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Pawlik Ł, Gruba P, Gałązka A, Marzec-Grządziel A, Kupka D, Szopa K, Buma B, Šamonil P. Weathering and soil production under trees growing on sandstones - The role of tree roots in soil formation. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2023; 902:166002. [PMID: 37541525 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.166002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2023] [Revised: 06/13/2023] [Accepted: 08/01/2023] [Indexed: 08/06/2023]
Abstract
Rock weathering drives both landform formation and soil production/evolution. The less studied biological component of weathering and soil production caused by tree root systems is the main focus of the present study. Weathering by trees, which likely has been important in soil formation since the first trees emerged in the middle and late Devonian, is accomplished through both physical and biological means, like acids excreted by plants and exudates from associated bacterial communities. However, these processes are relatively poorly known. We assessed the impact of tree roots and associated microbiota on the potential level of biological weathering. Three research plots were selected in two sandstone regions in Poland. Two plots were in the Stołowe Mountains (Złotno, Batorów), a tableland built of Cretaceous sandstones. The third plot (Żegiestów) was in the Sącz Beskidy Mountains, the Carpathians. Soil samples were taken from tree root zones of Norway spruces from predefined sampling positions. Soils from non-tree control positions were also sampled. Soil samples were a subject of laboratory analyses which included the content of Fe and Al (amorphous and labile forms), carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and soil pH. The microbial functional diversity of soil microorganisms was determined using the Biolog (EcoPlate) system. Rock fragments were collected for mineralogical and a subject of optical microscopy and cathodoluminescence analyses in order to examine their mineralogical composition. Significant differences (pHolm-corrected < 0.05) between sample locations were found mostly for the Żegiestów plot: Soils at control positions differed from the crack and bulk soil sample positions in terms of C, N, C/N, and pH. Tree roots were able to develop a great variety of sizes and forms by following the existing net of bedrock discontinuities and hillslope microrelief. They developed along the most accessible surfaces, and caused rockcliff retreat and scree slope formation. These two features can be considered as initial stages of soil production. Trees add to the complexity of the soil system and allow formation of rhizospheric soils, and horizons rich in organic matter which are zones of a high microbial activity. However, as our study shows, rock cracks with roots cannot be considered as zones of microbial weathering. In addition, C content and microbial activity decreases with depth but can stay on a high level along living and dead roots. When entering rock fractures, they change the intensity of biomechanical weathering and soil properties. The highest biological activity of microorganisms was found in the control samples. Overall, tree roots do change the pattern of soil formation and explain the existing pattern of soil chemical properties, microbial activity, and potentially biological weathering intensity, and the intensity of those processes in correlation with root presence varies in space.
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Affiliation(s)
- Łukasz Pawlik
- Institute of Earth Sciences, University of Silesia, ul. Będzińska 60, 41-200 Sosnowiec, Poland.
| | - Piotr Gruba
- Department of Forest Ecology and Silviculture, University of Agriculture in Krakow, Al. 29 Listopada 46, 31-425 Krakow, Poland
| | - Anna Gałązka
- Department of Agricultural Microbiology, Institute of Soil Science and Plant Cultivation - State Research Institute, Czartoryskich St. 8, 24-100 Puławy, Poland
| | - Anna Marzec-Grządziel
- Department of Agricultural Microbiology, Institute of Soil Science and Plant Cultivation - State Research Institute, Czartoryskich St. 8, 24-100 Puławy, Poland
| | - Dawid Kupka
- Department of Forest Ecology and Silviculture, University of Agriculture in Krakow, Al. 29 Listopada 46, 31-425 Krakow, Poland
| | - Krzysztof Szopa
- Institute of Earth Sciences, University of Silesia, ul. Będzińska 60, 41-200 Sosnowiec, Poland
| | - Brian Buma
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Colorado, Denver, CO, USA; Environmental Defense Fund, 2060 Broadway St, Ste 300, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - Pavel Šamonil
- Institute of Earth Sciences, University of Silesia, ul. Będzińska 60, 41-200 Sosnowiec, Poland; Department of Forest Ecology, The Silva Tarouca Research Institute, Lidicka 25/27, 602 00 Brno, Czech Republic
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Billings SA, Lajtha K, Malhotra A, Berhe AA, de Graaff MA, Earl S, Fraterrigo J, Georgiou K, Grandy S, Hobbie SE, Moore JAM, Nadelhoffer K, Pierson D, Rasmussen C, Silver WL, Sulman BN, Weintraub S, Wieder W. Soil organic carbon is not just for soil scientists: measurement recommendations for diverse practitioners. ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS : A PUBLICATION OF THE ECOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA 2021; 31:e02290. [PMID: 33426701 DOI: 10.1002/eap.2290] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2020] [Revised: 08/05/2020] [Accepted: 10/05/2020] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Soil organic carbon (SOC) regulates terrestrial ecosystem functioning, provides diverse energy sources for soil microorganisms, governs soil structure, and regulates the availability of organically bound nutrients. Investigators in increasingly diverse disciplines recognize how quantifying SOC attributes can provide insight about ecological states and processes. Today, multiple research networks collect and provide SOC data, and robust, new technologies are available for managing, sharing, and analyzing large data sets. We advocate that the scientific community capitalize on these developments to augment SOC data sets via standardized protocols. We describe why such efforts are important and the breadth of disciplines for which it will be helpful, and outline a tiered approach for standardized sampling of SOC and ancillary variables that ranges from simple to more complex. We target scientists ranging from those with little to no background in soil science to those with more soil-related expertise, and offer examples of the ways in which the resulting data can be organized, shared, and discoverable.
