Lichens: A limit to peat growth?
Abstract The fruticose lichens C ladina stellaris and C ladina rangiferina , form thick mats that can cover large areas of northern peatlands (above c . 50° latitude), including the extensive peatlands of the Hudson Bay Lowland ( HBL ) in Canada, where lichens may cover up to 50% of the landscape. D...
Published in: | Journal of Ecology |
---|---|
Main Authors: | , , , |
Other Authors: | , , |
Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English |
Published: |
Wiley
2018
|
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.12975 https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1111%2F1365-2745.12975 https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/1365-2745.12975 |
id |
crwiley:10.1111/1365-2745.12975 |
---|---|
record_format |
openpolar |
spelling |
crwiley:10.1111/1365-2745.12975 2024-04-21T08:04:19+00:00 Lichens: A limit to peat growth? Harris, Lorna I. Moore, Tim R. Roulet, Nigel T. Pinsonneault, Andrew J. Lee, John W. Garfield Weston Foundation Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada 2018 http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.12975 https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1111%2F1365-2745.12975 https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/1365-2745.12975 en eng Wiley http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor Journal of Ecology volume 106, issue 6, page 2301-2319 ISSN 0022-0477 1365-2745 Plant Science Ecology Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics journal-article 2018 crwiley https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.12975 2024-03-26T09:18:35Z Abstract The fruticose lichens C ladina stellaris and C ladina rangiferina , form thick mats that can cover large areas of northern peatlands (above c . 50° latitude), including the extensive peatlands of the Hudson Bay Lowland ( HBL ) in Canada, where lichens may cover up to 50% of the landscape. Despite the abundance of lichens in northern peatlands, our understanding of their role within peatland ecosystems, and peat accumulation in particular, is limited. We investigate the potential effect of these mat‐forming lichens on peat production and decomposition processes, using field data from an ombrogenous bog in the HBL and laboratory analyses. We hypothesize that (a) production in lichen‐shrub hummocks is less than in Sphagnum ‐shrub hummocks; (b) the decay of lichen litter is faster than that of Sphagnum moss, so the mass litter input to the peat profile is reduced; and (c) faster decomposition of the underlying peat is stimulated by lichen leachates, resulting in greater mass loss. We found that thick lichen mats alter vegetation composition in peatlands, reducing Sphagnum cover and inhibiting the growth of small shrubs. Coupled with low lichen productivity that is constrained by moisture conditions, production for lichen‐shrub hummocks is significantly smaller than for Sphagnum ‐shrub hummocks, confirming hypothesis (a). Our data also support hypothesis (b), with chemical analyses of lichen mats and leachates from lichen mats indicating faster decay of lichens compared to Sphagnum moss, and therefore reduced mass litter input to the peat profile in lichen‐dominated hummocks. Although we found no evidence to suggest leachates from lichens enhance decomposition processes in peatlands (hypothesis c), larger dry bulk densities for peat under lichen mats indicate a loss of structural integrity and potential collapse of the peat column. Synthesis . As production of new material added to the peat column is less in lichen‐dominated hummocks, local peat accumulation slows or ceases, representing a potential ... Article in Journal/Newspaper Hudson Bay Wiley Online Library Journal of Ecology 106 6 2301 2319 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Wiley Online Library |
op_collection_id |
crwiley |
language |
English |
topic |
Plant Science Ecology Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics |
spellingShingle |
Plant Science Ecology Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics Harris, Lorna I. Moore, Tim R. Roulet, Nigel T. Pinsonneault, Andrew J. Lichens: A limit to peat growth? |
topic_facet |
Plant Science Ecology Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics |
description |
Abstract The fruticose lichens C ladina stellaris and C ladina rangiferina , form thick mats that can cover large areas of northern peatlands (above c . 50° latitude), including the extensive peatlands of the Hudson Bay Lowland ( HBL ) in Canada, where lichens may cover up to 50% of the landscape. Despite the abundance of lichens in northern peatlands, our understanding of their role within peatland ecosystems, and peat accumulation in particular, is limited. We investigate the potential effect of these mat‐forming lichens on peat production and decomposition processes, using field data from an ombrogenous bog in the HBL and laboratory analyses. We hypothesize that (a) production in lichen‐shrub hummocks is less than in Sphagnum ‐shrub hummocks; (b) the decay of lichen litter is faster than that of Sphagnum moss, so the mass litter input to the peat profile is reduced; and (c) faster decomposition of the underlying peat is stimulated by lichen leachates, resulting in greater mass loss. We found that thick lichen mats alter vegetation composition in peatlands, reducing Sphagnum cover and inhibiting the growth of small shrubs. Coupled with low lichen productivity that is constrained by moisture conditions, production for lichen‐shrub hummocks is significantly smaller than for Sphagnum ‐shrub hummocks, confirming hypothesis (a). Our data also support hypothesis (b), with chemical analyses of lichen mats and leachates from lichen mats indicating faster decay of lichens compared to Sphagnum moss, and therefore reduced mass litter input to the peat profile in lichen‐dominated hummocks. Although we found no evidence to suggest leachates from lichens enhance decomposition processes in peatlands (hypothesis c), larger dry bulk densities for peat under lichen mats indicate a loss of structural integrity and potential collapse of the peat column. Synthesis . As production of new material added to the peat column is less in lichen‐dominated hummocks, local peat accumulation slows or ceases, representing a potential ... |
author2 |
Lee, John W. Garfield Weston Foundation Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Harris, Lorna I. Moore, Tim R. Roulet, Nigel T. Pinsonneault, Andrew J. |
author_facet |
Harris, Lorna I. Moore, Tim R. Roulet, Nigel T. Pinsonneault, Andrew J. |
author_sort |
Harris, Lorna I. |
title |
Lichens: A limit to peat growth? |
title_short |
Lichens: A limit to peat growth? |
title_full |
Lichens: A limit to peat growth? |
title_fullStr |
Lichens: A limit to peat growth? |
title_full_unstemmed |
Lichens: A limit to peat growth? |
title_sort |
lichens: a limit to peat growth? |
publisher |
Wiley |
publishDate |
2018 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.12975 https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1111%2F1365-2745.12975 https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/1365-2745.12975 |
genre |
Hudson Bay |
genre_facet |
Hudson Bay |
op_source |
Journal of Ecology volume 106, issue 6, page 2301-2319 ISSN 0022-0477 1365-2745 |
op_rights |
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.12975 |
container_title |
Journal of Ecology |
container_volume |
106 |
container_issue |
6 |
container_start_page |
2301 |
op_container_end_page |
2319 |
_version_ |
1796943946975281152 |