<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><xml><records><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>17</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Thapa‐Magar, Khum B.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Eric R. Sokol</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Michael N. Gooseff</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Salvatore, Mark R.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">John E. Barrett</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Joseph S. Levy</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Knightly, J. Paul</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Power, Sarah N.</style></author></authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Remote sensing for species distribution models: An illustration from a sentinel taxon of the world's driest ecosystem</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Ecology</style></secondary-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Antarctica</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">McMurdo Dry Valleys</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">microbial mats</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">remote sensing</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">species distribution modeling</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">species occurrence</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2025</style></year><pub-dates><date><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">02/2025</style></date></pub-dates></dates><urls><web-urls><url><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ecy.70035</style></url></web-urls></urls><volume><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">106</style></volume><pages><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">e70035</style></pages><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">&lt;p&gt;In situ observed data are commonly used as species occurrence response variables in species distribution models. However, the use of remotely observed data from high-resolution multispectral remote-sensing images as a source of presence/absence data for species distribution models remains under-developed. Here, we describe an ensemble species distribution model of black microbial mats (Nostoc spp.) using presence/absence points derived from the unmixing of 4-m resolution WorldView-2 and WorldView-3 images in the Lake Fryxell basin region of Taylor Valley, Antarctica. Environmental and topographical characteristics such as soil moisture, snow, elevation, slope, and aspect were used as predictor variables in our models. We demonstrate that we can build and run ensemble species distribution models using both dependent and independent variables derived from remote-sensing data to generate spatially explicit habitat suitability maps. Snow and soil moisture were found to be the most important variables accounting for about 80% of the variation in the distribution of black mats throughout the Fryxell basin. This study highlights the potential contribution of high-resolution remote-sensing to species distribution modeling and informs new studies incorporating remotely derived species occurrences in species distribution models, especially in remote areas where access to in situ data is often limited.&lt;/p&gt;</style></abstract><issue><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2</style></issue></record><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>17</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Snyder, Meredith D.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Adams, Byron J.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Borgmeier, Abigail</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Jorna, Jesse</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Power, Sarah N.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Salvatore, Mark R.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">John E. Barrett</style></author></authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Soil biota sensitivity to hydroclimate variability in a polar desert ecosystem</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research</style></secondary-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">climate variation</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">extreme weather</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">McMurdo Dry Valleys</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">microbial community</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">soil invertebrates</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2025</style></year><pub-dates><date><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">05/2025</style></date></pub-dates></dates><urls><web-urls><url><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/15230430.2025.2485283</style></url></web-urls></urls><volume><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">57</style></volume><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">&lt;p&gt;An anomalous warm weather event in the Antarctic McMurdo Dry Valleys on 18 March 2022 created an opportunity to characterize soil biota communities most sensitive to freeze&amp;ndash;thaw stress. This event caused unseasonal melt within Taylor Valley, activating stream water and microbial mats around Canada Stream. Liquid water availability in this polar desert is a driver of soil biota distribution and activity. Because climate change impacts hydrological regimes, we aimed to determine the effect on soil communities. We sampled soils identified from this event that experienced thaw, nearby hyper-arid areas, and wetted areas that did not experience thaw to compare soil bacterial and invertebrate communities. Areas that exhibited evidence of freeze&amp;ndash;thaw supported the highest live and dead nematode counts and were composed of soil taxa from hyper-arid landscapes and wetted areas. They received water inputs from snowpacks, hyporheic water, or glacial melt, contributing to community differences associated with organic matter and salinity gradients. Inundated soils had higher organic matter and lower conductivity (p &amp;lt;&amp;nbsp;.02) and hosted the most diverse microbial and invertebrate communities on average. Our findings suggest that as liquid water becomes more available under predicted climate change, soil communities adapted to the hyper-arid landscape will shift toward diverse, wetted soil communities.&lt;/p&gt;</style></abstract><issue><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">1</style></issue></record><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>17</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Power, Sarah N.