@article {4833, title = {Ecological stoichiometry drives the evolution of soil nematode life history traits}, journal = {Soil Biology and Biochemistry}, volume = {177}, year = {2023}, month = {02/2023}, pages = {108891}, abstract = {

Ecological stoichiometry is a useful theoretical framework for understanding the sources and controls on nutrient availability that structure the composition and diversity of biotic communities. One such relationship is that organismal development rate is positively linked to cellular Phosphorus (P). We hypothesized that P availability, relative to other nutrients, e.g., nitrogen and carbon, would drive the evolution of traits associated with organismal growth and development. We examined the effects of P availability both in situ and in vitro, on free-living soil nematodes. We found that P-deficient environments produce predictable changes in the ecology and evolution of important life history traits. Our results identify altered rRNA gene copy number and subsequent changes in gene expression and protein synthesis as mechanisms by which P-deficiency influences these traits. These findings have important implications for explaining soil ecological and evolutionary patterns across multiple levels of organization, including the structure and functioning of organisms, populations, communities, and ecosystems.

}, keywords = {LTER-MCM, elemental stoichiometry, growth rate hypothesis, life history theory, molecular evolution, nematoda, rRNA}, doi = {10.1016/j.soilbio.2022.108891}, url = {https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0038071722003480}, author = {Xue, Xia and Bishwo N. Adhikari and Ball, Becky and John E. Barrett and Miao, Jinxin and Perkes, Ammon and Martin, Mac and Breana L. Simmons and Diana H. Wall and Byron Adams} } @article {4768, title = {Patterns and trends of organic matter processing and transport: Insights from the US Long-term Ecological Research Network}, journal = {Climate Change Ecology}, volume = {2}, year = {2021}, month = {12/2021}, pages = {100025}, abstract = {

Organic matter (OM) dynamics determine how much carbon is stored in ecosystems, a service that modulates climate. We synthesized research from across the US Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) Network to assemble a conceptual model of OM dynamics that is consistent with inter-disciplinary perspectives and emphasizes vulnerability of OM pools to disturbance. Guided by this conceptual model, we identified unanticipated patterns and long-term trends in processing and transport of OM emerging from terrestrial, freshwater, wetland, and marine ecosystems. Cross-ecosystem synthesis combined with a survey of researchers revealed several themes: 1) strong effects of climate change on OM dynamics, 2) surprising patterns in OM storage and dynamics resulting from coupling with nutrients, 3) characteristic and often complex legacies of land use and disturbance, 4) a significant role of OM transport that is often overlooked in terrestrial ecosystems, and 5) prospects for reducing uncertainty in forecasting OM dynamics by incorporating the chemical composition of OM. Cross-fertilization of perspectives and approaches across LTER sites and other research networks can stimulate the comprehensive understanding required to support large-scale characterizations of OM budgets and the role of ecosystems in regulating global climate.

}, keywords = {LTER-MCM, coupled biogeochemical cycles, cross-site synthesis, organic matter composition, organic matter storage, stabilization, transport}, issn = {26669005}, doi = {10.1016/j.ecochg.2021.100025}, url = {https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666900521000253}, author = {Harms, Tamara K. and Groffman, Peter M. and Aluwihare, Lihini and Craft, Christopher and Wieder, William R and Hobbie, S and Baer, Sara G. and J.M. Blair and Frey, Serita D. and Remucal, Christina K. and Rudgers, Jennifer A. and Collins, SL and Kominoski, John S. and Ball, Becky and John C. Priscu and John E. Barrett} } @article {4373, title = {The hydroecology of an ephemeral wetland in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica}, journal = {Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences}, year = {2019}, month = {11/2019}, abstract = {

The McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDV) is a polar desert on the coast of East Antarctica where ephemeral wetlands become hydrologically active during warm and sunny summers when sub-surface flows are generated from melting snowfields. To understand the structure and function of polar wetland ecosystems, we investigated the hydroecology of one such wetland, the Wormherder Creek wetland, during the warm and sunny summer of 2008 \– 2009, when the wetland was hydrologically reactivated. Conservative tracer (LiCl) was injected for a 2-hour period into a stream above the wetland to determine flow path orientations and hydrologic residence times. Tracer results indicated that surface water is rapidly exchanged with wetland groundwater and wetland residence times may exceed two austral summers. Major ion concentrations were uniform in samples from surface water and shallow groundwater throughout the wetland. Microbial mats in the wetland had high autotrophic index values (the ratios of chlorophyll a [Chl-a]/ash-free dry mass [AFDM]), ranging from 9-38 μg Chl-a/mg AFDM, indicative of actively photosynthesizing mat communities. The diatom communities in the mats were relatively uniform compared to those in mats from regularly flowing MDV streams, with four endemic and one widespread diatom taxa of the genus Luticola accounting for an average of 86\% of the community. These results indicate that the hydrologic characteristics of the wetland contribute to uniform geochemical conditions. In turn, uniform geochemical conditions may explain the high autotrophic index values of the microbial mats and relatively low spatial variation of the diatom community.

}, keywords = {LTER-MCM, Antarctica, desert hydrology, diatom biodiversity, hyporheic interactions, wetlands}, doi = {10.1029/2019JG005153}, url = {https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1029/2019JG005153}, author = {Wlostowski, Adam and Schulte, Nicholas O. and Byron Adams and Ball, Becky and Rhea M.M. Esposito and Michael N. Gooseff and W. Berry Lyons and Uffe N. Nielsen and Ross A. Virginia and Diana H. Wall and Kathleen A. Welch and Diane M. McKnight} } @article {4080, title = {Soil biological responses to C, N and P fertilization in a polar desert of Antarctica}, journal = {Soil Biology and Biochemistry}, volume = {122}, year = {2018}, month = {07/2018}, chapter = {7}, abstract = {

In the polar desert ecosystem of the McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica, biology is constrained by available liquid water, low temperatures, as well as the availability of organic matter and nutrient elements. These soil ecosystems are climate-sensitive, where projected future warming may have profound effects on biological communities and biogeochemical cycling. Warmer temperatures will mobilize meltwater from permafrost and glaciers, may increase precipitation and may be accompanied by pulses of nutrient availability. Enhanced water and nutrient availability have the potential to greatly influence desert soil biology and ecosystem processes. The objectives of this 5-year study were to determine which nutrient elements (C, N, P) are most limiting to dry valley soil communities and whether landscape history (i.e.,\ in situ\ soil type and stoichiometry) influences soil community response to nutrient additions. After 3 years of no noticeable response, soil CO2\ flux was significantly higher under addition of C+ N than the other treatments, regardless of\ in situ\ soil stoichiometry, but microbial biomass and invertebrate abundance were variable and not influenced in the same manner. A stable isotope incubation suggests that fertilization increases C and N mineralization from organic matter via stimulating microbial activity, with loss of both the applied treatments as well\ in situ\ C and N. However, these responses are relatively short-lived, suggesting long-term impacts on C and N cycling would only occur if meltwater and nutrient pulses are sustained over time, a scenario that is increasingly likely for the dry valleys.

}, keywords = {LTER-MCM}, issn = {00380717}, doi = {10.1016/j.soilbio.2018.03.025}, url = {http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0038071718301081}, author = {Ball, Becky and Byron Adams and John E. Barrett and Diana H. Wall and Ross A. Virginia} } @article {4139, title = {Stoichiometric Shifts in Soil C:N:P Promote Bacterial Taxa Dominance, Maintain Biodiversity, and Deconstruct Community Assemblages}, journal = {Frontiers in Microbiology}, volume = {9}, year = {2018}, month = {07/2018}, abstract = {

