Biomass and composition of understory vegetation 
and the forest floor carbon stock across Siberian larch 
and mountain birch chronosequences in Iceland

Sigurðsson, Bjarni D.; Magnússon, Borgþór; Elmarsdóttir, Ásrún; Bjarnadóttir, Brynhildur

doi:10.1051/forest:2005079

Cited by 25 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…Hence, the low N concentration outside the gull colony on Surtsey was within B. D. Sigurdsson and B. Magnusson Pálmason et al, 1996;Magnússon et al, 2001;Sigurdsson et al, 2005;Pálmason, 2006;Ritter, 2007). The N concentration within the gull colony was on average 0.13%, which is in the lower part of that range.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Effects of seagulls on ecosystem respiration, soil nitrogen and vegetation cover on a pristine volcanic island, Surtsey, Iceland

Sigurðsson

Magnússon

2010

Biogeosciences

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Abstract. When Surtsey rose from the North Atlantic Ocean south of Iceland in 1963, it became a unique natural laboratory on how organisms colonize volcanic islands and form ecosystems with contrasting structures and functions. In July, 2004, ecosystem respiration rate (R e ), soil properties and surface cover of vascular plants were measured in 21 permanent research plots distributed among the juvenile communities of the island. The plots were divided into two main groups, inside and outside a seagull (Larus spp.) colony established on the island. Vegetation cover of the plots was strongly related to the density of gull nests. Occurrence of nests and increased vegetation cover also coincided with significant increases in R e , soil carbon, nitrogen and C:N ratio, and with significant reductions in soil pH and soil temperatures. Temperature sensitivity (Q10 value) of R e was determined as 5.3. When compared at constant temperature the R e was found to be 59 times higher within the seagull colony, similar to the highest fluxes measured in drained wetlands or agricultural fields in Iceland. The amount of soil nitrogen, mainly brought onto the island by the seagulls, was the critical factor that most influenced ecosystem fluxes and vegetation development on Surtsey. The present study shows how ecosystem activity can be enhanced by colonization of animals that transfer resources from a nearby ecosystem.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This can be compared to an average C concentration of 3.3% for Brown Andosols in Iceland (Óskarsson et al, 2004) and C:N ratios of 11-20 (Magnússon et al, 2001;Sigurdsson et al, 2005;Pálmason, 2006). Outside the gull colony the soil contained only 0.04% C and had a C:N ratio of 5.2, which is low.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of seagulls on ecosystem respiration, soil nitrogen and vegetation cover on a pristine volcanic island, Surtsey, Iceland

Sigurðsson

Magnússon

2010

Biogeosciences

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“…The plots have been part of other studies and are closer described in, e.g. Elmarsdóttir et al (2003b) and Sigurdsson et al (2005).…”

Section: Study Site and Samplingmentioning

confidence: 92%

“…Studies on soil properties have primarily been on soil C in degraded or revegetated soils or the soil nutrient status in grassland and arable soils (Pálmason et al 1992;Aradóttir et al 2000;Arnalds 2004). Other forest studies focus on C in biomass and forest floor and on the effect of nutrient supply on young seedlings during the early phase of forest establishment (Jóns-son and Ó skarsson 1996;Ó skarsson and Sigurgeirsson 2001;Sigurdsson et al 2005), while the long-term effect of afforestation on the nutrient status in Icelandic soils is only little investigated. It is known that nutrient limitation is a severe problem for tree seedlings and can be helped by fertilization during planting (Ó skarsson and Sigurgeirsson 2001).…”

mentioning

confidence: 98%

Carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus in volcanic soils following afforestation with native birch (Betula pubescens) and introduced larch (Larix sibirica) in Iceland

