The effect of litter type and macrofauna community on litter decomposition and organic matter accumulation in post-mining sites

Biologia ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 63 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan Frouz
Keyword(s):  
Litter Quality ◽  
C:N Ratio ◽  
Mineral Soil ◽  
Alnus Glutinosa ◽  
Soil Macrofauna ◽  
Salix Caprea ◽  
Mining Sites ◽  
Soil Mixing ◽  
Fauna Composition ◽  
One Year

AbstractField microcosms consisting of mineral soil (spoil substrate) and two types of litter taken either from an unreclaimed site with spontaneously developed vegetation (mostly Salix caprea) or from an alder plantation (a mixture of Alnus glutinosa and A. incana) were exposed in spontaneously developed or reclaimed sites at a post-mining heap near Sokolov (Czech Republic) for one year. The litter types differed remarkably in C:N ratio which was 29 for spontaneous litter and 14 for alder litter. The two microcosm types were either accessible or not accessible to soil macrofauna. The effect of macrofauna exclusion on soil mixing was complex and depended on litter quality and the site that determined soil fauna composition. In reclaimed sites where macrofauna was dominated by saprophags, mainly earthworms, the macrofauna access increased soil mixing. In sites where predators dominated, the macrofauna exclusion probably suppressed fragmentation and mixing activity of the mesofauna.

scholarly journals Decomposition of Forest Litter and Feces of Armadillidium vulgare (Isopoda: Oniscidea) Produced from the Same Litter Affected by Temperature and Litter Quality

Forests ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 939 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandra Špaldoňová ◽  
Jan Frouz
Keyword(s):  
Litter Quality ◽  
Microbial Respiration ◽  
Alnus Glutinosa ◽  
Forest Litter ◽  
Acer Campestre ◽  
Litter Bag ◽  
Salix Caprea ◽  
Armadillidium Vulgare ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Bag Experiments

To explore the question how litter and macrofauna feces respond to temperature and how respiration differs for litter with a different CN ratio, we compared the decomposition rates of leaf litter (Alnus glutinosa, Salix caprea, and Acer campestre) and isopod (Armadillidium vulgare) feces produced from the same litter in response to three constant (8, 16, and 24 °C) and one fluctuating (first week 8 °C, the other week 24 °C) temperatures in a 50 week laboratory experiment and in a field trial. Microbial respiration of litter with lower CN ratio (alder and willow) was significantly higher than respiration of feces, no significant difference was found for maple litter with higher CN ratio. This was supported by field litter bag experiments where alder and willow litter decomposed faster than feces but the opposite was true for maple litter. Litter respiration was significantly affected by temperature but feces respiration was not. Fluctuating temperature caused either lower or equal respiration as compared to mean constant temperature. The content of phenolics was significantly higher in intact litter in comparison with decomposed litter and feces, either fresh or decomposed. The CN ratio decreased as litter turned to feces in maple and alder litter but increased in willow litter. In conclusion, microbial respiration of both litter and feces were substantially affected by litter quality; the litter was more sensitive to temperature than feces.

scholarly journals Free atmospheric CO<sub>2</sub> enrichment increased above ground biomass but did not affect symbiotic N<sub>2</sub>-fixation and soil carbon dynamics in a mixed deciduous stand in Wales

2011 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 353-364 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. R. Hoosbeek ◽  
M. Lukac ◽  
E. Velthorst ◽  
A. R. Smith ◽  
D. L. Godbold
Keyword(s):  
Elevated Co2 ◽  
Forest Floor ◽  
Net Primary Production ◽  
Mineral Soil ◽  
Co2 Enrichment ◽  
Alnus Glutinosa ◽  
Plant Litter ◽  
Soil C ◽  
Face Experiment ◽  
Leaf N Content