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Thomas, Valerie A.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Salvatore, Mark R.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">John E. Barrett</style></author></authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Habitat suitability of biocrust communities in a cold desert ecosystem</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Ecology and Evolution</style></secondary-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">biocrust</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">carbon</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">dryland</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">habitat suitability</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">remote sensing</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">soil ecology</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2024</style></year><pub-dates><date><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">07/2024</style></date></pub-dates></dates><urls><web-urls><url><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/toc/20457758/14/7</style></url></web-urls></urls><volume><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">14</style></volume><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">&lt;p&gt;Drylands are unique among terrestrial ecosystems in that they have a significant proportion of primary production facilitated by non-vascular plants such as colonial cyanobacteria, moss, and lichens, i.e., biocrusts, which occur on and in the surface soil. Biocrusts inhabit all continents, including Antarctica, an increasingly dynamic continent on the precipice of change. Here, we describe in-situ field surveying and sampling, remote sensing, and modeling approaches to assess the habitat suitability of biocrusts in the Lake Fryxell basin of Taylor Valley, Antarctica, which is the main site of the McMurdo Dry Valleys Long-Term Ecological Research Program. Soils suitable for the development of biocrusts are typically wetter, less alkaline, and less saline compared to unvegetated soils. Using random forest models, we show that gravimetric water content, electrical conductivity, and snow frequency are the top predictors of biocrust presence and biomass. Areas most suitable for the growth of dense biocrusts are soils associated with seasonal snow patches. Using geospatial data to extrapolate our habitat suitability model to the whole basin predicts that biocrusts are present in 2.7 &amp;times; 10&lt;sup&gt;5&lt;/sup&gt;&amp;nbsp;m&lt;sup&gt;2&lt;/sup&gt; and contain 11&amp;ndash;72 Mg of aboveground carbon, based on the 90% probability of occurrence. Our study illustrates the synergistic effect of combining field and remote sensing data for understanding the distribution and biomass of biocrusts, a foundational community in the carbon balance of this region. Extreme weather events and changing climate conditions in this region, especially those influencing snow accumulation and persistence, could have significant effects on the future distribution and abundance of biocrusts and therefore soil organic carbon storage in the McMurdo Dry Valleys.&lt;/p&gt;</style></abstract><issue><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">7</style></issue></record><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>17</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Stone, Michael S.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Salvatore, Mark R.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Hilary A. Dugan</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Myers, Madeline</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Peter T. Doran</style></author></authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Measuring and modelling functional moat area in perennially ice-covered Lake Fryxell, Antarctica</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research</style></secondary-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Lake Fryxell</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">lake ice</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">McMurdo Dry Valleys</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">moat</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">NDWI</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">predictive model</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2024</style></year><pub-dates><date><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">10/2024</style></date></pub-dates></dates><urls><web-urls><url><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/15230430.2024.2406626</style></url></web-urls></urls><volume><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">56</style></volume><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">&lt;p&gt;The perennially ice-covered lakes of the McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDVs), Antarctica, are an important reservoir of liquid water in an arid and largely frozen environment. During the austral summer, the margins of these ice covers melt, forming a &amp;ldquo;moat&amp;rdquo; of liquid water and thin ice, allowing exchange between lake waters and the atmosphere to occur and serving as an interface between lake, soil, and stream ecosystems. The size of these moats varies from year to year. Here, we have established the first published record of moat area changes at MDVs&amp;rsquo; Lake Fryxell through time using manual traces of the moat as observed via satellite imagery. We have also tested a semi-automated approach for measuring moat area and found that it consistently underestimated the manual record, which we suspect may be due to the lower spatial resolution of images used in this versus the manual approach. Finally, we developed a predictive model based on readily available climate data, allowing moat area to be predicted beyond the limits of the satellite-based records. We found that functional moat area varies annually, potentially influencing ecosystem processes in the moats.&lt;/p&gt;</style></abstract><issue><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">1</style></issue></record><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>17</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Power, Sarah N.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Salvatore, Mark R.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Eric R. Sokol</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Lee F. Stanish</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Borges, Schuyler R.