soils_biocrust English utf8 dataset McMurdo Dry Valleys LTER Information Manager im@mcmlter.org pointOfContact 2023-10-26 ISO 19115-2 Geographic Information - North American Profile Metadata - Data with Biological Extensions ISO 19115-2:2009(E) Hyperspectral reflectance values and biophysicochemical properties of biocrusts and soils in the Fryxell Basin, McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica (2019) 2023-10-26 publication Sarah Power Virginia Tech http://www.vt.edu/ snpower@vt.edu pointOfContact Mark Salvatore Northern Arizona University https://nau.edu mark.salvatore@nau.edu http://msalvatore.net pointOfContact Byron Adams Brigham Young University byron_adams@byu.edu https://biology.byu.edu/adams-lab pointOfContact John "Jeb" Barrett Virginia Tech http://www.vt.edu/ jebarre@vt.edu https://www.biol.vt.edu/faculty/barrett/index.html pointOfContact documentDigital This data package includes ecological parameters of biocrust and soil from samples collected in-situ within the Lake Fryxell Basin of the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica during December of 2019. Parameters include biological (ash-free dry mass, pigment concentration, and counts of soil invertebrates), physical (water content, electrical conductivity, and pH), and chemical properties (inorganic nitrogen, inorganic phosphorous, total nitrogen, and total organic carbon) of the surface soil, biocrust, and underlying soil. This data package also contains reflectance measurements of biocrust, soil, and granite samples acquired in a laboratory using a hyperspectral spectrometer. Included are hyperspectral reflectance measurements of a laboratory study using a variety of mixtures of soil and biocrust (0 – 100% biocrust), as well as reflectance measurements of individual grab samples collected from each of the field plots. These data aid our understanding of the ecological structure and functioning of biocrust microhabitats as well as the location of these communities throughout the Lake Fryxell Basin. This work also aims to assist in understanding the carbon budget of the basin and highlight the importance of these snowpack-fed biocrust communities, which are understudied but likely an important piece of the overall carbon budget in this region. Name: Ernest D. Osburn Role: field crew Name: Barbara R. Niederlehner Role: lab technician completed McMurdo Dry Valleys LTER Information Manager im@mcmlter.org pointOfContact inorganic nutrients organic matter population dynamics primary production theme LTER Core Areas English This is the Taylor Valley, a subjectively approximated contour by San Gil. We use this to denote the geographical extent of studies that encompass the whole Taylor Valley. According to Wiki contributors, the Taylor Valley is the southernmost of the three large Dry Valleys in the Transantarctic Mountains, Victoria Land, located west of McMurdo Sound. The valley extends from Taylor Glacier in the west to McMurdo Sound at Explorers Cove at the northwest head of New Harbour in the east and is about 29 kilometres (18 mi) long. It was once occupied by the receding Taylor Glacier, from which it derives its name. Taylor Valley contains Lake Bonney in the west (inward), and Lake Fryxell in the east (coastward), and Lake Hoare, Lake Chad, Mummy Pond and Parera Pond close together between the two. Further east of Lake Bonney is Pearse Valley. Taylor Valley is separated from Wright Valley in the north by Asgard Range, and from Ferrar Glacier in the south by Kukri Hills. 163.624877929690 161.707763671880 -77.808487073526 -77.519802097166 ground condition 2019-12-21 2019-12-28 Funding for this work was provided by the National Science Foundation (NSF) grants #OPP-1637708 and #OPP-2224760 to the MCM LTER, NSF #OPP-1745053 to Mark Salvatore, and a Virginia Space Grant Consortium award to Sarah Power. https://mcm.lternet.edu/sites/default/files/data/mcmlter-soils-power-biocrust_biol-20231030_0.csv biological eng; US McMurdo Dry Valleys LTER biological Number of Header Lines : 1 Orientation : Column Quote Character : "Field Delimiter : , false dataset_code Internal dataset code. plot_id Plot identifier. Refer to the "plot" dataset for additional metadata. replicate Sample replicate number. afdm Ash-free dry mass (AFDM) content of the sample. chla Chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) concentration of the sample. caro Carotenoid concentration of the sample. scyto Scytonemin concentration of the sample. remarks Remarks regarding missing values. DBF https://mcm.lternet.edu/sites/default/files/data/mcmlter-soils-power-biocrust_biol-20231030_0.csv