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Affiliation(s)
- S A Billings
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and Kansas Biological Survey, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, 66047, USA
| | - K Lajtha
- Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, 97331, USA
| | - A Malhotra
- Department of Earth System Science, Stanford University, Stanford, California, 94305, USA
| | - A A Berhe
- Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of California, Merced, Merced, California, 95344, USA
| | - M-A de Graaff
- Department of Biological Sciences, Boise State University, Boise, Idaho, 83725, USA
| | - S Earl
- Global Institute of Sustainability, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, 85281, USA
| | - J Fraterrigo
- Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences, and Program in Ecology, Evolution and Conservation Biology, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois, 61820, USA
| | - K Georgiou
- Department of Earth System Science, Stanford University, Stanford, California, 94305, USA
| | - S Grandy
- Department of Natural Resources and the Environment, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire, 03824, USA
| | - S E Hobbie
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, Minnesota, 55455, USA
| | - J A M Moore
- Bioscience Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee, 37830, USA
| | - K Nadelhoffer
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, 48109, USA
| | - D Pierson
- Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, 97331, USA
| | - C Rasmussen
- Department of Environmental Science, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, 85721, USA
| | - W L Silver
- Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, California, 94720, USA
| | - B N Sulman
- Climate Change Science Institute and Environmental Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee, 37830, USA
| | - S Weintraub
- National Ecological Observatory Network, Batelle, Boulder, Colorado, 80309, USA
| | - W Wieder
- Climate and Global Dynamics Laboratory, National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, Colorado, 80307, USA
- Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, Colorado, 80303, USA
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3
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Hydrological Mapping in the Luquillo Experimental Forest: New Local Datum Improves Watershed Ecological Knowledge. HYDROLOGY 2021. [DOI: 10.3390/hydrology8010054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Streams and rivers of the Luquillo Experimental Forest, Puerto Rico, have been the subject of extensive watershed and aquatic research since the 1980s. This research includes understanding stream export of nutrients and coarse particulate organic matter, physicochemical constituents, aquatic fauna populations and community structure. However, many of the streams and watersheds studied do not appear in standard scale maps. We document recent collaborative and multi-institutional work to improve hydrological network information and identify knowledge gaps. The methods used to delimit and densify stream networks include establishment and incorporation of an updated new vertical datum for Puerto Rico, LIDAR derived elevation, and a combination of visual-manual and automated digitalization processes. The outcomes of this collaborative effort have resulted in improved watershed delineation, densification of hydrologic networks to reflect the scale of on-going studies, and the identification of constraining factors such as unmapped roadways, culverts, and other features of the built environment that interrupt water flow and alter runoff pathways. This work contributes to enhanced knowledge for watershed management, including attributes of riparian areas, effects of road and channel intersections and ridge to reef initiatives with broad application to other watersheds.