Imbalances in C:N:P supply ratios may cause bacterial resource limitations and constrain biogeochemical processes, but the importance of shifts in soil stoichiometry are complicated by the nearly limitless interactions between an immensely rich species pool and a multiple chemical resource forms. To more clearly identify the impact of soil C:N:P on bacteria, we evaluated the cumulative effects of single and coupled long-term nutrient additions (i.e., C as mannitol, N as equal concentrations NH4 + and NO3 \− , and P as Na3PO4) and water on communities in an Antarctic polar desert, Taylor Valley. Untreated soils possessed relatively low bacterial diversity, simplified organic C sources due to the absence of plants, limited inorganic N, and excess soil P potentially attenuating links between C:N:P. After 6 years of adding resources, an alleviation of C and N colimitation allowed one rare Micrococcaceae, an Arthrobacter species, to dominate, comprising 47\% of the total community abundance and elevating soil respiration by 136\% relative to untreated soils. The addition of N alone reduced C:N ratios, elevated bacterial richness and diversity, and allowed rare taxa relying on ammonium and nitrite for metabolism to become more abundant [e.g., nitrite oxidizing Nitrospira species (Nitrosomonadaceae), denitrifiers utilizing nitrite (Gemmatimonadaceae) and members of Rhodobacteraceae with a high affinity for ammonium]. Based on community co-occurrence networks, lower C:P ratios in soils following P and CP additions created more diffuse and less connected communities by disrupting 73\% of species interactions and selecting for taxa potentially exploiting abundant P. Unlike amended nutrients, water additions alone elicited no lasting impact on communities. Our results suggest that as soils become nutrient rich a wide array of outcomes are possible from species dominance and the deconstruction of species interconnectedness to the maintenance of biodiversity.

}, keywords = {LTER-MCM, ecological stoichiometry, Lake Fryxell Basin, McMurdo Dry Valleys, network community modeling, nutrient colimitation, Solirubrobacteriaceae}, doi = {10.3389/fmicb.2018.01401}, url = {https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fmicb.2018.01401/full}, author = {Aanderud, Zachary T. and Saurey, Sabrina D. and Ball, Becky and Diana H. Wall and John E. Barrett and Muscarella, Mario E. and Griffin, Natasha A. and Ross A. Virginia and Byron Adams} } @article {1057, title = {Controls on diel soil CO2 flux across moisture gradients in a polar desert}, journal = {Antarctic Science}, year = {2015}, month = {06/2015}, abstract = {

The McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica are a climate-sensitive ecosystem, where future projected climate warming will increase liquid water availability to release soil biology from physical limitations and alter ecosystem processes. For example, many studies have shown that CO2\ flux, an important aspect of the carbon cycle, is controlled by temperature and moisture, which often overwhelm biotic contributions in desert ecosystems. However, these studies used either single-point measurements during peak times of biological activity or diel cycles at individual locations. Here, we present diel cycles of CO2\ flux from a range of soil moisture conditions and a variety of locations and habitats to determine how diel cycles of CO2\ flux vary across gradients of wet-to-dry soil and whether the water source influences the diel cycle of moist soil. Soil temperature, water content and microbial biomass significantly influenced CO2\ flux. Soil temperature explained most of the variation. Soil CO2\ flux moderately increased with microbial biomass, demonstrating a sometimes small but significant role of biological fluxes. Our results show that over gradients of soil moisture, both geochemical and biological fluxes contribute to soil CO2\ flux, and physical factors must be considered when estimating biological CO2\ flux in systems with low microbial biomass.

}, keywords = {LTER-MCM}, doi = {10.1017/S0954102015000255}, url = {http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online\&aid=9776001\&fileId=S0954102015000255}, author = {Ball, Becky and Ross A. Virginia} } @article {1071, title = {The ecological role of moss in a polar desert: implications for aboveground- belowground and terrestrial -aquatic linkages.}, journal = {Polar Biology}, volume = {37}, year = {2014}, month = {04/2014}, pages = {651-664}, type = {Journal}, keywords = {LTER-MCM}, doi = {10.1007/s00300-014-1465-2}, url = {http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00300-014-1465-2}, author = {Ball, Becky and Ross A. Virginia} } @article {1072, title = {Microbial biomass and respiration responses to nitrogen fertilization in a polar desert}, journal = {Polar Biology}, year = {2014}, month = {01/2014}, keywords = {LTER-MCM}, doi = {10.1007/s00300-014-1459-0}, url = {http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007\%2Fs00300-014-1459-0}, author = {Ball, Becky and Ross A. Virginia} } @article {3534, title = {At Limits of Life: Multidisciplinary Insights Reveal Environmental Constraints on Biotic Diversity in Continental Antarctica}, journal = {PLoS ONE}, volume = {7}, year = {2012}, month = {Jul-09-2013}, pages = {e44578}, abstract = {