https://mcm.lternet.edu/sites/default/files/data/mcmlter-soils-power-biocrust_biota-20231030_2.csv biota eng; US McMurdo Dry Valleys LTER biota Number of Header Lines : 1 Number of Footer Lines : 1 Orientation : Column Field Delimiter : , false dataset_code Internal dataset code. plot_id Plot identifier. Refer to the "plot" dataset for additional metadata. replicate Sample replicate number. SML The total number of living male Scottnema lindsayae adult nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. smd The total number of dead male Scottnema lindsayae adult nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. sfl The total number of living female Scottnema lindsayae adult nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. sfd The total number of dead female Scottnema lindsayae adult nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. sjl The total number of living juvenile Scottnema lindsayae nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. sjd The total number of dead juvenile Scottnema lindsayae nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. sa The total number of living and dead Scottnema lindsayae adult nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. sj The total number of living and dead Scottnema lindsayae juvenile nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. stl The total number of living Scottnema lindsayae (juvenile and adult) nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. std The total number of dead Scottnema lindsayae (juvenile and adult) nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. stld The total number of live + dead Scottnema lindsayae (juvenile and adult) nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. eml The total number of living male Eudorylaimus spp. adult nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. emd The total number of dead male Eudorylaimus spp. adult nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. efl The total number of living female Eudorylaimus spp. adult nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. efd The total number of dead female Eudorylaimus spp. adult nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. ejl The total number of living juvenile Eudorylaimus spp. nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. ejd The total number of dead juvenile Eudorylaimus spp. nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. ea The total number of living and dead Eudorylaimus spp. adult nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. ej The total number of living and dead Eudorylaimus spp. juvenile nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. etl Total number of living Eudorylaimus spp. (juvenile and adults) nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. etd The total number of dead Eudorylaimus spp. (juvenile and adults) nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. etld The total number of live + dead Eudorylaimus spp. (juvenile and adults) nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. pfl The total number of living female Plectus spp. adult nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. pfd The total number of dead female Plectus spp. adult nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. pjl The total number of living juvenile Plectus spp. nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. pjd The total number of dead juvenile Plectus spp. adult nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. pa The total number of living and dead Plectus spp. adult nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. pj The total number of living and dead Plectus spp. juvenile nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. ptl Total number of living Plectus spp. (juvenile and adults) nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. ptd The total number of dead Plectus spp. (juvenile and adults) nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. ptld The total number of live + dead Plectus spp. (juvenile and adults) nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. total_rotifers Total number of rotifers per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent present in a sample. total_tardigrades Total number of tardigrades per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent present in a sample. total_live The total number of living nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. total_dead The total number of dead nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. total The total number of living and dead nematodes extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. other