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Zaharescu DG, Burghelea CI, Dontsova K, Presler JK, Hunt EA, Domanik KJ, Amistadi MK, Sandhaus S, Munoz EN, Gaddis EE, Galey M, Vaquera-Ibarra MO, Palacios-Menendez MA, Castrejón-Martinez R, Roldán-Nicolau EC, Li K, Maier RM, Reinhard CT, Chorover J. Ecosystem-bedrock interaction changes nutrient compartmentalization during early oxidative weathering. Sci Rep 2019; 9:15006. [PMID: 31628373 PMCID: PMC6800431 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-51274-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2019] [Accepted: 09/03/2019] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Ecosystem-bedrock interactions power the biogeochemical cycles of Earth's shallow crust, supporting life, stimulating substrate transformation, and spurring evolutionary innovation. While oxidative processes have dominated half of terrestrial history, the relative contribution of the biosphere and its chemical fingerprints on Earth's developing regolith are still poorly constrained. Here, we report results from a two-year incipient weathering experiment. We found that the mass release and compartmentalization of major elements during weathering of granite, rhyolite, schist and basalt was rock-specific and regulated by ecosystem components. A tight interplay between physiological needs of different biota, mineral dissolution rates, and substrate nutrient availability resulted in intricate elemental distribution patterns. Biota accelerated CO2 mineralization over abiotic controls as ecosystem complexity increased, and significantly modified the stoichiometry of mobilized elements. Microbial and fungal components inhibited element leaching (23.4% and 7%), while plants increased leaching and biomass retention by 63.4%. All biota left comparable biosignatures in the dissolved weathering products. Nevertheless, the magnitude and allocation of weathered fractions under abiotic and biotic treatments provide quantitative evidence for the role of major biosphere components in the evolution of upper continental crust, presenting critical information for large-scale biogeochemical models and for the search for stable in situ biosignatures beyond Earth.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dragos G Zaharescu
- Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA.
- Alternative Earths Team, NASA Astrobiology Institute, University of California, Riverside, CA, USA.
- Biosphere 2, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA.
| | | | - Katerina Dontsova
- Biosphere 2, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
- Department of Environmental Science, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | | | - Edward A Hunt
- Biosphere 2, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - Kenneth J Domanik
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - Mary K Amistadi
- Arizona Laboratory for Emerging Contaminants, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - Shana Sandhaus
- Biosphere 2, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
- Honor's College, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - Elise N Munoz
- Biosphere 2, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
- Honor's College, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - Emily E Gaddis
- Biosphere 2, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
- Williams College, Williamstown, MA, USA
| | - Miranda Galey
- Biosphere 2, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
- Biology Department, The University of Minnesota, Duluth, MN, USA
| | - María O Vaquera-Ibarra
- Biosphere 2, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
- University of the Americas Puebla, Puebla, Mexico
| | | | - Ricardo Castrejón-Martinez
- Biosphere 2, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
- National Autonomous University of Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico
| | - Estefanía C Roldán-Nicolau
- Biosphere 2, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
- National Autonomous University of Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico
| | - Kexin Li
- Biosphere 2, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
- Department of Computer Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Raina M Maier
- Department of Environmental Science, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - Christopher T Reinhard
- Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Alternative Earths Team, NASA Astrobiology Institute, University of California, Riverside, CA, USA
| | - Jon Chorover
- Biosphere 2, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
- Department of Environmental Science, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
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Teodoro GS, Lambers H, Nascimento DL, de Britto Costa P, Flores‐Borges DNA, Abrahão A, Mayer JLS, Sawaya ACHF, Ladeira FSB, Abdala DB, Pérez CA, Oliveira RS. Specialized roots of Velloziaceae weather quartzite rock while mobilizing phosphorus using carboxylates. Funct Ecol 2019. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.13324] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Grazielle Sales Teodoro
- Biology Institute Universidade Federal do Pará Guamá Belém Brazil
- Department of Plant Biology, Biology Institute, Universidade Estadual de Campinas Cidade Universitária Zeferino Vaz Campinas Brazil
| | - Hans Lambers
- School of Biological Sciences The University of Western Australia Crawley (Perth) Western Australia Australia
| | - Diego L. Nascimento
- Geosciences Institute, Universidade Estadual de Campinas Cidade Universitária Zeferino Vaz Campinas Brazil
| | - Patrícia de Britto Costa
- Department of Plant Biology, Biology Institute, Universidade Estadual de Campinas Cidade Universitária Zeferino Vaz Campinas Brazil
