of Magnitude ◽  
History Of ◽  
Multi Level

<p>Multi-level cave systems record the history of regional river incision in abandoned alluvium-filled phreatic passages which, mimicking fluvial terrace sequences, represent former phases of fluvial base-level stability. In this respect, cosmogenic burial dating of in cave-deposited alluvium (usually via the nuclide pair <sup>26</sup>Al/<sup>10</sup>Be) represents a suitable method to quantify the pace of long-term river incision. Here, we present a dataset of fifteen <sup>26</sup>Al/<sup>10</sup>Be burial ages measured in fluvial pebbles washed into a multi-level cave system developed in Devonian limestone of the uplifted Ardenne massif (eastern Belgium). The large and well-documented Chawresse system is located along the lower Ourthe valley (i.e. the main Ardennian tributary of the Meuse river) and spans altogether an elevation difference exceeding 120 m.</p><p>The depleted <sup>26</sup>Al/<sup>10</sup>Be ratios measured in four individual caves show two main outcomes. Firstly, computed burial ages ranging from ~0.2 to 3.3 Ma allows highlighting an acceleration by almost one order of magnitude of the incision rates during the first half of the Middle Pleistocene (from ~25 to ~160 m/Ma). Secondly, according to the relative elevation above the present-day floodplain of the sampled material in the Manants cave (<35 m), the four internally-consistent Early Pleistocene burial ages highlight an “anomalous” old speleogenesis in the framework of a gradual base-level lowering. They instead point to intra-karsting reworking of the sampled material in the topographically complex Manants cave. This in turn suggests an independent, long-lasting speleogenetic evolution of this specific cave, which differs from the <em>per descensum</em> model of speleogenesis generally acknowledged for the regional multi-level cave systems and their abandoned phreatic galleries. In addition to its classical use for inferring long-term incision rates, cosmogenic burial dating can thus contribute to better understand specific and complex speleogenetic evolution.</p>

scholarly journals Long-term landscape evolution of the Molise sector of the central-southern Apennines, Italy

2017 ◽  
Vol 68 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vincenzo Amato ◽  
Pietro P.C. Aucelli ◽  
Vito Bracone ◽  
Massimo Cesarano ◽  
Carmen Maria Rosskopf
Keyword(s):  
Late Pleistocene ◽  
Landscape Evolution ◽  
Temporal Distribution ◽  
Structural Data ◽  
Early Pleistocene ◽  
Middle Pleistocene ◽  
Southern Apennines ◽  
Geomorphological Evolution ◽  
Present Setting

AbstractThis paper concerns the reconstruction of the main stages of the long-term landscape evolution of the Molise portion of the central-southern Apennines along a transect divided into three sectors (SW, Central and NE). Analysis mainly focused on geomorphological, stratigraphical and structural data supported by chronological constraints, coming from an overall review of past literature and several studies carried out by the authors of the paper during the last 20 years. The results obtained allowed the elaboration of a conceptual model of the long-term evolution of the Molise sector of the central-southern Apennines. Starting from the Pliocene, the emersion of the Molise area occurred gradually from SW to NE, allowing a polycyclic landscape to evolve under the major controls first of compression then transtensional to extensional tectonics as well as climatic variations. Principal markers of the Quaternary geomorphological evolution of the Molise area are represented by the infill successions of the intermontane tectonic depressions located in its internal, SW sector and by four orders of palaeosurfaces that developed between the Early Pleistocene and the beginning of the Late Pleistocene across the region. These markers testify to the alternation of phases of substantial tectonic stability and uplift whose spatial-temporal distribution could be assessed along the investigated transect. Results highlight that the most important stages of landscape evolution occurred during the Early and Middle Pleistocene. At the beginning of the Late Pleistocene, the Molise sector of the Apennine chain had already reached its present setting and further landscape evolution occurred under the major control of climate and land-use.

scholarly journals Regional modeling of vegetation and long term runoff for Mesoamerica