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Byron Adams</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">John E. Barrett</style></author></authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Remotely characterizing photosynthetic biocrust in snowpack-fed microhabitats of Taylor Valley, Antarctica</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Science of Remote Sensing</style></secondary-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Antarctica</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">biocrust</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">carbon</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">reflectance spectroscopy</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">snow</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">soil ecology</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2024</style></year><pub-dates><date><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">02/2024</style></date></pub-dates></dates><urls><web-urls><url><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S266601722400004X</style></url></web-urls></urls><pages><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">100120</style></pages><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">&lt;p&gt;Microbial communities are the primary drivers of carbon cycling in the McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica. Dense microbial mats, consisting mainly of photosynthetic cyanobacteria, occupy aquatic areas associated with streams and lakes. Other microbial communities also occur at lower densities as patchy surface biological soil crusts (hereafter, biocrusts) across the terrestrial landscape. Multispectral satellite data have been used to model microbial mat abundance in high-density areas like stream and lake margins, but no previous studies have investigated the lower detection limits of biocrusts. Here, we describe remote sensing and field-based survey and sampling approaches to study the detectability and distribution of biocrusts in the McMurdo Dry Valleys. Using a combination of multi- and hyperspectral tools and spectral linear unmixing, we modeled the abundances of biocrust in eastern Taylor Valley. Our spectral approaches can detect low masses of biocrust material in laboratory microcosms down to biocrust concentrations of 1% by mass. These techniques also distinguish the spectra of biocrust from both surface rock and mineral signatures from orbit. We found that biocrusts are present throughout the soils of eastern Taylor Valley and are associated with diverse underlying soil communities. The densest biocrust communities identified in this study had total organic carbon 5x greater than the content of typical arid soils. The most productive biocrusts were located downslope of melting snowpacks in unique soil ecosystems that are distinct from the surrounding arid landscape. There are similarities between the snowpack and stream sediment communities (high diversity of soil invertebrates) as well as their ecosystem properties (e.g., persistence of liquid water, high transfer of available nutrients, lower salinity from flushing) compared to the typical arid terrestrial ecosystem of the dry valleys. Our approach extends the capability of orbital remote sensing of photosynthetic communities out of the aquatic margins and into the drier soils which comprise most of this landscape. This interdisciplinary work is critical for measuring and monitoring terrestrial carbon stocks and predicting future ecosystem dynamics in this currently water-limited but increasingly dynamic Antarctic landscape, which is particularly climate-sensitive and difficult to access.&lt;/p&gt;</style></abstract></record><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>17</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">John E. Barrett</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Adams, Byron J.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Doran, Peter T.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Hilary A. Dugan</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Myers, Krista F.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Salvatore, Mark R.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Power, Sarah N.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Snyder, Meredith D.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Wright, Anna T.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Michael N. Gooseff</style></author></authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Response of a terrestrial polar ecosystem to the March 2022 Antarctic weather anomaly</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Earth's Future</style></secondary-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">atmospheric river</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">climate variability</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">extreme weather</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">polar desert</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">soil biota</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2024</style></year><pub-dates><date><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">08/2024</style></date></pub-dates></dates><urls><web-urls><url><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2023EF004306</style></url></web-urls></urls><volume><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">12</style></volume><pages><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">e2023EF004306</style></pages><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">&lt;p&gt;Record high temperatures were documented in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica, on 18 March 2022, exceeding average temperatures for that day by nearly 30&amp;deg;C. Satellite imagery and stream gage measurements indicate that surface wetting coincided with this warming more than 2 months after peak summer thaw and likely exceeded thresholds for rehydration and activation of resident organisms that typically survive the cold and dry conditions of the polar fall in a freeze-dried state. This weather event is notable in both the timing and magnitude of the warming and wetting when temperatures exceeded 0&amp;deg;C at a time when biological communities and streams have typically entered a persistent frozen state. Such events may be a harbinger of future climate conditions characterized by warmer temperatures and greater thaw in this region of Antarctica, which could influence the distribution, activity, and abundance of sentinel taxa. Here we describe the ecosystem responses to this weather anomaly reporting on meteorological and hydrological measurements across the region and on later biological observations from Canada Stream, one of the most diverse and productive ecosystems within the McMurdo Dry Valleys.