- School of Biological Sciences The University of Western Australia Crawley (Perth) Western Australia Australia
| | - Denisele N. A. Flores‐Borges
- Department of Plant Biology, Biology Institute, Universidade Estadual de Campinas Cidade Universitária Zeferino Vaz Campinas Brazil
| | - Anna Abrahão
- Department of Plant Biology, Biology Institute, Universidade Estadual de Campinas Cidade Universitária Zeferino Vaz Campinas Brazil
- School of Biological Sciences The University of Western Australia Crawley (Perth) Western Australia Australia
| | - Juliana L. S. Mayer
- Department of Plant Biology, Biology Institute, Universidade Estadual de Campinas Cidade Universitária Zeferino Vaz Campinas Brazil
| | - Alexandra C. H. F. Sawaya
- Department of Plant Biology, Biology Institute, Universidade Estadual de Campinas Cidade Universitária Zeferino Vaz Campinas Brazil
| | | | - Dalton Belchior Abdala
- Brazilian Synchrotron Light Laboratory (LNLS) Brazilian Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM) Campinas São Paulo Brazil
| | - Carlos A. Pérez
- Brazilian Synchrotron Light Laboratory (LNLS) Brazilian Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM) Campinas São Paulo Brazil
| | - Rafael S. Oliveira
- Department of Plant Biology, Biology Institute, Universidade Estadual de Campinas Cidade Universitária Zeferino Vaz Campinas Brazil
- School of Biological Sciences The University of Western Australia Crawley (Perth) Western Australia Australia
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7
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Ectomycorrhizal Fungi and Mineral Interactions in the Rhizosphere of Scots and Red Pine Seedlings. SOILS 2017. [DOI: 10.3390/soils1010005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
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8
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Epihov DZ, Batterman SA, Hedin LO, Leake JR, Smith LM, Beerling DJ. N 2-fixing tropical legume evolution: a contributor to enhanced weathering through the Cenozoic? Proc Biol Sci 2017; 284:20170370. [PMID: 28814651 PMCID: PMC5563791 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2017.0370] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2017] [Accepted: 07/12/2017] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Fossil and phylogenetic evidence indicates legume-rich modern tropical forests replaced Late Cretaceous palm-dominated tropical forests across four continents during the early Cenozoic (58-42 Ma). Tropical legume trees can transform ecosystems via their ability to fix dinitrogen (N2) and higher leaf N compared with non-legumes (35-65%), but it is unclear how their evolutionary rise contributed to silicate weathering, the long-term sink for atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2). Here we hypothesize that the increasing abundance of N2-fixing legumes in tropical forests amplified silicate weathering rates by increased input of fixed nitrogen (N) to terrestrial ecosystems via interrelated mechanisms including increasing microbial respiration and soil acidification, and stimulating forest net primary productivity. We suggest the high CO2 early Cenozoic atmosphere further amplified legume weathering. Evolution of legumes with high weathering rates was probably driven by their high demand for phosphorus and micronutrients required for N2-fixation and nodule formation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dimitar Z Epihov
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK
| | - Sarah A Batterman
- School of Geography and Priestley International Centre for Climate, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Balboa, Ancon, Panama
| | - Lars O Hedin
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
| | - Jonathan R Leake
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK
| | - Lisa M Smith
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK
| | - David J Beerling
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK
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9
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Climate and topography control the size and flux of sediment produced on steep mountain slopes. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2015; 112:15574-9. [PMID: 26630002 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1503567112] [Citation(s) in RCA: 75] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Weathering on mountain slopes converts rock to sediment that erodes into channels and thus provides streams with tools for incision into bedrock. Both the size and flux of sediment from slopes can influence channel incision, making sediment production and erosion central to the interplay of climate and tectonics in landscape evolution. Although erosion rates are commonly measured using cosmogenic nuclides, there has been no complementary way to quantify how sediment size varies across slopes where the sediment is produced. Here we show how this limitation can be overcome using a combination of apatite helium ages and cosmogenic nuclides measured in multiple sizes of stream sediment. We applied the approach to a catchment underlain by granodiorite bedrock on the eastern flanks of the High Sierra, in California. Our results show that higher-elevation slopes, which are steeper, colder, and less vegetated, are producing coarser sediment that erodes faster into the channel network. This suggests that both the size and flux of sediment from slopes to channels are governed by altitudinal variations in climate, vegetation, and topography across the catchment. By quantifying spatial variations in the sizes of sediment produced by weathering, this analysis enables new understanding of sediment supply in feedbacks between climate, tectonics, and mountain landscape evolution.