2010 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 801-846
Author(s):  
P. Imbach ◽  
L. Molina ◽  
B. Locatelli ◽  
O. Roupsard ◽  
P. Ciais ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Leaf Area Index ◽  
Leaf Area ◽  
Annual Runoff ◽  
Annual Rainfall ◽  
Average Model ◽  
Area Index ◽  
Potential Vegetation ◽  
Monthly Runoff ◽  
Terra Modis

Abstract. Regional runoff, evapotranspiration, leaf area index (LAI) and potential vegetation were modeled for Mesoamerica using the SVAT model MAPSS. We calibrated and validated the model after building a comprehensive database of regional runoff, climate, soils and LAI. The performance of several gridded precipitation forcings (CRU, FCLIM, WorldClim, TRMM, WindPPT and TCMF) was evaluated and FCLIM produced the most realistic runoff. Annual runoff was successfully predicted (R2=0.84) for a set of 138 catchments with a regression slope of 0.88 and an intercept close to zero. This low runoff bias might originate from MAPSS assumption of potential vegetation cover and to underestimation of the precipitation over cloud forests. The residues were found to be larger in small catchments but to remain homogeneous across elevation, precipitation and land use gradients. Based on the assumption of uniform distribution of parameters around literature values, and using a Monte Carlo-type approach, we estimated an average model uncertainty of 42% of the annual runoff. The MAPSS model was found to be most sensitive to the parameterization of stomatal conductance. Monthly runoff seasonality was fairly mimicked (Kendal tau correlation coefficient higher than 0.5) in 78% of the catchments. Predicted LAI was consistent with EOS-TERRA-MODIS collection 5 and ATSR-VEGETATION-GLOBCARBON remotely sensed global products. The simulated evapotranspiration:runoff ratio increased exponentially for low precipitation areas, stressing the importance of accurately modeling evapotranspiration below 1500 mm of annual rainfall with the help of SVAT models such as MAPSS. We propose the first high resolution (1 km2 pixel) maps combining runoff, evapotranspiration, leaf area index and potential vegetation types for Mesoamerica.

scholarly journals Climatology-based regional modelling of potential vegetation and average annual long-term runoff for Mesoamerica

2010 ◽  
Vol 14 (10) ◽  
pp. 1801-1817 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Imbach ◽  
L. Molina ◽  
B. Locatelli ◽  
O. Roupsard ◽  
P. Ciais ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Leaf Area Index ◽  
Leaf Area ◽  
Annual Runoff ◽  
Annual Rainfall ◽  
Regional Modelling ◽  
Area Index ◽  
Annual Cycles ◽  
Potential Vegetation ◽  
Monthly Runoff

Abstract. Mean annual cycles of runoff, evapotranspiration, leaf area index (LAI) and potential vegetation were modelled for Mesoamerica using the SVAT model MAPSS with different climatology datasets. We calibrated and validated the model after building a comprehensive database of regional runoff, climate, soils and LAI. The performance of several gridded precipitation climatology datasets (CRU, FCLIM, WorldClim, TRMM, WindPPT and TCMF) was evaluated and FCLIM produced the most realistic runoff. Annual runoff was successfully predicted (R2=0.84) for a set of 138 catchments, with a low runoff bias (12%) that might originate from an underestimation of the precipitation over cloud forests. The residuals were larger in small catchments but remained homogeneous across elevation, precipitation, and land-use gradients. Assuming a uniform distribution of parameters around literature values, and using a Monte Carlo-type approach, we estimated an average model uncertainty of 42% of the annual runoff. The MAPSS model was most sensitive to the parameterization of stomatal conductance. Monthly runoff seasonality was mimicked "fairly" in 78% of the catchments. Predicted LAI was consistent with MODIS collection 5 and GLOBCARBON remotely sensed global products. The simulated evapotranspiration:runoff ratio increased exponentially for low precipitation areas, highlighting the importance of accurately modelling evapotranspiration below 1500 mm of annual rainfall with the help of SVAT models such as MAPSS. We propose the first high-resolution (1 km2 pixel) maps combining average long-term runoff, evapotranspiration, leaf area index and potential vegetation types for Mesoamerica.