&lt;/p&gt;</style></abstract><issue><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">8</style></issue></record><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>17</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Singley, Joel G.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Salvatore, Mark R.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Michael N. Gooseff</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Diane M. McKnight</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Eve-Lyn S. Hinckley</style></author></authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Differentiating physical and biological storage of nitrogen along an intermittent Antarctic stream corridor</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Freshwater Science</style></secondary-title><short-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Freshwater Science</style></short-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">hyporheic zone</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">McMurdo LTER</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">nitrogen cycling</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">nutrient budget</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">organic matter</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">periphyton</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2023</style></year><pub-dates><date><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">09/2023</style></date></pub-dates></dates><urls><web-urls><url><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/725676</style></url></web-urls></urls><volume><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">42</style></volume><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">&lt;p&gt;In many temperate streams, biological uptake of N acts to attenuate the transport of excess N from allochthonous anthropogenic imports. Relatively few studies have determined how this N uptake relates to the magnitude of physical vs. biological N storage in the stream corridor, especially for intermittent systems where allochthonous N imports are often low and N transport may only occur during brief periods of streamflow. Glacial meltwater streams in the McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica provide an excellent setting to quantify autochthonous N cycling and storage processes supported by abundant algal mats and well-connected hyporheic zones. We combined historic point-scale sediment and periphyton sample datasets with remote sensing-based modeling of periphyton coverage to estimate how much N was stored in periphyton biomass and the hyporheic zone of a 5-km long McMurdo Dry Valley stream corridor (&amp;gt;100,000 m&lt;sup&gt;2&lt;/sup&gt;). We contextualized these N storage calculations by estimating the magnitude of annual N imports to and exports from the stream corridor based on &amp;gt;2 decades of streamflow and surface water data, source glacier ice cores and meltwater data, and past studies of local aeolian deposition and biological N fixation rates. We found that in this highly oligotrophic system, stream corridor-scale N storage was ~1000x that of total annual N import or export fluxes. More than 90% of this temporarily stored N was autochthonous organic matter in the shallow (&amp;lt;10 cm) hyporheic zone, which acts as a reservoir that sustains N availability in the water column. Despite its location in a polar desert devoid of higher-order vegetation, area-normalized N storage (~40 g N/m&lt;sup&gt;2&lt;/sup&gt;) was greater than that reported for streams at lower latitudes (~1&amp;ndash;22 g N/m&lt;sup&gt;2&lt;/sup&gt;). We also demonstrated that NH&lt;sub&gt;4&lt;/sub&gt;&lt;sup&gt;+&lt;/sup&gt; sorption to stream sediment may be an important physicochemical N storage mechanism that responds to short-term fluctuations in streamflow and governs the mobility of inorganic N. Altogether, this research illustrates the importance of quantifying N storage within stream corridors when evaluating the significance of internal cycling and physical retention processes that modulate N availability.&lt;/p&gt;</style></abstract><issue><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">3</style></issue></record><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>17</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Salvatore, Mark R.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Barrett, John E.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Fackrell, Laura E.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Sokol, Eric R.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Levy, Joseph S.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Kuentz, Lily C.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Gooseff, Michael N.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Adams, Byron J.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Power, Sarah N.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Knightly, J. Paul</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Matul, Haley M.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Szutu, Brian</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Doran, Peter T.</style></author></authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">The distribution of surface soil moisture over space and time in eastern Taylor Valley, Antarctica</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Remote Sensing</style></secondary-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Dry valleys</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">ecology</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">hydrology</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">remote sensing</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">soil moisture</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2023</style></year><pub-dates><date><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">06/2023</style></date></pub-dates></dates><urls><web-urls><url><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/15/12/3170</style></url></web-urls></urls><volume><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">15</style></volume><pages><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">3170</style></pages><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">&lt;p&gt;Available soil moisture is thought to be the limiting factor for most ecosystem processes in the cold polar desert of the McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDVs) of Antarctica. Previous studies have shown that microfauna throughout the MDVs are capable of biological activity when sufficient soil moisture is available (~2&amp;ndash;10% gravimetric water content), but few studies have attempted to quantify the