Vegetation structure and soil organic carbon storage across northern forest-tundra ecotones in continuous permafrost
Climate change is altering northern vegetation structure and below-ground carbon storage. Expanding forest and shrub cover has decreased soil organic carbon (SOC) storage in some parts of the forest-tundra ecotone. In this study, we linked measurements of SOC with terrain and vegetation structure de...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Canadian Science Publishing
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Arctic Science |
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| Online Access: | https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/10.1139/as-2024-0048 |
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| author | H. Travers-Smith N.C. Coops T.C. Lantz M. Hamp D. Ignace M.A. Wulder J. van der Sluijs |
| author_facet | H. Travers-Smith N.C. Coops T.C. Lantz M. Hamp D. Ignace M.A. Wulder J. van der Sluijs |
| author_sort | H. Travers-Smith |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Climate change is altering northern vegetation structure and below-ground carbon storage. Expanding forest and shrub cover has decreased soil organic carbon (SOC) storage in some parts of the forest-tundra ecotone. In this study, we linked measurements of SOC with terrain and vegetation structure derived from drone imagery across treelines underlain by continuous permafrost in the Northwest Territories, Canada. We classified sites into three treeline types representing differences in vegetation productivity and topography. Between treeline types, we observed differences in C:N ratios and organic matter depth related to the rate of soil carbon turnover and SOC storage. Overall, SOC showed small positive relationships with tree stem density and average canopy height. We did not find evidence that expanding tree- and shrublines would result in losses of SOC storage in our study area. Instead, topography and landscape drainage patterns, rather than vegetation structure may be more important predictors of SOC storage. We used medium resolution satellite data to extend predictions of treeline type across our study area. The majority of predicted treelines (82%) showed positive relationships between vegetation height and SOC storage. Our findings highlight the value of integrating vegetation structure and landscape features in understanding carbon dynamics in the forest-tundra ecotone. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-438582b5878248eeac54ae7540a9ba89 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2368-7460 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Canadian Science Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Arctic Science |
| spelling | doaj-art-438582b5878248eeac54ae7540a9ba892025-01-30T15:47:37ZengCanadian Science PublishingArctic Science2368-74602025-01-011111810.1139/as-2024-0048Vegetation structure and soil organic carbon storage across northern forest-tundra ecotones in continuous permafrostH. Travers-Smith0N.C. Coops1T.C. Lantz2M. Hamp3D. Ignace4M.A. Wulder5J. van der Sluijs6Department of Forest Resource Management, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, CanadaDepartment of Forest Resource Management, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, CanadaSchool of Environmental Studies, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8W 2Y2, CanadaSchool of Environmental Studies, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8W 2Y2, CanadaDepartment of Forest Resources, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN 55108, USACanadian Forest Service, (Pacific Forestry Centre), Natural Resources Canada, Victoria, BC V8Z 1M5, CanadaNorthwest Territories Centre for Geomatics, Yellowknife, NT, CanadaClimate change is altering northern vegetation structure and below-ground carbon storage. Expanding forest and shrub cover has decreased soil organic carbon (SOC) storage in some parts of the forest-tundra ecotone. In this study, we linked measurements of SOC with terrain and vegetation structure derived from drone imagery across treelines underlain by continuous permafrost in the Northwest Territories, Canada. We classified sites into three treeline types representing differences in vegetation productivity and topography. Between treeline types, we observed differences in C:N ratios and organic matter depth related to the rate of soil carbon turnover and SOC storage. Overall, SOC showed small positive relationships with tree stem density and average canopy height. We did not find evidence that expanding tree- and shrublines would result in losses of SOC storage in our study area. Instead, topography and landscape drainage patterns, rather than vegetation structure may be more important predictors of SOC storage. We used medium resolution satellite data to extend predictions of treeline type across our study area. The majority of predicted treelines (82%) showed positive relationships between vegetation height and SOC storage. Our findings highlight the value of integrating vegetation structure and landscape features in understanding carbon dynamics in the forest-tundra ecotone.https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/10.1139/as-2024-0048soil carbontreelinevegetation structuredroneRemotely Piloted Aircraft SystemLandsat |
| spellingShingle | H. Travers-Smith N.C. Coops T.C. Lantz M. Hamp D. Ignace M.A. Wulder J. van der Sluijs Vegetation structure and soil organic carbon storage across northern forest-tundra ecotones in continuous permafrost Arctic Science soil carbon treeline vegetation structure drone Remotely Piloted Aircraft System Landsat |
| title | Vegetation structure and soil organic carbon storage across northern forest-tundra ecotones in continuous permafrost |
| title_full | Vegetation structure and soil organic carbon storage across northern forest-tundra ecotones in continuous permafrost |
| title_fullStr | Vegetation structure and soil organic carbon storage across northern forest-tundra ecotones in continuous permafrost |
| title_full_unstemmed | Vegetation structure and soil organic carbon storage across northern forest-tundra ecotones in continuous permafrost |
| title_short | Vegetation structure and soil organic carbon storage across northern forest-tundra ecotones in continuous permafrost |
| title_sort | vegetation structure and soil organic carbon storage across northern forest tundra ecotones in continuous permafrost |
| topic | soil carbon treeline vegetation structure drone Remotely Piloted Aircraft System Landsat |
| url | https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/10.1139/as-2024-0048 |
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