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Harvard Forest REU Symposium Abstract 2013

  • Title: Assessing How Vertebrates Affect Soil Ecosystems Under Warming
  • Author: Justine M Kaseman (Bowling Green State University - Main Campus)
  • Abstract:

    Climate change is predicted to dramatically alter species interactions which will inevitably affect soil ecosystem processes such as carbon flux. Little study has been directed towards the influence of multiple trophic levels on soil respiration, an important ecosystem process that has direct consequences on climate change. In this study, we examined the influence of multiple trophic levels and their potential interactions with warming on soil respiration. Mesocosms were constructed to simulate the first (microbes only), second (microbes and invertebrates) and third (microbes, invertebrates, and a salamander) trophic levels. Each mesocosm was placed in a warming chamber ranging from 0-5.5 C for five weeks. The LICor 6400 soil respiration chamber was used to analyze efflux. We hypothesized that efflux will increase when (a) the entire food web is present because salamanders are large organisms which require higher respiration and (b) the mesocosms are placed in warmer chambers. When the atmosphere is warmer, we thought organisms will be put in higher stress, thus, higher respiration. However, we found there was no correlation showing higher respiration with neither the full food web nor warmer chambers. This could have resulted from the salamanders feeding on the invertebrates and decreasing respiration. Further studies should be conducted to clarify these results.

  • Research Category: Physiological Ecology, Population Dynamics, and Species Interactions

  • Figures:
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