distribution, abundance, and frequency of soil moisture on scales beyond that of traditional field work or local field investigations. In this study, we present our work to quantify the soil moisture content of soils throughout the Fryxell basin using multispectral satellite remote sensing techniques. Our efforts demonstrate that ecologically relevant abundances of liquid water are common across the landscape throughout the austral summer. On average, the Fryxell basin of Taylor Valley is modeled as containing 1.5 &amp;plusmn; 0.5% gravimetric water content (GWC) across its non-fluvial landscape with ~23% of the landscape experiencing an average GWC &amp;gt; 2% throughout the study period, which is the observed limit of soil nematode activity. These results indicate that liquid water in the soils of the MDVs may be more abundant than previously thought, and that the distribution and availability of liquid water is dependent on both soil properties and the distribution of water sources. These results can also help to identify ecological hotspots in the harsh polar Antarctic environment and serve as a baseline for detecting future changes in the soil hydrological regime.&lt;/p&gt;</style></abstract><issue><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">12</style></issue></record><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>17</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Kuentz, Lily C.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Joseph S. Levy</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Salvatore, Mark R.</style></author></authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Timing and duration of ephemeral Antarctic water tracks and wetlands using high temporal–resolution satellite imagery, high spatial–resolution satellite imagery, and ground-based sensors in the McMurdo Dry Valleys</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research</style></secondary-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Antarctica</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">hydroperiod</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">remote sensing</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">water track</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">wetland</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2022</style></year><pub-dates><date><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">12/2022</style></date></pub-dates></dates><urls><web-urls><url><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/15230430.2022.2123858</style></url></web-urls></urls><volume><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">54</style></volume><pages><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">538 - 561</style></pages><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">&lt;p&gt;Antarctic water tracks and ephemeral wetlands are a primary location for biogeochemical soil processes driving cold desert soil formation. Though the spatial extent of water tracks and wetted soils has been mapped in the McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDV) on the basis of mapping darkened pixels in high-resolution commercial satellite imagery, the timescale over which water tracks and wetlands form and the duration of these biogeochemically active environments remain unknown. Here, we determine the start date and end dates and the duration of wetted soils at ten sites located across the MDV using a combination of in situ soil sensors and two complementary remote imaging platforms (Planet and WorldView) to understand the hydroclimatic processes that drive water track and wetland formation. Our remote sensing employs a terrain correction workflow that removes the contribution of differential direct illumination and small-scale shadowing on pixel brightness, reducing false positives (soils identified as wetted when in fact they are shadowed or darkened as a consequence of high phase angle). Our findings extend the water track and wetland hydroperiod by over a month, showing darkening occurring from November to March, suggesting hydrological contributions from ground ice thaw, snowmelt, and salt deliquescence and soil brine growth.&lt;/p&gt;</style></abstract><issue><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">1</style></issue></record><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>17</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Salvatore, Mark R.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">John E. Barrett</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Borges, Schuyler R.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Power, Sarah N.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Lee F. Stanish</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Eric R. Sokol</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Michael N. Gooseff</style></author></authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Counting carbon: Quantifying biomass in the McMurdo Dry Valleys through orbital and field observations</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">International Journal of Remote Sensing</style></secondary-title></titles><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2021</style></year><pub-dates><date><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">10/2021</style></date></pub-dates></dates><urls><web-urls><url><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/01431161.2021.1981559</style></url></web-urls></urls><volume><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">42</style></volume><pages><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">8597 - 8623</style></pages><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">&lt;p&gt;We use correlative field studies and high-resolution multispectral remote sensing data from the WorldView-2 instrument to estimate the abundance of photosynthetically active biomass (photoautotrophs consisting primarily of microbial mats and mosses) in Canada Stream in Taylor Valley, McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDV), Antarctica. In situ field investigations were performed to (1) acquire ground validation targets for atmospherically correcting satellite imagery, (2) derive spectra of &amp;ldquo;pure&amp;rdquo; geologic and biological endmembers, (3) estimate photoautotroph cover from remote sensing data, and (4) convert these coverage estimates to biomass using data collected in the field. Our results suggest that, on the morning of 12 December 2018, the Canada Stream system contained more than 3,800 kg of photosynthetically active carbon. Extrapolating our unmixing results to the entirety of the Fryxell basin of Taylor Valley, Antarctica, we model the presence of more than 750,000 kg of photosynthetically active carbon across the landscape and carbon fixation rates roughly equivalent to five hectares of tropical rainforest. The ability to spatially and temporally quantify the amount of photosynthetically active biomass using remote sensing data in the MDV of Antarctica is a revolutionary development that will help elucidate the ecological drivers and environmental responses in this cold desert landscape.