Abstract. Through increases in net primary production (NPP), elevated CO2 is hypothesized to increase the amount of plant litter entering the soil. The fate of this extra carbon on the forest floor or in mineral soil is currently not clear. Moreover, increased rates of NPP can be maintained only if forests can escape nitrogen limitation. In a Free atmospheric CO2 Enrichment (FACE) experiment near Bangor, Wales, 4 ambient and 4 elevated [CO2] plots were planted with patches of Betula pendula, Alnus glutinosa and Fagus sylvatica on a former arable field. After 4 years, biomass averaged for the 3 species was 5497 (se 270) g m−2 in ambient and 6450 (se 130) g m−2 in elevated [CO2] plots, a significant increase of 17% (P = 0.018). During that time, only a shallow L forest floor litter layer had formed due to intensive bioturbation. Total soil C and N contents increased irrespective of treatment and species as a result of afforestation. We could not detect an additional C sink in the soil, nor were soil C stabilization processes affected by elevated [CO2]. We observed a decrease of leaf N content in Betula and Alnus under elevated [CO2], while the soil C/N ratio decreased regardless of CO2 treatment. The ratio of N taken up from the soil and by N2-fixation in Alnus was not affected by elevated [CO2]. We infer that increased nitrogen use efficiency is the mechanism by which increased NPP is sustained under elevated [CO2] at this site.

scholarly journals Occurrence, biology and harmfulness of Galerucella lineola (F.) (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae) – Part 2. Larvae and this year’s beetles

2008 ◽  
Vol 53 (No. 9) ◽  
pp. 424-444
Author(s):  
J. Urban
Keyword(s):  
Alnus Glutinosa ◽  
Salix Caprea ◽  
Biological Form ◽  
Lowland Area ◽  
Salix Triandra

The second part of the paper deals with the development and harmfulness of larvae and maturation feeding of this year’s beetles of <I>Galerucella lineola</I> (F.) before leaving for winter habitats. Embryogenesis takes on average 12 (in the laboratory 9) days. In the area of Žďár situated at a higher and colder location, larvae of the alder biological form occur on <I>Alnus glutinosa</I> and <I>A. incana</I> from June to August. In the warmer lowland area of Brno, larvae of the willow form occur on <i>Salix triandra, S. viminali</I>s and <I>S. caprea</I> from the 3<sup>rd</sup> decade of May to the beginning of August. In the laboratory, larvae of the alder form developed on average 16 days and larvae of the willow form 13 days. Larvae of the alder form damage on average 9.7 cm<sup>2</sup> leaves of <I>A. glutinosa</I> and larvae of the willow form 6.0 cm<sup>2</sup> leaves of <I>Salix caprea</I>. This year’s imagoes occur in the area of Žďár on alders from mid-July to the end of October and during 3 weeks, they damage on average 16 cm<sup>2</sup> leaves of <I>A. glutinosa</I>. This year’s imagoes occur on willows in the area of Brno from the end of June to the end of August. During 2 weeks, they damage on average 12 cm<sup>2</sup> leaves of <i>S. caprea</I>. The chrysomelid development is univoltine (in southern parts of Moravia partly bivoltine). The alder biological form of <I>G. lineol</I>a produced 2 (the willow form even 4) incomplete generations in the laboratory. This year’s imagoes damaged on average 36.6 cm<sup>2</sup> of <I>S. caprea</I> and laid 122 to 887 (on average 528) eggs. In the area of Brno, imagoes of the willow form were up to 65% parasitized by <I>Medina collaris</I> (Fall.) (Tachinidae).Tachinidae).

Nutrient cycling in Huntington Forest and Turkey Lakes deciduous stands: nitrogen and sulfur

1992 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 457-464 ◽  
Author(s):  
M.J. Mitchell ◽  
N.W. Foster ◽  
J.P. Shepard ◽  
I.K. Morrison
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Forest Floor ◽  
Sugar Maple ◽  
Tree Mortality ◽  
C:N Ratio ◽  
Mineral Soil ◽  
Stand Age ◽  
Adirondack Mountains ◽  
Contributing Factors ◽  
Turkey Lakes Watershed

