Direct uptake of soil nitrogen by mosses
Mosses are one of the most diverse and widespread groups of plants and often form the dominant vegetation in montane, boreal and arctic ecosystems. However, unlike higher plants, mosses lack developed root and vascular systems, which is thought to limit their access to soil nutrients. Here, we test...
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Online Access: | http://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/244/ http://www.journals.royalsoc.ac.uk/content/g791822222352731/? https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2006.0455 |
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ftnerc:oai:nora.nerc.ac.uk:244 2024-06-09T07:44:11+00:00 Direct uptake of soil nitrogen by mosses Ayres, Edward van der Wal, Rene Sommerkorn, Martin Bardgett, Richard D. 2006 http://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/244/ http://www.journals.royalsoc.ac.uk/content/g791822222352731/? https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2006.0455 unknown Ayres, Edward; van der Wal, Rene; Sommerkorn, Martin; Bardgett, Richard D. 2006 Direct uptake of soil nitrogen by mosses. Biology Letters, 2 (2). 286-288. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2006.0455 <https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2006.0455> Botany Agriculture and Soil Science Publication - Article PeerReviewed 2006 ftnerc https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2006.0455 2024-05-15T08:39:04Z Mosses are one of the most diverse and widespread groups of plants and often form the dominant vegetation in montane, boreal and arctic ecosystems. However, unlike higher plants, mosses lack developed root and vascular systems, which is thought to limit their access to soil nutrients. Here, we test the ability of two physiologically and taxonomically distinct moss species to take up soil- and wet deposition-derived nitrogen (N) in natural intact turfs using stable isotopic techniques (15N). Both species exhibited increased concentrations of shoot 15N when exposed to either soil- or wet deposition-derived 15N, demonstrating conclusively and for the first time, that mosses derive N from the soil. Given the broad physiological and taxonomic differences between these moss species, we suggest soil N uptake may be common among mosses, although further studies are required to test this prediction. Soil N uptake by moss species may allow them to compete for soil N in a wide range of ecosystems. Moreover, since many terrestrial ecosystems are N limited, soil N uptake by mosses may have implications for plant community structure and nutrient cycling. Finally, soil N uptake may place some moss species at greater risk from N pollution than previously appreciated. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Natural Environment Research Council: NERC Open Research Archive Arctic Biology Letters 2 2 286 288 |
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Open Polar |
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Natural Environment Research Council: NERC Open Research Archive |
op_collection_id |
ftnerc |
language |
unknown |
topic |
Botany Agriculture and Soil Science |
spellingShingle |
Botany Agriculture and Soil Science Ayres, Edward van der Wal, Rene Sommerkorn, Martin Bardgett, Richard D. Direct uptake of soil nitrogen by mosses |
topic_facet |
Botany Agriculture and Soil Science |
description |
Mosses are one of the most diverse and widespread groups of plants and often form the dominant vegetation in montane, boreal and arctic ecosystems. However, unlike higher plants, mosses lack developed root and vascular systems, which is thought to limit their access to soil nutrients. Here, we test the ability of two physiologically and taxonomically distinct moss species to take up soil- and wet deposition-derived nitrogen (N) in natural intact turfs using stable isotopic techniques (15N). Both species exhibited increased concentrations of shoot 15N when exposed to either soil- or wet deposition-derived 15N, demonstrating conclusively and for the first time, that mosses derive N from the soil. Given the broad physiological and taxonomic differences between these moss species, we suggest soil N uptake may be common among mosses, although further studies are required to test this prediction. Soil N uptake by moss species may allow them to compete for soil N in a wide range of ecosystems. Moreover, since many terrestrial ecosystems are N limited, soil N uptake by mosses may have implications for plant community structure and nutrient cycling. Finally, soil N uptake may place some moss species at greater risk from N pollution than previously appreciated. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Ayres, Edward van der Wal, Rene Sommerkorn, Martin Bardgett, Richard D. |
author_facet |
Ayres, Edward van der Wal, Rene Sommerkorn, Martin Bardgett, Richard D. |
author_sort |
Ayres, Edward |
title |
Direct uptake of soil nitrogen by mosses |
title_short |
Direct uptake of soil nitrogen by mosses |
title_full |
Direct uptake of soil nitrogen by mosses |
title_fullStr |
Direct uptake of soil nitrogen by mosses |
title_full_unstemmed |
Direct uptake of soil nitrogen by mosses |
title_sort |
direct uptake of soil nitrogen by mosses |
publishDate |
2006 |
url |
http://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/244/ http://www.journals.royalsoc.ac.uk/content/g791822222352731/? https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2006.0455 |
geographic |
Arctic |
geographic_facet |
Arctic |
genre |
Arctic |
genre_facet |
Arctic |
op_relation |
Ayres, Edward; van der Wal, Rene; Sommerkorn, Martin; Bardgett, Richard D. 2006 Direct uptake of soil nitrogen by mosses. Biology Letters, 2 (2). 286-288. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2006.0455 <https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2006.0455> |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2006.0455 |
container_title |
Biology Letters |
container_volume |
2 |
container_issue |
2 |
container_start_page |
286 |
op_container_end_page |
288 |
_version_ |
1801372977194860544 |