&lt;/p&gt;</style></abstract><issue><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">22</style></issue></record><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>6</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Salvatore, Mark R.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Joseph S. Levy</style></author></authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">The McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica: A geological, environmental, and ecological analog to the Martian surface and near surface</style></title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Antarctica</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">astrobiology</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">climate</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">geology</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">geomorphology</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Mars</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2021</style></year></dates><urls><web-urls><url><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/B9780128202456000112</style></url></web-urls></urls><publisher><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Elsevier</style></publisher><isbn><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">9780128202456</style></isbn><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">&lt;p&gt;The surface of Mars is universally thought to have experienced widespread cold and dry environmental conditions for at least the last half of its geologic history, with more modern studies suggesting relatively cold and dry conditions early in its geologic history as well. However, the paucity of liquid water and mean annual temperatures well below the freezing point of water do not necessarily mean a complete cessation of all water-related geologic activity at the Martian surface. Over the past several decades, investigations in the McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDV) of Antarctica have revealed a dynamic geological, environmental, and ecological system resulting from locally optimized conditions operating over repeated, albeit brief, intervals during summer months. In this chapter, we compare the hyper-arid and hypo-thermal environments of the MDV and the modern Martian surface and discuss three unique enigmas that demonstrate how the Antarctic is a valuable analog to better understand processes on Mars.&lt;/p&gt;</style></abstract></record><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>17</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Power, Sarah N.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Salvatore, Mark R.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Eric R. Sokol</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Lee F. Stanish</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">John E. Barrett</style></author></authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Estimating microbial mat biomass in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica using satellite imagery and ground surveys</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Polar Biology</style></secondary-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Antarctica</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">microbial mat</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">multispectral imagery</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">NDVI</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Nostocales</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">remote sensing</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2020</style></year><pub-dates><date><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">09/2020</style></date></pub-dates></dates><urls><web-urls><url><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs00300-020-02742-y</style></url></web-urls></urls><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">&lt;p&gt;Cyanobacterial mat communities are the main drivers of primary productivity in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica. These microbial communities form laminar mats on desert pavement surfaces adjacent to glacial meltwater streams, ponds, and lakes. The low-density nature of these communities and their patchy distribution make assessments of distribution, biomass, and productivity challenging. We used satellite imagery coupled with in situ surveying, imaging, and sampling to systematically estimate microbial mat biomass in selected wetland regions in Taylor Valley, Antarctica. On January 19th, 2018, the WorldView-2 multispectral satellite acquired an image of our study areas, where we surveyed and sampled seven 100 m&lt;sup&gt;2&lt;/sup&gt; plots of microbial mats for percent ground cover, ash-free dry mass (AFDM), and pigment content (chlorophyll-a, carotenoids, and scytonemin). Multispectral analyses revealed spectral signatures consistent with photosynthetic activity (relatively strong reflection at near-infrared wavelengths and relatively strong absorption at visible wavelengths), with average normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) values of 0.09 to 0.28. Strong correlations of microbial mat ground cover (R&lt;sup&gt;2&lt;/sup&gt;&amp;thinsp;=&amp;thinsp;0.84), biomass (R&lt;sup&gt;2&lt;/sup&gt;&amp;thinsp;=&amp;thinsp;0.74), chlorophyll-a content (R&lt;sup&gt;2&lt;/sup&gt;&amp;thinsp;=&amp;thinsp;0.65), and scytonemin content (R&lt;sup&gt;2&lt;/sup&gt;&amp;thinsp;=&amp;thinsp;0.98) with logit transformed NDVI values demonstrate that satellite imagery can detect both the presence of microbial mats and their key biological properties. Using the NDVI&amp;mdash;biomass correlation we developed, we estimate carbon (C) stocks of 21,715 kg (14.7 g C m&lt;sup&gt;&amp;minus;2&lt;/sup&gt;) in the Canada Glacier Antarctic Specially Protected Area, with an upper and lower limit of 74,871 and 6312 kg of C, respectively.&lt;/p&gt;</style></abstract></record><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>17</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Eric R. Sokol</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">John E. Barrett</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Tyler J. Kohler</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Diane M. McKnight</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Salvatore, Mark R.