Evidence map›Paper›PMID 33221966›Full record

ArticleEnvironmental monitoring and assessment2020

Snowmelt periods as hot moments for soil N dynamics: a case study in Maine, USA.

Kaizad F Patel, Corianne Tatariw, Jean D MacRae, Tsutomu Ohno, Sarah J Nelson, Ivan J Fernandez

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Article in Environmental monitoring and assessment, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

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3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Kaizad F PatelSchool of Forest Resources, University of Maine, 5755 Nutting Hall, Orono, ME, 04469, USA. kaizad.patel@pnnl.gov.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6437-7809
Corianne TatariwDepartment of Biological Sciences, University of Alabama, Box 870344, Tuscaloosa, AL, 35487, USA.
Jean D MacRaeCivil and Environmental Engineering, University of Maine, 5711 Boardman Hall, Orono, ME, 04469, USA.
Tsutomu OhnoSchool of Food and Agriculture, University of Maine, 5722 Deering Hall, Orono, ME, 04469, USA.
Sarah J NelsonSchool of Forest Resources, University of Maine, 5755 Nutting Hall, Orono, ME, 04469, USA.
Ivan J FernandezSchool of Forest Resources, University of Maine, 5755 Nutting Hall, Orono, ME, 04469, USA.

Funding

Maine Agricultural and Forest Experiment Station ME041507National Science Foundation DEB-1119709
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The vernal transition represents the seasonal transition to spring, occurring as temperatures rise at the end of winter. With rapid snowmelt, microbial community turnover, and accelerated nutrient cycling, this is a critical but relatively under-studied period of ecosystem function. We conducted a study over two consecutive winters (2015-2016) at the Bear Brook Watershed in Maine to examine how changing winter conditions (warming winters, reduced snow accumulation) altered soil nitrogen availability and stream N export during winter and the vernal transition, and how these patterns were influenced by ecosystem N status (N-enriched vs. N-limited). Of the two study years, 2016 had a warmer winter with substantially less snow accumulation and a discontinuous snowpack-and as a result, had a longer vernal transition and a snowpack that thawed before the vernal transition began. Across both years, snowmelt triggered a transition, signaled by increased ammonium concentrations in soil, decreased soil nitrate concentrations due to flushing by meltwater, and increased stream nitrate exports. Despite the contrasting winter conditions, both years showed similar patterns in N availability and export, differing only in the timing of these transitions. The vernal transition has conventionally been considered a critical period for biogeochemical cycling, because the associated snowmelt event triggers physicochemical and biochemical changes in soil systems. This was consistent with our results in 2015, but our data for 2016 show that this may not always hold true, and instead, that warmer, low-snow winters may demonstrate a temporal asynchrony between snowmelt and the vernal transition. We also show that ecosystem N status is a strong driver of the seasonal N pattern, and the interaction of N status and changing climate must be further investigated to understand ecosystem function under our current predicted trajectory of warming winters, declining snowfall, and winter thaw events.

Indexed as

EcosystemSoilEnvironmental MonitoringMaineSeasonsSnowSoilForest soilsN-enrichmentNitrogenSnowmeltVernal transition

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.