Long-term silicon dynamics in terrestrial ecosystems: insights from 2-million years soil chronosequences

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Félix de Tombeur ◽  
Benjamin Turner ◽  
Etienne Laliberté ◽  
Hans Lambers ◽  
Grégory Mahy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Terrestrial Ecosystems ◽  
Plant Productivity ◽  
Soil Development ◽  
Early Pleistocene ◽  
Individual Species ◽  
Continuous Increase ◽  
Secondary Minerals ◽  
Silicate Minerals ◽  
Soil Age

<p>Silicon (Si) is widely recognized as an important regulator of the global carbon (C) cycle via its effect on diatom productivity in oceans and the weathering of silicate minerals on continents. Si is also a beneficial plant nutrient, improving resistance to herbivory and pathogens and mitigating the negative effects of several abiotic stresses, including nutrient limitation. However, changes in Si sources and cycling during long-term development of terrestrial ecosystems remain poorly understood. We studied Si in soils and plants along two 2-Ma coastal dune chronosequences in southwestern Australia (Jurien Bay and Guilderton). Soil development along these chronosequences includes carbonate leaching in Holocene soils, formation of secondary Si-bearing minerals in Mid-Pleistocene soils, followed by their loss via dissolution, to yield quartz-rich soils of Early-Pleistocene age. The chronosequences also exhibit an extreme gradient of soil fertility in terms of rock-derived nutrients, and shifts from nitrogen (N) to phosphorus (P) limitation of plant productivity as soils age. Along each chronosequence, we quantified the pools of reactive Si-bearing phases and plant-available Si in the soils, and physically extracted soil phytoliths (amorphous silica formed in plant tissues). We also quantified Si, macronutrients and total phenols in the most abundant plants growing along the best-studied of the two chronosequences (Jurien Bay). We found that plant-available Si was lowest in young and carbonate-rich soils, because carbonates weathering reduces the weathering of silicate minerals by consuming protons, and Si is strongly sorbed by secondary minerals in alkaline soils. Plant-available Si increased in intermediate-age soils during the formation of secondary minerals (kaolinite), and finally decreased in old, quartz-rich soils, due to continuous desilication. As pedogenic Si pools became depleted with increasing soil age, Si availability was increasingly determined by soil phytoliths. At Jurien Bay, foliar Si increased continuously as soils aged, in contrast with foliar macronutrients that declined markedly in strongly weathered soils. Finally, foliar phenol concentrations declined with increasing soil age and were negatively correlated with foliar Si at the community and individual species level, suggesting a tradeoff between these two leaf defense strategies. Our results highlight a nonlinear response of plant-available Si to long-term pedogenesis, with an increase during carbonate loss and a decrease in the silicates weathering domain. They also demonstrate that the retention of Si by plants during ecosystem retrogression sustains its terrestrial cycling by leveraging the high reactivity of soil phytoliths compared with soil-derived aluminosilicates. Moreover, the continuous increase of plant Si concentrations as rock-derived nutrients are depleted suggests important plant benefits associated with Si in P-impoverished environments. This is in line with the resource availability hypothesis, which predicts that plants adapted to infertile soils have high levels of anti-herbivore leaf defenses. In particular, old and P-depleted soils increased the relative expression of Si-based defenses, while young soils where plant productivity is limited by N promoted leaf phenol accumulation. Overall, our results demonstrate that long-term ecosystem and soil development strongly influence soil-plant Si dynamics, with cascading effects on plant ecology and global Si and C biogeochemistry.</p>

Calcareous nannoplankton ecology and community change across the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum

Paleobiology ◽  
10.1666/12050 ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 39 (4) ◽  
pp. 628-647 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leah J. Schneider ◽  
Timothy J. Bralower ◽  
Lee R. Kump ◽  
Mark E. Patzkowsky
Keyword(s):  
Nutrient Availability ◽  
Multivariate Analyses ◽  
Geochemical Modeling ◽  
Community Change ◽  
Open Ocean ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Long Term Effect ◽  
Term Change ◽  
Thermal Maximum

The Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM; ca. 55.8 Ma) is thought to coincide with a profound but entirely transient change among nannoplankton communities throughout the ocean. Here we explore the ecology of nannoplankton during the PETM by using multivariate analyses of a global data set that is based upon the distribution of taxa in time and space. We use these results, coupled with stable isotope data and geochemical modeling, to reinterpret the ecology of key genera. The results of the multivariate analyses suggest that the community was perturbed significantly in coastal and high-latitudes sites compared to the open ocean, and the relative influence of temperature and nutrient availability on the assemblage varies regionally. The open ocean became more stratified and less productive during the PETM and the oligotrophic assemblage responded primarily to changes in nutrient availability. Alternatively, assemblages at the equator and in the Southern Ocean responded to temperature more than to nutrient reduction. In addition, the assemblage change at the PETM was not merely transient—there is evidence of adaptation and a long-term change in the nannoplankton community that persists after the PETM and results in the disappearance of a high-latitude assemblage. The long-term effect on communities caused by transient warming during the PETM has implications for modern-day climate change, suggesting similar permanent changes to nannoplankton community structure as the oceans warm.

scholarly journals Long term precipitation chemistry and wet deposition in a remote dry savanna site in Africa (Niger)

2009 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 1579-1595 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Galy-Lacaux ◽  
D. Laouali ◽  
L. Descroix ◽  
N. Gobron ◽  
C. Liousse
Keyword(s):  
Wet Deposition ◽  
Ph Value ◽  
Precipitation Chemistry ◽  
Annual Rainfall ◽  
Deposition Flux ◽  
Air Concentration ◽  
Ionic Charge ◽  
Rainfall Gradient ◽  
The Mean

Abstract. Long-term precipitation chemistry have been recorded in the rural area of Banizoumbou (Niger), representative of a semi-arid savanna ecosystem. A total of 305 rainfall samples ~90% of the total annual rainfall) were collected from June 1994 to September 2005. From ionic chromatography, pH major inorganic and organic ions were detected. Rainwater chemistry is controlled by soil/dust emissions associated with terrigeneous elements represented by SO42−, Ca2+, Carbonates, K+ and Mg2+. It is found that calcium and carbonates represent ~40% of the total ionic charge. The second highest contribution is nitrogenous, with annual Volume Weighed Mean (VWM) for NO3− and NH4+ concentrations of 11.6 and 18.1 μeq.l−1, respectively. This is the signature of ammonia sources from animals and NOx emissions from savannas soil-particles rain-induced. The mean annual NH3 and NO2 air concentration are of 6 ppbv and 2.6 ppbv, respectively. The annual VWM precipitation concentration of sodium and chloride are both of 8.7 μeq.l−1 which reflects the marine signature of monsoonal and humid air masses. The median pH value is of 6.05. Acidity is neutralized by mineral dust, mainly carbonates, and/or dissolved gases such NH3. High level of organic acidity with 8μeq.l−1 and 5.2 μeq.l−1 of formate and acetate were also found. The analysis of monthly Black Carbon emissions and Fraction of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (FAPAR) values show that both biogenic emission from vegetation and biomass burning could explain the rainfall organic acidity content. The interannual variability of the VWM concentrations around the mean (1994–2005) is between ±5% and ±30% and mainly due to variations of sources strength and rainfall spatio-temporal distribution. From 1994 to 2005, the total mean wet deposition flux in the Sahelian region is of 60.1 mmol.m−2.yr−1 ±25%. Finally, Banizoumbou measurements are compared to other long-term measurements of precipitation chemistry in the wet savanna of Lamto (Côte d'Ivoire) and in the forested zone of Zoétélé (Cameroon). The total chemical loading presents a maximum in the dry savanna and a minimum in the forest (from 143.7, 100.2 to 86.6 μeq.l−1), associated with the gradient of terrigeneous sources. The wet deposition fluxes present an opposite trend, with 60.0 mmol.m−2.yr−1 in Banizoumbou, 108.6 mmol.m−2.yr−1 in Lamto and 162.9 mmol.m−2.yr−1 in Zoétélé, controlled by rainfall gradient along the ecosystems transect.

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