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Lee F. Stanish</style></author></authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Evaluating alternative metacommunity hypotheses for diatoms in the McMurdo Dry Valleys using simulations and remote sensing data</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution</style></secondary-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Antarctica</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Bacillariophyceae</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">dispersal</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Nostoc</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">stream ecology</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2020</style></year><pub-dates><date><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">09/2020</style></date></pub-dates></dates><urls><web-urls><url><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fevo.2020.521668/full</style></url></web-urls></urls><volume><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">8</style></volume><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">&lt;p&gt;Diatoms are diverse and widespread freshwater Eukaryotes that make excellent microbial subjects for addressing questions in metacommunity ecology. In the McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica, the simple trophic structure of glacier-fed streams provides an ideal outdoor laboratory where well-described diatom assemblages are found within two cyanobacterial mat types, which occupy different habitats and vary in coverage within and among streams. Specifically, black mats of &lt;em&gt;Nostoc&lt;/em&gt; spp. occur in marginal wetted habitats, and orange mats (&lt;em&gt;Oscillatoria&lt;/em&gt; spp. and &lt;em&gt;Phormidium&lt;/em&gt; spp.) occur in areas of consistent stream flow. Despite their importance as bioindicators for changing environmental conditions, the role of dispersal in structuring dry valley diatom metacommunities remains unclear. Here, we use MCSim, a spatially explicit metacommunity simulation package for R, to test alternative hypotheses about the roles of dispersal and species sorting in maintaining the biodiversity of diatom assemblages residing in black and orange mats. The spatial distribution and patchiness of cyanobacterial mat habitats was characterized by remote imagery of the Lake Fryxell sub-catchment in Taylor Valley. The available species pool for diatom metacommunity simulation scenarios was informed by the Antarctic Freshwater Diatoms Database, maintained by the McMurdo Dry Valleys Long Term Ecological Research program. We used simulation outcomes to test the plausibility of alternative community assembly hypotheses to explain empirically observed patterns of freshwater diatom biodiversity in the long-term record. The most plausible simulation scenarios suggest species sorting by environmental filters, alone, was not sufficient to maintain biodiversity in the Fryxell Basin diatom metacommunity. The most plausible scenarios included either (1) neutral models with different immigration rates for diatoms in orange and black mats or (2) species sorting by a relatively weak environmental filter, such that dispersal dynamics also influenced diatom community assembly, but there was not such a strong disparity&amp;nbsp;in immigration rates between mat types. The results point to the importance of dispersal for understanding current and future biodiversity patterns for diatoms in this ecosystem, and more generally, provide further evidence that metacommunity theory is a useful framework for testing hypotheses about microbial community assembly.&lt;/p&gt;</style></abstract></record><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>17</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Salvatore, Mark R.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Borges, Schuyler R.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">John E. Barrett</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Eric R. Sokol</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Lee F. Stanish</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Power, Sarah N.</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Morin, Paul</style></author></authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Remote characterization of photosynthetic communities in the Fryxell basin of Taylor Valley, Antarctica</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Antarctic Science</style></secondary-title><short-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Antarctic Science</style></short-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">ecology</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">hydrology</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">McMurdo Dry Valleys</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">microbiology</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">remote sensing</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">spectroscopy</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2020</style></year><pub-dates><date><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">03/2020</style></date></pub-dates></dates><urls><web-urls><url><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/antarctic-science/article/remote-characterization-of-photosynthetic-communities-in-the-fryxell-basin-of-taylor-valley-antarctica/8576F6BB1BCFDCA8409F5EA96CA00C6F</style></url></web-urls></urls><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">&lt;p&gt;We investigate the spatial distribution, spectral properties and temporal variability of primary producers (e.g. communities of microbial mats and mosses) throughout the Fryxell basin of Taylor Valley, Antarctica, using high-resolution multispectral remote-sensing data. Our results suggest that photosynthetic communities can be readily detected throughout the Fryxell basin based on their unique near-infrared spectral signatures. Observed intra- and inter-annual variability in spectral signatures are consistent with short-term variations in mat distribution, hydration and photosynthetic activity. Spectral unmixing is also implemented in order to estimate mat abundance, with the most densely vegetated regions observed from orbit correlating spatially with some of the most productive regions of the Fryxell basin. Our work establishes remote sensing as a valuable tool in the study of these ecological communities in the McMurdo Dry Valleys and demonstrates how future scientific investigations and the management of specially protected areas could benefit from these tools and techniques.&lt;/p&gt;</style></abstract></record></records></xml>