Isotopic composition of soil, vegetation or cattle hair no suitable indicator of nitrogen balances in permanent pasture

Wrage, N.; Küchenmeister, Frank; Isselstein, J.

doi:10.1007/s10705-011-9421-9

Cited by 8 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 45 publications

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“…In our study, the naturally diverse abiotic conditions such as strong variation in soil properties and land-use history among plots might have additionally impeded clear patterns of δ 15 N in organic and conventional grasslands. This is supported by findings from Wrage et al [34] giving poor to missing associations among N balances and δ 15 N in soil and vegetation due to spatially heterogeneous conditions and short-term changes in stocking densities in pastures. Moreover, as only a certain proportion of the N stored in biomass and soil originates from fertilization, biologically fixed N (e.g.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 75%

Organic vs. Conventional Grassland Management: Do 15N and 13C Isotopic Signatures of Hay and Soil Samples Differ?

et al. 2013

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Distinguishing organic and conventional products is a major issue of food security and authenticity. Previous studies successfully used stable isotopes to separate organic and conventional products, but up to now, this approach was not tested for organic grassland hay and soil. Moreover, isotopic abundances could be a powerful tool to elucidate differences in ecosystem functioning and driving mechanisms of element cycling in organic and conventional management systems. Here, we studied the δ15N and δ13C isotopic composition of soil and hay samples of 21 organic and 34 conventional grasslands in two German regions. We also used Δδ15N (δ15N plant - δ15N soil) to characterize nitrogen dynamics. In order to detect temporal trends, isotopic abundances in organic grasslands were related to the time since certification. Furthermore, discriminant analysis was used to test whether the respective management type can be deduced from observed isotopic abundances.Isotopic analyses revealed no significant differences in δ13C in hay and δ15N in both soil and hay between management types, but showed that δ13C abundances were significantly lower in soil of organic compared to conventional grasslands. Δδ15N values implied that management types did not substantially differ in nitrogen cycling. Only δ13C in soil and hay showed significant negative relationships with the time since certification. Thus, our result suggest that organic grasslands suffered less from drought stress compared to conventional grasslands most likely due to a benefit of higher plant species richness, as previously shown by manipulative biodiversity experiments. Finally, it was possible to correctly classify about two third of the samples according to their management using isotopic abundances in soil and hay. However, as more than half of the organic samples were incorrectly classified, we infer that more research is needed to improve this approach before it can be efficiently used in practice.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 75%

Organic vs. Conventional Grassland Management: Do 15N and 13C Isotopic Signatures of Hay and Soil Samples Differ?

et al. 2013

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“…From a strictly theoretical perspective, if the soil and plant δ 15 N values increase with increased stocking rate, so too should the δ 15 N values of herbivores grazing in these ecosystems. Wittmer et al ( 2011 ) found no relationship between stocking rate and sheep tissue δ 15 N, but they also did not detect any significant differences in vegetation or soil δ 15 N with variable stocking rate; similar results were obtained by Wrage et al ( 2011 ) with cattle. Schwertl et al ( 2005 ) and Kriszan et al ( 2014 ) found that higher grazing intensities were correlated with higher animal tissue δ 15 N values, with differences between stocking rates as high as 4‰ in both studies.…”

Section: Animal Domestication and Husbandrymentioning

confidence: 52%

Complexities of nitrogen isotope biogeochemistry in plant-soil systems: implications for the study of ancient agricultural and animal management practices

2014

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Nitrogen isotopic studies have the potential to shed light on the structure of ancient ecosystems, agropastoral regimes, and human-environment interactions. Until relatively recently, however, little attention was paid to the complexities of nitrogen transformations in ancient plant-soil systems and their potential impact on plant and animal tissue nitrogen isotopic compositions. This paper discusses the importance of understanding nitrogen dynamics in ancient contexts, and highlights several key areas of archaeology where a more detailed understanding of these processes may enable us to answer some fundamental questions. This paper explores two larger themes that are prominent in archaeological studies using stable nitrogen isotope analysis: (1) agricultural practices (use of animal fertilizers, burning of vegetation or shifting cultivation, and tillage) and (2) animal domestication and husbandry (grazing intensity/stocking rate and the foddering of domestic animals with cultigens). The paucity of plant material in ancient deposits necessitates that these issues are addressed primarily through the isotopic analysis of skeletal material rather than the plants themselves, but the interpretation of these data hinges on a thorough understanding of the underlying biogeochemical processes in plant-soil systems. Building on studies conducted in modern ecosystems and under controlled conditions, these processes are reviewed, and their relevance discussed for ancient contexts.