Biogeochemical cycling of S and N was quantified at two hardwood sites (Turkey Lakes watershed (TLW) and Huntington Forest (HF)) that have sugar maple (Acersaccharum Marsh.) as the major overstory component and are underlain by Spodosols (Podzols). TLW and HF are located in central Ontario (Canada) and the Adirondack Mountains of New York (U.S.A), respectively. Major differences between the TLW and HF sites included stand age (300 and 100 years for TLW and HF, respectively), age of dominant trees (150–300 and 100 years for TLW and HF, respectively), and the presence of American beech (Fagusgrandifolia Ehrh.) at HF as well as lower inputs of SO42− and NO3− (differences of 99 and 31 mol ion charge (molc)•ha−1•year−1, respectively) at TLW. There was an increase in concentration of SO42− and NO3− after passage through the canopy at both sites. A major difference in the anion chemistry of the soil solution between the sites was the much greater leaching of NO3− at TLW compared with HF (1300 versus 18 molc•ha−1•year−1, respectively). At HF, but not TLW, there was a marked increase in SO42− flux (217 molc•ha−1•year−1) when water leached from the forest floor through the mineral soil. The mineral soil was the largest pool (>80%) of N and S for both sites. The mineral soil of TLW had a C:N ratio of 16:1, which is much narrower than the 34:1 ratio at HF. This former ratio should favor accumulation of NH44+ and NO3− and subsequent NO3− leaching. Laboratory measurements suggest that the forest floor of TLW may have higher N mineralization rates than HF. Fluxes of N and S within the vegetation were generally similar at both sites, except that net requirement of N at TLW was substantially lower (difference of 9.4 kg N•ha−1•year−1). The higher NO3− leaching from TLW compared with HF may be attributed mostly to stand maturity coupled with tree mortality, but the absence of slow decomposing beech leaf litter and lower C:N ratio in the soil of the former site may also be contributing factors.

Biomass and nutrient content of Douglas-fir logs and other detrital pools in an old-growth forest, Oregon, U.S.A.

1992 ◽  
Vol 22 (10) ◽  
pp. 1536-1546 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph E. Means ◽  
Paul C. MacMillan ◽  
Kermit Cromack Jr.
Keyword(s):  
Forest Floor ◽  
Soluble Fraction ◽  
Close Association ◽  
C:N Ratio ◽  
Mineral Soil ◽  
Nutrient Content ◽  
Douglas Fir ◽  
Area Index ◽  
Old Growth Forest ◽  
N Release

Logs, forest floor, and mineral soil were sampled and measured, and snags were measured, in a 450-year-old Douglas-fir (Pseudotsugamenziesii (Mirb.) Franco) stand on the H.J. Andrews Experimental Forest, Oregon. Logs, some still identifiable after 300 years on the forest floor, contained large amounts of organic matter (222 Mg/ha), C (100 Mg/ha), water (559–10 700 L/log), N (183 kg/ha), and Ca (141 kg/ha), and smaller amounts of P (5.5 kg/ha), K (22 kg/ha), Mg (14 kg/ha), and Na (3.7 kg/ha). Logs and snags covered about 17% of the forest floor and had an all-sided area index of 0.69 m2/m2. Through mineralization, C, N, and K were lost through time; Ca and Mg increased; and P and Na increased then decreased, showing no net change. Also through mineralization, cellulose and hot acid detergent soluble fraction decreased more rapidly than lignin. Lignin was apparently not lost until the later stages of decay, when N was also lost in significant amounts. This parallels the shift from initial dominance by white rots that degraded cellulose and lignin to later dominance by brown rots that preferentially degraded cellulose. Lignin and cellulose were eventually lost at more similar rates in later decay stages. This may have been due in part to a close association between the remaining cellulose and lignin in later decay stages. Lignin was a better predictor of the onset of N release than was the C:N ratio.

scholarly journals The orchid bee fauna (Hymenoptera, Apidae) of a core area of the Cerrado, Brazil: the role of riparian forests as corridors for forest-associated bees

2011 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 87-94 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luiz Roberto Ribeiro Faria ◽  
Fernando Amaral da Silveira
Keyword(s):  
Aromatic Compounds ◽  
Sensu Stricto ◽  
Riparian Forests ◽  
Orchid Bee ◽  
The Core ◽  
Minas Gerais State ◽  
Fauna Composition ◽  
Species Richness And Abundance ◽  
One Year

