Soil Carbon under the Snowpack in a Continuous Coniferous Forest
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Soil Carbon under the Snowpack in a Continuous Coniferous Forest
Daniel P. BradleyFebruary 19th, 2011
Winter Ecology
Mountain Research Station,University of Colorado, Boulder
EBIO 4100, Sec 570
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Life in the Winter SoilsSoil microbes in snow covered soils are respiring every
minute, consuming available nutrients, and off-gassing them as CO2 (King 08).
Our class experiment: 18.536 g (0.653 oz) of carbon could be converted into CO2 in 186 days (Oct 25 – May 1), in ~100 cm2 (Winter Eco 11).
Winter soil: An ideal environment for microbial life.
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Pro’s and Con’s of Winter Microbial LifePro’s Con’sHighly protected
Predatory, UVHighly stable
TemperatureWater supply
via the snowpack, varying (Brooks 96)
A specialized niche
Food SupplyHigh, but non-replenishing
TemperatureNot ideal for metabolic
processes
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The Food SupplyThe food supply in a finite amountWe can assume that the amount of food is
equal throughout the forest.
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QuestionIf food is limited by the cover of the snowpack, does the
depth of the snowpack affect the amount of carbon (food) in the soil?
HA : There is a difference in soil carbon between sites of varying snowpack.
HO : There is not a difference in soil carbon
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MethodsA deep and shallow site were found on Feb 5th Five samples for each site were taken, with 2 sub sites for
each site, from the top 5cm of the soil. The soils were refrigerated maintain metabolic processesThe soils were then sieved, weighed into 5 gram samplesThe samples were dried, combusted and weighed.Percent differences and averages were derived.
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The Sites
CU Mountain Research Station - Google Earth
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ResultsThe data show that there was a significant difference (p-
value ≤ 0.05) in soil carbon between the sites
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The Datap-value = 0.0165 (paired t-test)
Mean percent difference: deep=0.1057, shallow=0.3322
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The Datap-value = 0.0113(paired t-test)
Mean difference, in grams: deep=0.0056, shallow=0.0182
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DiscussionThe shallow snowpack had more carbon underneath it,
why? Carbon is limiting for microbes, lower carbon indicates
higher microbe populations/activity (Nemergut 11). Temperature swings.
What is affecting snowpack?Wind, Precipitation
What is affecting the amount of carbon (litter) under the snowpack?Beetle kill?
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SummarySnowpack does have an affect on the microbial
population of the soil, via carbon.More snowpack, more respiration, more carbon
consumed.
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Literature Cited Brooks, Paul D., Mark W. Williams, and Steven Schmidt. "Microbial
Activity under Alpine Snowpacks, Niwot Ridge, Colorado " Biogeochemistry 32.2 (1996). 93-113. Mark Williams. Web. 25 Jan. 2011.
King , A. J., A. F. Meyer, and S. K. Schmidt. "High Levels of Microbial Biomass and Activity in Unvegetated Tropical and Temperate Alpine Soils." Soil Biology and Biochemistry 40.10 (2008): 2605-610. ScienceDirect. Web. 25 Jan. 2011.
Nemergut, Diana, CU-Boulder, INSTAAR. Personal interview. 16 Feb. 2011.
Winter Ecology 2011, and T. Kittle. TS. CU-Boulder, Mountain Research Station.