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Schmalenberger A, Duran AL, Bray AW, Bridge J, Bonneville S, Benning LG, Romero-Gonzalez ME, Leake JR, Banwart SA. Oxalate secretion by ectomycorrhizal Paxillus involutus is mineral-specific and controls calcium weathering from minerals. Sci Rep 2015; 5:12187. [PMID: 26197714 PMCID: PMC4510491 DOI: 10.1038/srep12187] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2015] [Accepted: 05/19/2015] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Trees and their associated rhizosphere organisms play a major role in mineral weathering driving calcium fluxes from the continents to the oceans that ultimately control long-term atmospheric CO2 and climate through the geochemical carbon cycle. Photosynthate allocation to tree roots and their mycorrhizal fungi is hypothesized to fuel the active secretion of protons and organic chelators that enhance calcium dissolution at fungal-mineral interfaces. This was tested using (14)CO2 supplied to shoots of Pinus sylvestris ectomycorrhizal with the widespread fungus Paxillus involutus in monoxenic microcosms, revealing preferential allocation by the fungus of plant photoassimilate to weather grains of limestone and silicates each with a combined calcium and magnesium content of over 10 wt.%. Hyphae had acidic surfaces and linear accumulation of weathered calcium with secreted oxalate, increasing significantly in sequence: quartz, granite < basalt, olivine, limestone < gabbro. These findings confirmed the role of mineral-specific oxalate exudation in ectomycorrhizal weathering to dissolve calcium bearing minerals, thus contributing to the geochemical carbon cycle.
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Affiliation(s)
- A. Schmalenberger
- Cell-Mineral Research Centre, Kroto Research Institute, University of Sheffield, S3 7HQ, UK
- Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, S10 2TN, UK
- Life Sciences, University of Limerick, Limerick, Ireland
| | - A. L. Duran
- Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, S10 2TN, UK
| | - A. W. Bray
- Earth Surface Science Institute, School of Earth and Environment, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK
| | - J. Bridge
- Cell-Mineral Research Centre, Kroto Research Institute, University of Sheffield, S3 7HQ, UK
| | - S. Bonneville
- Earth Surface Science Institute, School of Earth and Environment, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK
| | - L. G. Benning
- Earth Surface Science Institute, School of Earth and Environment, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK
- GFZ, German Research Centre for Geosciences, Telegrafenberg, Potsdam 14473, Germany
| | - M. E. Romero-Gonzalez
- Cell-Mineral Research Centre, Kroto Research Institute, University of Sheffield, S3 7HQ, UK
| | - J. R. Leake
- Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, S10 2TN, UK
| | - S. A. Banwart
- Cell-Mineral Research Centre, Kroto Research Institute, University of Sheffield, S3 7HQ, UK
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11
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Ivory SJ, McGlue MM, Ellis GS, Lézine AM, Cohen AS, Vincens A. Vegetation controls on weathering intensity during the last deglacial transition in southeast Africa. PLoS One 2014; 9:e112855. [PMID: 25406090 PMCID: PMC4236122 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0112855] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2014] [Accepted: 10/16/2014] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Tropical climate is rapidly changing, but the effects of these changes on the geosphere are unknown, despite a likelihood of climatically-induced changes on weathering and erosion. The lack of long, continuous paleo-records prevents an examination of terrestrial responses to climate change with sufficient detail to answer questions about how systems behaved in the past and may alter in the future. We use high-resolution records of pollen, clay mineralogy, and particle size from a drill core from Lake Malawi, southeast Africa, to examine atmosphere-biosphere-geosphere interactions during the last deglaciation (∼18–9 ka), a period of dramatic temperature and hydrologic changes. The results demonstrate that climatic controls on Lake Malawi vegetation are critically important to weathering processes and erosion patterns during the deglaciation. At 18 ka, afromontane forests dominated but were progressively replaced by tropical seasonal forest, as summer rainfall increased. Despite indication of decreased rainfall, drought-intolerant forest persisted through the Younger Dryas (YD) resulting from a shorter dry season. Following the YD, an intensified summer monsoon and increased rainfall seasonality were coeval with forest decline and expansion of drought-tolerant miombo woodland. Clay minerals closely track the vegetation record, with high ratios of kaolinite to smectite (K/S) indicating heavy leaching when forest predominates, despite variable rainfall. In the early Holocene, when rainfall and temperature increased (effective moisture remained low), open woodlands expansion resulted in decreased K/S, suggesting a reduction in chemical weathering intensity. Terrigenous sediment mass accumulation rates also increased, suggesting critical linkages among open vegetation and erosion during intervals of enhanced summer rainfall. This study shows a strong, direct influence of vegetation composition on weathering intensity in the tropics. As climate change will likely impact this interplay between the biosphere and geosphere, tropical landscape change could lead to deleterious effects on soil and water quality in regions with little infrastructure for mitigation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah J. Ivory
- Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| | - Michael M. McGlue
- University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky, United States of America
| | | | | | - Andrew S. Cohen
- University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, United States of America
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12