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“…Animals obtain nitrogen from plants, reflecting their nitrogen isotopic signal. In turn, the plant's nitrogen content is related to the chemical composition of the soil, the rainfall average, the nitrogen composition of the atmosphere and microbiological processes (Hartman 2011;Rabanus-Wallace et al 2017;Ugan and Coltrain 2011;Wrage, Kuchenmeister, and Isselstein 2011). Low δ 15 N levels are more common in cold or wet ecosystems, and higher values are typical in arid or hot environments (Austin and Vitousek 1998;Handley et al 1999).…”

Section: Isotopes and Isotopic Nichementioning

confidence: 99%

Patterns of Resource Use and Isotopic Niche Overlap Among Guanaco (Lama guanicoe), Pampas Deer (Ozotoceros bezoarticus) and Marsh Deer (Blastocerus dichotomus) in the Pampas. Ecological, Paleoenvironmental and Archaeological Implications

Loponte

Corriale

2019

Environmental Archaeology

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In this paper, we analyze the isotopic niche and resource use of the guanaco (Lama guanicoe), pampas deer (Ozotoceros bezoarticus) and marsh deer (Blastocerus dichotomus) on the temperate plain of the northern Pampa region in the southeast of South America. The measured stable isotope compositions in bone tissue are δ 13 C, δ 15 N and δ 18 O. All the analyzed samples were recovered from different archaeological sites from the late Holocene. According to the results, the guanaco was strictly confined to the Pampa plain environment, developing a broad niche based on C 3 plants and a variable contribution of C 4 grasses within a grazing trend. The pampas deer preferentially used the Pampa plain, but also the prairies on the borders of the wetland, showing eurioic characteristics and a narrower niche based on C 3 plants. In turn, the marsh deer was strictly confined to wetland environments, developing a C 3 diet-base, within a narrow isotopic niche and stenoic characteristics. The three mammals showed a wide range of intraspecific variability, which was a key factor in their adaptability to spatial and temporal changes in the vegetation coverage. In fact, the temporal trends of their isotopic values were concurrent with the major climatic variations of the Holocene. Differences in the correlations between the values of both carbon sources in both deer species compared with the guanaco suggest a distinct chemical composition of their diet and/or differences in the allocation of nutrients. The isotopic values of nitrogen and spacing of the carbon sources in guanaco (pseudoruminant) and both deer species (ruminants) show no significant differences between them, thus establishing the values for local large herbivores. Significant correlations between δ 13 C and δ 15 N were found in the guanaco and marsh deer. The regional and extra-regional variability in the guanaco's δ 13 C collagen and δ 15 N probably reflect the clinal variations in the vegetation coverage and the amount of rainfall. The collagen isotope values in the guanaco throughout the entire Holocene show that the humid Pampa would have shifted between being a more recurrent mesic and temperate plain with minor phases of dry-mesic conditions like during the Little Ice Age, and a humid and warm one at the peaks of the Holocene Thermal Maximum and the Medieval Climatic Anomaly. The guanaco and the pampas deer adapted to all the climatic changes that happened on the humid Pampa until the biological invasions of large European mammals changed the herbivores' guild composition of this vast plain, pushing them into peripheral habitats due to competition. The within-species variability in isotopic signals through time and space make it necessary to carry out adequate sampling before reconstructing the diets of local past populations.

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Isotopic composition of soil, vegetation or cattle hair no suitable indicator of nitrogen balances in permanent pasture

Cited by 8 publications

References 45 publications

Organic vs. Conventional Grassland Management: Do 15N and 13C Isotopic Signatures of Hay and Soil Samples Differ?

Organic vs. Conventional Grassland Management: Do 15N and 13C Isotopic Signatures of Hay and Soil Samples Differ?

Complexities of nitrogen isotope biogeochemistry in plant-soil systems: implications for the study of ancient agricultural and animal management practices

Patterns of Resource Use and Isotopic Niche Overlap Among Guanaco (Lama guanicoe), Pampas Deer (Ozotoceros bezoarticus) and Marsh Deer (Blastocerus dichotomus) in the Pampas. Ecological, Paleoenvironmental and Archaeological Implications

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