The total number of other organisms extracted from the soil sample in number of organisms per kg soil oven dry weight equivalent. remarks Sample remarks. DBF https://mcm.lternet.edu/sites/default/files/data/mcmlter-soils-power-biocrust_biota-20231030_2.csv https://mcm.lternet.edu/sites/default/files/data/mcmlter-soils-power-biocrust_hyperfield-20231030.csv field hyperspectra eng; US McMurdo Dry Valleys LTER field hyperspectra Number of Header Lines : 1 Orientation : Column Field Delimiter : , false dataset_code Internal dataset code. plot_id Plot identifier. Refer to the "plot" dataset for additional metadata. band_um Wavelength band of reflectance. Wavelengths span 0.4 - 2.5 micrometers at 0.001 um increments. reflectance Reflectance values (unitless) associated with each band and measurement. DBF https://mcm.lternet.edu/sites/default/files/data/mcmlter-soils-power-biocrust_hyperfield-20231030.csv https://mcm.lternet.edu/sites/default/files/data/mcmlter-soils-power-biocrust_hyperlab-20231030.csv lab hyperspectra eng; US McMurdo Dry Valleys LTER lab hyperspectra Number of Header Lines : 1 Orientation : Column Field Delimiter : , false dataset_code Internal dataset code. moisture_level Moisture level of sample (either "dry" or "damp"). The targeted water content for damp samples was approximately 0.25 GWC (g H2O/g dry soil and biocrust material). biocrust_pct Percentage of biocrust by weight in laboratory mixtures of soil and biocrust. band_um Wavelength band of reflectance. Wavelengths span 0.4 - 2.5 micrometers at 0.001 um increments. reflectance Reflectance values (unitless) associated with each band and measurement. DBF https://mcm.lternet.edu/sites/default/files/data/mcmlter-soils-power-biocrust_hyperlab-20231030.csv https://mcm.lternet.edu/sites/default/files/data/mcmlter-soils-power-biocrust_physchem-20231030.csv physicochemical eng; US McMurdo Dry Valleys LTER physicochemical Number of Header Lines : 1 Orientation : Column Field Delimiter : , false dataset_code Internal dataset code. plot_id Plot identifier. Refer to the "plot" dataset for additional metadata. replicate Sample replicate number. gwc Gravimetric water content (GWC) of the sample, expressed in grams of water per gram of dry soil. ec Electrical conductivity (EC) of the sample. ph pH of the sample. nh4 Inorganic nitrogen concentration of the sample in the form of ammonium (NH4+), expressed in micrograms of N per gram of dry soil. no3 Inorganic nitrogen concentration of the sample in the form of nitrate (NO3-), expressed in micrograms of N per gram of dry soil. po4 Inorganic phosphorus concentration of the sample in the form of phosphate (PO43-), expressed in micrograms of P per gram of dry soil. toc Total organic carbon concentration of the sample, expressed in milligrams of C per gram of dry soil. tn Total nitrogen concentration of the sample, expressed in milligrams of N per gram of dry soil. DBF https://mcm.lternet.edu/sites/default/files/data/mcmlter-soils-power-biocrust_physchem-20231030.csv https://mcm.lternet.edu/sites/default/files/data/mcmlter-soils-power-biocrust_plot-20231030.csv plot eng; US McMurdo Dry Valleys LTER plot Number of Header Lines : 1 Orientation : Column Field Delimiter : , false dataset_code Internal dataset code. plot_id Plot identifier. latitude Latitude of plot in decimal degrees. longitude Longitude of plot in decimal degrees. surface_type Plot surface type, either "biocrust", "soil", or "oxidized granite". visual_biocrust_rank Visual assessment ranking of biocrust coverage in the plot. 0 Biocrust not present 1 Biocrust possibly present 2 Biocrust likely present 3 Biocrust present DBF https://mcm.lternet.edu/sites/default/files/data/mcmlter-soils-power-biocrust_plot-20231030.csv dataset In-situ Environmental Sampling & Analyses At 30 locations throughout the Fryxell basin, we documented surface type present (biocrust, soil, or oxidized granite) and collected a surface layer sample of soil or biocrust (if present) and rock from all sites for subsequent hyperspectral analysis in the laboratory. At 12 of these sites, we established 5 m x 5 m intensive sampling plots. We collected 5 surface layer soil or biocrust samples (128 cm2) from each corner and center of the plots for subsequent pigment analysis and organic matter content via ash-free dry mass (AFDM). We also collected underlying soil down to 10 cm below the surface for gravimetric water content (GWC), electrical conductivity (EC), pH, inorganic nitrogen (N) concentration in the form of ammonium (NH4+) and nitrate (NO3-), inorganic phosphorus (P) concentration in the form of phosphate (PO43-), total organic carbon (TOC), total nitrogen (TN), and invertebrate abundance (nematodes, tardigrades, and rotifers). Ash-free dry mass (AFDM): The surface layer soil and biocrust samples were measured for AFDM by weighing a known area of sample, combusting at 550 °C for 24 hr using a muffle furnace, gently stirring samples halfway through combustion, and reweighing after cooling in a desiccator. The rehydration of clays was assumed negligible, so we did not rewet samples. Pigments: We estimated pigment concentration on the surface ~1 cm layer soil and biocrust samples using a trichromatic spectrophotometric method for chlorophyll-a, carotenoids, and scytonemin at 663, 490, and 384 nm, respectively (Garcia‐Pichel and Castenholz, 1991). Throughout the process, care was taken to avoid exposing the samples to light. The samples were dried at 105 °C for 24 hr, sieved through a 4 mm sieve, and extracted for 24 hr at ambient temperature in 90% unbuffered acetone using a 3.75:10 soil to solvent ratio, based on protocols from Couradeau et al. (2016) and the McMurdo Dry Valleys Long Term Ecological Research Program (MCM LTER) standard methods. After centrifugation, the extracts were analyzed on a spectrophotometer using 10 mL cuvettes. The absorbances contributed by each pigment were calculated using the trichromatic equations outlined in Garcia‐Pichel and Castenholz (1991), and the pigment concentrations were calculated using the Beer-Lambert Law with the extinction coefficients of 89.7 L g-1 cm-1 for chlorophyll-a (Couradeau et al., 2016), 112.6 L g-1 cm-1 for scytonemin (Brenowitz and Castenholz, 1997), and 262 L g-1 cm-1 for carotenoids (Thrane et al., 2015). Invertebrate counts: The number of soil organisms (nematodes, rotifers and tardigrades), divided by species, sex and maturity was determined at each of the 12 plots. Invertebrate abundance was enumerated using inverted light microscopy on soil solutions using a modified sugar-centrifugation extraction procedure described by Freckman and Virginia (1993). Gravimetric water content: Water content was determined as the mass of water per mass of dry soil. This was conducted by weighing field moist soil, drying in an oven at 105 °C for 24 hr, and reweighing the soil after. Electrical conductivity: Using the underlying 1-10 cm soil, we measured electrical conductivity using a 1:5 soil to DI H2O slurry. pH: Using the underlying 1-10 cm soil, we measured pH using a 1:2 soil to DI H2O slurry. Inorganic N and P: We extracted inorganic N (NH4+ and NO3-) in 2 M potassium chloride and inorganic P (PO43-) in 0.5 M sodium bicarbonate; inorganic N and P were measured on extracts using a Lachat flow injection analyzer.  Total N and organic C: We measured TOC and TN using an Elementar Vario Cube TOC/TN analyzer after fumigating samples with concentrated hydrochloric acid to remove the influence of carbonates on TOC values.  Remote Sensing Analyses Hyperspectral reflectance of field samples: Spectra were acquired of samples from each of the 30 plots using an Analytical Spectral Devices (ASD) FieldSpec4 high-resolution hyperspectral reflectance spectrometer set up for use in a stable lab environment. Data were collected between 400 and 2500 nm at a 1 nm sampling interval. A halogen lamp was used to illuminate the samples at 30° off-nadir, while reflectance was measured at nadir using the ASD’s bare fiber optic cable roughly 3 cm above the sample surface. To minimize instrument noise, particularly at the longest and shortest wavelengths where the output of the halogen bulb is lowest, we averaged 50 individual spectra for each sample. Hyperspectral reflectance of laboratory mixtures: Sample mixtures of varying percent biocrust and soil (not containing biocrust) were created by mixing a known amount of soil with a known amount of biocrust. The soil was collected from the Fryxell basin, Antarctica, and the biocrust was collected from Arizona, USA, and each were separately ground into a homogenous fine particle size. Hyperspectral reflectance data were gathered for dry samples with the same methods above. Samples were also moistened with DI water for damp readings as well. The targeted water content for the damp samples was approximately 0.25 GWC (g H2O/g dry soil and biocrust material). These data were used to determine the nature of the observed spectral mixing relationship between soil and biocrust, validating our ability to confidently translate spectral unmixing to orbital data. Metadata Access Constraints: none Metadata Use Constraints: none annually McMurdo Dry Valleys LTER http://mcmlter.org/ pointOfContact