The composition of local orchid-bee faunas (Hymenoptera, Apidae, Euglossina) in open-vegetation domains is poorly known, making the ecology and biogeography of the group difficult to understand. The aim of this work was to answer the following questions: i) Is the orchid-bee fauna composition, species richness and abundance in the cerrado (Brazilian savanna) sensu stricto similar to that of riparian forests immersed in that domain? ii) Do species from neighboring forest domains use riparian forests as mesic corridors into the Cerrado? Two sites in cerrado s.s. and two in riparian forests were sampled monthly, one day per month, during one year (Nov/2003-Oct/2004) in northwestern Minas Gerais state, Brazil. Six aromatic compounds (β-ionone, 1,8-cineole, eugenol, methyl trans-cinnamate, methyl salicilate and vanillin) were exposed from 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM to attract orchid bees. The results suggest that: i) The composition of the orchid bee fauna in the two kinds of environments is the same; ii) Riparian forests apparently have no role as mesic corridors for penetration of forest-dependent euglossine species into the core of the Cerrado Domain.

Falcon constructed artificial catchment for whole ecosystem manipulation how we build it and what are the first results

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Bartiška ◽  
Jan Frouz
Keyword(s):  
Chemical Composition ◽  
Gas Exchange ◽  
Water Table ◽  
Alnus Glutinosa ◽  
Mining Sites ◽  
Total Runoff ◽  
Result Show ◽  
First Results ◽  
Subsurface Runoff ◽  
Ecosystem Manipulation

&lt;p&gt;Subsurface processes are often omitted in catchment studies here we presented artificial catchment as a new tool to study and budget these processes on catchment level.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Falcon is and artificial &amp;#160;catchment that build in Sokolov post mining sites Catchment consist from four separate micro catchments (pools) each ) 0.25ha in area and 2m in depth which are hydrologically isolated&amp;#160; and filled by post mining overburden. Two fields were levelled while in two was wave like surface was produced to mimic situation after heaping.&amp;#160; Leveled micro catchments were planted by alder (Alnus glutinosa).&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Catchment allow to study meteorological variables, surface and subsurface runoff,&amp;#160; and other key ecosystem parameters (water table depth chemical composition of pore water, soil respiration, gas exchange between ecosystem and surrounding atmosphere using eddy tower etc.). First result show large erosion on waves then on levelled sites however large proportion of material eroded from flat site leave the site while in wave like surface most of it is trapped in depression between waves. Subsurface runoff form large proportion of total runoff in wavy sites than in flat sites. Stable water table established quickly in both types of catchments} few months after catchment establishment. Flat sites show higher initial diversity of plants.&lt;/p&gt;

scholarly journals Biotic and abiotic variables influencing plant litter breakdown in streams: a global study

2016 ◽  
Vol 283 (1829) ◽  
pp. 20152664 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luz Boyero ◽  
Richard G. Pearson ◽  
Cang Hui ◽  
Mark O. Gessner ◽  
Javier Pérez ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Litter Quality ◽  
Alnus Glutinosa ◽  
Global Scale ◽  
Plant Litter ◽  
Freshwater Ecosystems ◽  
Litter Breakdown ◽  
Litter Mixtures ◽  
Litter Traits ◽  
Breakdown Rates ◽  
Local Species

Plant litter breakdown is a key ecological process in terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems. Streams and rivers, in particular, contribute substantially to global carbon fluxes. However, there is little information available on the relative roles of different drivers of plant litter breakdown in fresh waters, particularly at large scales. We present a global-scale study of litter breakdown in streams to compare the roles of biotic, climatic and other environmental factors on breakdown rates. We conducted an experiment in 24 streams encompassing latitudes from 47.8° N to 42.8° S, using litter mixtures of local species differing in quality and phylogenetic diversity (PD), and alder ( Alnus glutinosa ) to control for variation in litter traits. Our models revealed that breakdown of alder was driven by climate, with some influence of pH, whereas variation in breakdown of litter mixtures was explained mainly by litter quality and PD. Effects of litter quality and PD and stream pH were more positive at higher temperatures, indicating that different mechanisms may operate at different latitudes. These results reflect global variability caused by multiple factors, but unexplained variance points to the need for expanded global-scale comparisons.