Ritter

2007

Plant Soil

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Afforestation has become an important tool for soil protection and land reclamation in Iceland. Nevertheless, the harsh climate and degraded soils are growth-limiting for trees, and little is know about changes in soil nutrients in maturing forests planted on the volcanic soils. In the present chronosequence study, changes in C, N and total P in soil (0-10 and 10-20 cm depth) and C and N in foliar tissue were investigated in stands of native Downy birch (Betula pubescens Enrh.) and the in Iceland introduced Siberian larch (Larix sibirica Ledeb.). The forest stands were between 14 and 97 years old and were established on heath land that had been treeless for centuries. Soils were Andosols derived from basaltic material and rhyolitic volcanic ash. A significant effect of tree species was only found for the N content in foliar tissue. Foliar N concentrations were significantly higher and foliar C/N ratios significantly lower in larch needles than in birch leaves. There was no effect of stand age. Changes in soil C and the soil nutrient status with time after afforestation were little significant. Soil C concentrations in 0-10 cm depth in forest stands older than 30 years were significantly higher than in heath land and forest stands younger than 30 years. This was attributed to a slow accumulation of organic matter. Soil N concentrations and soil P tot were not affected by stand age. Nutrient pools in the two soil layers were calculated for an average weight of soil material (400 Mg soil ha À1 in 0-10 cm depth and 600 Mg soil ha À1 in 10-20 cm depth, respectively). Soil nutrient pools did not change significantly with time. Soil C pools were in average 23.6 Mg ha À1 in the upper soil layer and 16.9 Mg ha À1 in the lower soil layer. The highest annual increase in soil C under forest compared to heath land was 0.23 Mg C ha À1 year À1 in 0-10 cm depth calculated for the 53-year-old larch stand. Soil N pools were in average 1.0 Mg N ha À1 in both soil layers and did not decrease with time despite a low N deposition and the uptake and accumulation of N in biomass of the growing trees. Soil P tot pools were in average 220 and 320 kg P ha À1 in the upper and lower soil layer, respectively. It was assumed that mycorrhizal fungi present in the stands had an influence on the availability of N and P to the trees.

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“…and Sitka spruce in a 95:4:1 mixture. Further information on site conditions can be found in Table 1, Sigurdsson et al (2005) and Bjarnadottir et al (2007a). The ground vegetation consists mainly of dwarf shrubs (Betula nana L. and Vaccinium uliginosum L.), grasses and bryophytes .…”

Section: Site Descriptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A young afforestation area in Iceland was a moderate sink to CO<sub>2</sub> only a decade after scarification and establishment

2009

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Abstract. This study reports on three years (2004)(2005)(2006) of measurements of net ecosystem exchange (NEE) over a young Siberian larch plantation in Iceland established on previously grazed heathland pasture that had been scarified prior to planting. The study evaluated the variation of NEE and its component fluxes, gross primary production (GPP) and ecosystem respiration (R e ), with the aim to clarify how climatic factors controlled the site's carbon balance. The young plantation acted as a relatively strong sink for CO 2 during all of the three years, with an annual net sequestration of −102, −154, and −67 g C m −2 for 2004, 2005, and 2006, respectively. This variation was more related to variation in carbon efflux (R e ) than carbon uptake (GPP). The abiotic factors that showed the strongest correlation to R e were air temperature during the growing season and soil water potential. The GPP mostly followed the seasonal pattern in irradiance, except in 2005, when the plantation experienced severe spring frost damage that set the GPP back to zero. It was not expected that the rather slow-growing Siberian larch plantation would be such a strong sink for atmospheric CO 2 only twelve years after site preparation and afforestation.

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Biomass and composition of understory vegetation and the forest floor carbon stock across Siberian larch and mountain birch chronosequences in Iceland

Cited by 25 publications

References 12 publications

Effects of seagulls on ecosystem respiration, soil nitrogen and vegetation cover on a pristine volcanic island, Surtsey, Iceland

Effects of seagulls on ecosystem respiration, soil nitrogen and vegetation cover on a pristine volcanic island, Surtsey, Iceland

Carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus in volcanic soils following afforestation with native birch (Betula pubescens) and introduced larch (Larix sibirica) in Iceland

A young afforestation area in Iceland was a moderate sink to CO<sub>2</sub> only a decade after scarification and establishment

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Biomass and composition of understory vegetation and the forest floor carbon stock across Siberian larch and mountain birch chronosequences in Iceland

Cited by 25 publications

References 12 publications

Effects of seagulls on ecosystem respiration, soil nitrogen and vegetation cover on a pristine volcanic island, Surtsey, Iceland

Effects of seagulls on ecosystem respiration, soil nitrogen and vegetation cover on a pristine volcanic island, Surtsey, Iceland

Carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus in volcanic soils following afforestation with native birch (Betula pubescens) and introduced larch (Larix sibirica) in Iceland

A young afforestation area in Iceland was a moderate sink to CO&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt; only a decade after scarification and establishment

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A young afforestation area in Iceland was a moderate sink to CO<sub>2</sub> only a decade after scarification and establishment