Journal article
Moss-cyanobacteria associations as biogenic sources of nitrogen in boreal forest ecosystems
Frontiers in microbiology, Vol.4, 150
2013
PMCID: PMC3683619
PMID: 23785359
Abstract
The biological fixation of atmospheric nitrogen (N) is a major pathway for available N entering ecosystems. In N-limited boreal forests, a significant amount of N-2 is fixed by cyanobactena living in association with mosses, contributing up to 50% to the total N input. In this review, we synthesize reports on the drivers of N-2 fixation in feather moss-cyanobacteria associations to gain a deeper understanding of their role for ecosystem-N-cycling. Nitrogen fixation in moss-cyanobacteria associations is inhibited by N inputs and therefore, significant fixation occurs only in low N-deposition areas. While it has been shown that artificial N additions in the laboratory as well as in the field inhibit N-2 fixation in moss-cyanobacteria associations, the type, as well as the amounts of N that enters the system, affect N-2 fixation differently. Another major driver of N-2 fixation is the moisture status of the cyanobactena-hosting moss, wherein moist conditions promote N-2 fixation. Mosses experience large fluctuations in their hydrological status, undergoing significant natural drying and reweffing cycles over the course of only a few hours, especially in summer, which likely compromises the N input to the system via N-2 fixation. Perhaps the most central question, however, that remains unanswered is the fate of the fixed N-2 in mosses. The cyanobacteria are likely to leak N, but whether this N is transferred to the soil and if so, at which rates and timescales, is unknown. Despite our increasing understanding of the drivers of N-2 fixation, the role moss-cyanobacteria associations play in ecosystem-N-cycling remains unresolved. Further, the relationship mosses and cyanobacteria share is unknown to date and warrants further investigation.
Details
- Title
- Moss-cyanobacteria associations as biogenic sources of nitrogen in boreal forest ecosystems
- Authors/Creators
- Kathrin Rousk - Bangor UniversityDavey L. Jones - Bangor UniversityThomas H. DeLuca - University of Washington
- Publication Details
- Frontiers in microbiology, Vol.4, 150
- Publisher
- Frontiers Media Sa
- Number of pages
- 10
- Grant note
- NE/I027150/1 / UK Natural Environment Research Council; UK Research & Innovation (UKRI); Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)
- Identifiers
- 991005560325807891
- Copyright
- © 2013 Rousk et al.
- Murdoch Affiliation
- Centre for Sustainable Farming Systems
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Journal article
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