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Quirk J, Andrews MY, Leake JR, Banwart SA, Beerling DJ. Ectomycorrhizal fungi and past high CO2 atmospheres enhance mineral weathering through increased below-ground carbon-energy fluxes. Biol Lett 2014; 10:20140375. [PMID: 25115032 PMCID: PMC4126629 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2014.0375] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2014] [Accepted: 06/10/2014] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Field studies indicate an intensification of mineral weathering with advancement from arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) to later-evolving ectomycorrhizal (EM) fungal partners of gymnosperm and angiosperm trees. We test the hypothesis that this intensification is driven by increasing photosynthate carbon allocation to mycorrhizal mycelial networks using 14CO2-tracer experiments with representative tree–fungus mycorrhizal partnerships. Trees were grown in either a simulated past CO2 atmosphere (1500 ppm)—under which EM fungi evolved—or near-current CO2 (450 ppm). We report a direct linkage between photosynthate-energy fluxes from trees to EM and AM mycorrhizal mycelium and rates of calcium silicate weathering. Calcium dissolution rates halved for both AM and EM trees as CO2 fell from 1500 to 450 ppm, but silicate weathering by AM trees at high CO2 approached rates for EM trees at near-current CO2. Our findings provide mechanistic insights into the involvement of EM-associating forest trees in strengthening biological feedbacks on the geochemical carbon cycle that regulate atmospheric CO2 over millions of years.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joe Quirk
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK
| | - Megan Y. Andrews
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK
- Department of Soil Science, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, USA
| | - Jonathan R. Leake
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK
| | - Steve A. Banwart
- Kroto Research Institute, University of Sheffield, North Campus, Sheffield S3 7HQ, UK
| | - David J. Beerling
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK
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Abstract
Earth's land surface teems with life. Although the distribution of ecosystems is largely explained by temperature and precipitation, vegetation can vary markedly with little variation in climate. Here we explore the role of bedrock in governing the distribution of forest cover across the Sierra Nevada Batholith, California. Our sites span a narrow range of elevations and thus a narrow range in climate. However, land cover varies from Giant Sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum), the largest trees on Earth, to vegetation-free swaths that are visible from space. Meanwhile, underlying bedrock spans nearly the entire compositional range of granitic bedrock in the western North American cordillera. We explored connections between lithology and vegetation using measurements of bedrock geochemistry and forest productivity. Tree-canopy cover, a proxy for forest productivity, varies by more than an order of magnitude across our sites, changing abruptly at mapped contacts between plutons and correlating with bedrock concentrations of major and minor elements, including the plant-essential nutrient phosphorus. Nutrient-poor areas that lack vegetation and soil are eroding more than two times slower on average than surrounding, more nutrient-rich, soil-mantled bedrock. This suggests that bedrock geochemistry can influence landscape evolution through an intrinsic limitation on primary productivity. Our results are consistent with widespread bottom-up lithologic control on the distribution and diversity of vegetation in mountainous terrain.
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Taylor LL, Banwart SA, Valdes PJ, Leake JR, Beerling DJ. Evaluating the effects of terrestrial ecosystems, climate and carbon dioxide on weathering over geological time: a global-scale process-based approach. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2012; 367:565-82. [PMID: 22232768 PMCID: PMC3248708 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2011.0251] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Global weathering of calcium and magnesium silicate rocks provides the long-term sink for atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO(2)) on a timescale of millions of years by causing precipitation of calcium carbonates on the seafloor. Catchment-scale field studies consistently indicate that vegetation increases silicate rock weathering, but incorporating the effects of trees and fungal symbionts into geochemical carbon cycle models has relied upon simple empirical scaling functions. Here, we describe the development and application of a process-based approach to deriving quantitative estimates of weathering by plant roots, associated symbiotic mycorrhizal fungi and climate. Our approach accounts for the influence of terrestrial primary productivity via nutrient uptake on soil chemistry and mineral weathering, driven by simulations using a dynamic global vegetation model coupled to an ocean-atmosphere general circulation model of the Earth's climate. The strategy is successfully validated against observations of weathering in watersheds around the world, indicating that it may have some utility when extrapolated into the past. When applied to a suite of six global simulations from 215 to 50 Ma, we find significantly larger effects over the past 220 Myr relative to the present day. Vegetation and mycorrhizal fungi enhanced climate-driven weathering by a factor of up to 2. Overall, we demonstrate a more realistic process-based treatment of plant fungal-geosphere interactions at the global scale, which constitutes a first step towards developing 'next-generation' geochemical models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lyla L Taylor
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK.
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