Multitrophic communities that maintain the functionality of the extreme Antarctic terrestrial ecosystems, while the simplest of any natural community, are still challenging our knowledge about the limits to life on earth. In this study, we describe and interpret the linkage between the diversity of different trophic level communities to the geological morphology and soil geochemistry in the remote Transantarctic Mountains (Darwin Mountains, 80\°S). We examined the distribution and diversity of biota (bacteria, cyanobacteria, lichens, algae, invertebrates) with respect to elevation, age of glacial drift sheets, and soil physicochemistry. Results showed an abiotic spatial gradient with respect to the diversity of the organisms across different trophic levels. More complex communities, in terms of trophic level diversity, were related to the weakly developed younger drifts (Hatherton and Britannia) with higher soil C/N ratio and lower total soluble salts content (thus lower conductivity). Our results indicate that an increase of ion concentration from younger to older drift regions drives a succession of complex to more simple communities, in terms of number of trophic levels and diversity within each group of organisms analysed. This study revealed that integrating diversity across multi-trophic levels of biotic communities with abiotic spatial heterogeneity and geological history is fundamental to understand environmental constraints influencing biological distribution in Antarctic soil ecosystems.

}, keywords = {LTER-MCM}, doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0044578}, url = {http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0044578}, author = {Magalhaes, Catarina and Stevens, Mark I. and Craig S Cary and Ball, Becky and Storey, Bryan C. and Diana H. Wall and T{\"u}rk, Roman and Ruprecht, Ulrike}, editor = {de Bello, Francesco} } @article {1122, title = {The ecology of pulse events: insights from an extreme climatic event in a polar desert ecosystem}, journal = {Ecosphere}, volume = {3}, year = {2012}, month = {02/2012}, pages = {art17}, keywords = {LTER-MCM}, doi = {10.1890/ES11-00325.1}, url = {http://www.esajournals.org/doi/abs/10.1890/ES11-00325.1}, author = {Uffe N. Nielsen and Diana H. Wall and Byron Adams and Ross A. Virginia and Ball, Becky and Michael N. Gooseff and Diane M. McKnight} } @article {1112, title = {Meltwater seep patches increase heterogeneity of soil geochemistry and therefore habitat suitability}, journal = {Geoderma}, volume = {189-190}, year = {2012}, month = {11/2012}, pages = {652 - 660}, keywords = {LTER-MCM}, doi = {10.1016/j.geoderma.2012.06.028}, author = {Ball, Becky and Ross A. Virginia} } @article {3537, title = {Implications of meltwater pulse events for soil biology and biogeochemical cycling in a polar desert}, journal = {Polar Research}, volume = {3081281030352511340}, year = {2011}, month = {12/2011}, keywords = {LTER-MCM}, issn = {0800-0395}, doi = {10.3402/polar.v30i0.14555}, url = {http://www.polarresearch.net/index.php/polar/article/view/14555}, author = {Ball, Becky and John E. Barrett and Michael N. Gooseff and Ross A. Virginia and Diana H. Wall} } @article {1187, title = {Interactions between physical and biotic factors influence CO_2 flux in Antarctic dry valley soils}, journal = {Soil Biology and Biochemistry}, volume = {41}, year = {2009}, pages = {1510-1517}, keywords = {LTER-MCM}, doi = {LTER}, author = {Ball, Becky and Ross A. Virginia and John E. Barrett and Andrew N. Parsons and Diana H. Wall} }