scholarly journals Ligustrum lucidum invasion decreases abundance and relative contribution of soil fauna to litter decomposition but increases decomposition rate in a subtropical montane forest of NW Argentina

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Romina Daiana Fernandez ◽  
María Laura Moreno ◽  
Natalia Pérez Harguindeguy ◽  
Roxana Aragón
Keyword(s):  
Litter Decomposition ◽  
Decomposition Rate ◽  
Litter Quality ◽  
Invasive Plant ◽  
Soil Fauna ◽  
Mountain Forest ◽  
Forest Types ◽  
Soil Macrofauna ◽  
Ligustrum Lucidum ◽  
Relative Contribution

Invasive plant species can alter litter decomposition rates through changes in litter quality, environment conditions and decomposer organisms (microflora and soil fauna) but limited research has examined the direct impact on soil fauna. We assessed the abundance and relative contribution of soil meso- and macrofauna to litter decomposition in invaded forest by Ligustrum lucidum and non-invaded forest in a subtropical mountain forest of northwest Argentina using litterbags (0.01, 2 and 6 mm mesh size). Additionally, we analyzed litter quality and soil properties of both forest types. Soil fauna abundance was lower in invaded than in non- invaded forest. The contribution of soil macrofauna to litter decomposition was important in both forest types, but soil mesofauna contribution was only significant in non-invaded forest. Litter decomposition was significantly faster in invaded than in non-invaded forest, consistent with its highest quality. Invaded forest had significantly lower litter accumulation, lower soil moisture and greater soil pH than non-invaded forest. Our results showed that, although soil fauna was less abundant and played a less pronounced role in litter decomposition in invaded forest; these changes did not translate into a reduced litter decomposition rate due to the higher quality of litter produced in the invaded forest.

scholarly journals Minor changes in soil organic carbon and charcoal concentrations detected in a temperate deciduous forest a year after an experimental slash-and-burn

2007 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 377-383 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Eckmeier ◽  
R. Gerlach ◽  
J. O. Skjemstad ◽  
O. Ehrmann ◽  
M. W. I. Schmidt
Keyword(s):  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Soil Organic Carbon ◽  
Biomass Burning ◽  
Deciduous Forests ◽  
Soil Matrix ◽  
Slash And Burn ◽  
Soil Mixing ◽  
Temperate Deciduous ◽  
Temperate Deciduous Forests ◽  
One Year

Abstract. Anthropogenic fires affected the temperate deciduous forests of Central Europe over millennia. Biomass burning releases carbon to the atmosphere and produces charcoal, which potentially contributes to the stable soil carbon pools and is an important archive of environmental history. The fate of charcoal in soils of temperate deciduous forests, i.e. the processes of charcoal incorporation and transportation and the effects on soil organic matter are still not clear. We investigated the effects of slash-and-burn at a long-term experimental burning site and determined soil organic carbon and charcoal carbon concentrations as well as the soil lightness of colour (L*) in the topmost soil material (0–1, 1–2.5 and 2.5–5 cm depths) before, immediately after the fire and one year later. The main results are that (i) only a few of the charcoal particles from the forest floor were incorporated into the soil matrix, presumably by soil mixing animals. In the 0–1 cm layer, during one year, the charcoal C concentration increased only by 0.4 g kg−1 and the proportion of charcoal C to SOC concentration increased from 2.8 to 3.4%; (ii) the SOC concentrations did not show any significant differences; (iii) soil lightness decreased significantly in the topmost soil layer and correlated well with the concentrations of charcoal C (r=−0.87**) and SOC (r=−0.94**) in the samples from the 0–5 cm layer. We concluded that Holocene biomass burning could have influenced soil charcoal concentrations and soil colour.

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