LTER at AGU 2018: Exploring the depths beneath our feet

Out of Sight, but not Out of Mind

Beneath our feet…under snow and ice…deep in desert soils―plants and microbes keep churning. Whether or not they receive any attention, their activities affect water clarity, survival of salt marshes, the impact of future droughts, and the pace of climate change.

Much of the research from the National Science Foundation’s Long Term Ecological Research Network being presented at the 2018 American Geophysical Union Meeting deals with the often-hidden realms of deep soil processes, ice-covered lakes, and plant roots.

Studies of deep soil layers at two Northeastern forest sites (Hubbard Brook and Harvard Forest LTERs) reveal that freeze and thaw cycles―which are becoming more common than continuously frozen ground during winter―result in more active microbes and greater production of carbon dioxide from deep soils.

The Ecology Under Lake Ice (EULI) project, drawing heavily on data from the North Temperate Lakes LTER Program, present a global study on the importance of microbial activity under ice. Their findings―from over 100 globally-distributed lakes―may help predict the effects of longer ice-free periods on water quality and freshwater fish populations.

In the Southwestern desert, at the Jornada Basin LTER, studies comparing the effects of droughts on plant leaves and roots find that the above-ground portion of desert shrubs recover rapidly from even severe drought, but that plants facing successive droughts lose more and more roots with each incident.

Other NSF LTER-related presentations will deal with coastal sediment transport, the pace of permafrost thaw, mechanisms of salt marsh collapse, approaches to preserving and finding long term data, and the enormous power of engaging across multiple networks.

LTER Graduate Student Meet and Mingle:

The LTER Graduate Student Committee is planning a dinner for students to meet & mingle at AGU. Date is Thursday, Dec. 13th. Keep your eye on the LTER Graduate Student Facebook Group for further details.

• NSF press release on LTER presentations
• Presentations from the Critical Zone Observatories