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Biogeochemical Cycles of Carbon and Nitrogen in Mountain Ecosystems

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Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu 610041, China
Interests: grassland ecology; biodiversity and its functions; restoration ecology
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College of Hydrology and Water Resources, Hohai University, Nanjing 210098, China
Interests: ecohydrology and global change
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Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100093, China
Interests: fungal diversity in wetlands; soil microbes; ecosystem functioning

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Mountain ecosystems, covering around one-quarter of the Earth’s land surface, carry a huge supply of natural resources and ecosystem services. Biogeochemical cycling of carbon and nitrogen is closely related to the nutrient supply and ecosystem function of these mountain ecosystems. In the context of global change, with the increasing dependence of human society on mountains, there is an urgent need to explore mountain ecosystems in response to changing environments from the perspective of biogeochemical cycles. This Special Issue aims to take a broad perspective on the processes and mechanisms involved in carbon and nitrogen cycles in mountain ecosystems, such as inputs, losses, transformations, partitions, and storage of one or two elements. For this Special Issue, submissions describing studies from all related fields are welcome, including experimental studies, monitoring approaches, and simulation models, with the overall aim of promoting knowledge for the sustainable development of mountain ecosystems in the future.

Prof. Dr. Yongheng Gao
Dr. Qiu’an Zhu
Dr. Jianqing Tian
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • carbon cycles
  • nitrogen cycles
  • carbon sequestration
  • nitrogen transformation
  • soil stocks
  • biomass
  • plant uptake
  • biodiversity
  • soil microorganisms
  • greenhouse gas emissions

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

17 pages, 5415 KiB  
Article
Temporal and Spatial Variation of Aboveground Biomass of Pinus densata and Its Drivers in Shangri-La, CHINA
by Dongfan Xu, Jialong Zhang, Rui Bao, Yi Liao, Dongyang Han, Qianwei Liu and Tao Cheng
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(1), 400; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19010400 - 30 Dec 2021
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2045
Abstract
Understanding the drivers of forest aboveground biomass (AGB) is essential to further understanding the forest carbon cycle. In the upper Yangtze River region, where ecosystems are incredibly fragile, the driving factors that make AGB changes differ from other regions. This study aims to [...] Read more.
Understanding the drivers of forest aboveground biomass (AGB) is essential to further understanding the forest carbon cycle. In the upper Yangtze River region, where ecosystems are incredibly fragile, the driving factors that make AGB changes differ from other regions. This study aims to investigate AGB’s spatial and temporal variation of Pinus densata in Shangri-La and decompose the direct and indirect effects of spatial attribute, climate, stand structure, and agricultural activity on AGB in Shangri-La to evaluate the degree of influence of each factor on AGB change. The continuous sample plots from National Forest Inventory (NFI) and Landsat time series were used to estimate the AGB in 1987, 1992, 1997, 2002, 2007, 2012, and 2017. The structural equation model (SEM) was used to analyze the different effects of the four factors on AGB based on five scales: entire, 1987–2002, 2007–2017, low population density, and high population density. The results are as follows: (1) The AGB of Pinus densata in Shangri-La decreased from 1987 to 2017, with the total amount falling from 9.52 million tons to 7.41 million tons, and the average AGB falling from 55.49 t/ha to 40.10 t/ha. (2) At different scales, stand structure and climate were the drivers that directly affect the AGB change. In contrast, the agricultural activity had a negative direct effect on the AGB change, and spatial attribute had a relatively small indirect effect on the AGB change. (3) Analyzing the SEM results at different scales, the change of the contribution of the agricultural activity indicates that human activity is the main negative driver of AGB change in Shangri-La, especially at the high population density region. In contrast, the change of the contribution of the stand structure and climate indicates that the loss of old trees has an important influence on the AGB change. Forest resources here and other ecologically fragile areas should be gradually restored by adhering to policies, such as strengthening forest protection, improving forest stand quality, and limiting agricultural production activities. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biogeochemical Cycles of Carbon and Nitrogen in Mountain Ecosystems)
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13 pages, 1428 KiB  
Article
Effect of Short-Term Low-Nitrogen Addition on Carbon, Nitrogen and Phosphorus of Vegetation-Soil in Alpine Meadow
by Zhen’an Yang, Wei Zhan, Lin Jiang and Huai Chen
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(20), 10998; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph182010998 - 19 Oct 2021
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2525
Abstract
As one of the nitrogen (N) limitation ecosystems, alpine meadows have significant effects on their structure and function. However, research on the response and linkage of vegetation-soil to short-term low-level N deposition with rhizosphere processes is scant. We conducted a four level N [...] Read more.
As one of the nitrogen (N) limitation ecosystems, alpine meadows have significant effects on their structure and function. However, research on the response and linkage of vegetation-soil to short-term low-level N deposition with rhizosphere processes is scant. We conducted a four level N addition (0, 20, 40, and 80 kg N ha1 y−1) field experiment in an alpine meadow on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau (QTP) from July 2014 to August 2016. We analyzed the community characteristics, vegetation (shoots and roots), total carbon (TC), nutrients, soil (rhizosphere and bulk) properties, and the linkage between vegetation and soil under different N addition rates. Our results showed that (i) N addition significantly increased and decreased the concentration of soil nitrate nitrogen (NO3-N) and ammonium nitrogen, and the soil pH, respectively; (ii) there were significant correlations between soil (rhizosphere and bulk) NO3-N and total nitrogen (TN), and root TN, and there was no strong correlation between plant and soil TC, TN and total phosphorus, and their stoichiometry under different N addition rates. The results suggest that short-term low-N addition affected the plant community, vegetation, and soil TC, TN, TP, and their stoichiometry insignificantly, and that the correlation between plant and soil TC, TN, and TP, and their stoichiometry were insignificant. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biogeochemical Cycles of Carbon and Nitrogen in Mountain Ecosystems)
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