Record Details
Ecological consequences of the expansion of N₂‑fixing plants in cold biomes
ScholarsArchive at Oregon State University
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Title | Ecological consequences of the expansion of N₂‑fixing plants in cold biomes |
| Names |
Hiltbrunner, Erika
(creator) Aerts, Rien (creator) Bühlmann, Tobias (creator) Myrold, David D. (creator) et al. (creator) |
| Date Issued | 2014-09 (iso8601) |
| Note | To the best of our knowledge, one or more authors of this paper were federal employees when contributing to this work. This is the publisher’s final pdf. The published article is copyrighted by Springer and can be found at: http://link.springer.com/journal/442. |
| Abstract | Research in warm-climate biomes has shown that invasion by symbiotic dinitrogen (N₂)-fixing plants can transform ecosystems in ways analogous to the transformations observed as a consequence of anthropogenic, atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition: declines in biodiversity, soil acidification, and alterations to carbon and nutrient cycling, including increased N losses through nitrate leaching and emissions of the powerful greenhouse gas nitrous oxide (N₂O). Here, we used literature review and case study approaches to assess the evidence for similar transformations in cold-climate ecosystems of the boreal, subarctic and upper montane-temperate life zones. Our assessment focuses on the plant genera Lupinus and Alnus, which have become invasive largely as a consequence of deliberate introductions and/or reduced land management. These cold biomes are commonly located in remote areas with low anthropogenic N inputs, and the environmental impacts of N₂-fixer invasion appear to be as severe as those from anthropogenic N deposition in highly N polluted areas. Hence, inputs of N from N₂ fixation can affect ecosystems as dramatically or even more strongly than N inputs from atmospheric deposition, and biomes in cold climates represent no exception with regard to the risk of being invaded by N₂-fixing species. In particular, the cold biomes studied here show both a strong potential to be transformed by N₂-fixing plants and a rapid subsequent saturation in the ecosystem’s capacity to retain N. Therefore, analogous to increases in N deposition, N₂-fixing plant invasions must be deemed significant threats to biodiversity and to environmental quality. |
| Genre | Article |
| Topic | Alnus |
| Identifier | Hiltbrunner, E., Aerts, R., Bühlmann, T., Huss-Danell, K., Magnusson, B., Myrold, D. D., ... & Körner, C. (2014). Ecological consequences of the expansion of N₂-fixing plants in cold biomes. Oecologia, 176(1), 11-24. doi:10.1007/s00442-014-2991-x |
