Collaborative Research: The Role of Wind Erosion in Ecosystem Change in Desert Grasslands

干旱和半干旱土地退化的特点是植被生产减少或重新分配，同时伴有土壤资源的类似减少或重新分配。风蚀是解释伴随土地退化的土壤肥力变化的一种机制。了解风成过程对干旱和半干旱地区土壤和植被的影响，对于我们理解当前对系统动力学的控制以及面对不断变化的环境条件预测未来的动力学至关重要。研究人员将在Jornada盆地LTER站点进行大规模综合田间试验，研究风蚀、植被覆盖、土壤养分和植物功能之间的关系。该研究将提高对风成过程在荒漠植物-土壤相互作用中的作用、非生物运输在土壤斑块演变中的作用以及尘传养分的来源和汇的认识。

Arid and semiarid land degradation is characterized by the reduction or redistribution of vegetative production, accompanied by a similar reduction or redistribution of soil resources. Wind erosion is one mechanism that accounts for changes in soil fertility that accompany land degradation. Understanding the effects of aeolian processes on soils and vegetation in arid and semiarid lands is vital to our understanding of current controls on system dynamics as well as to predict future dynamics in the face of changing environmental conditions. The Investigators will conduct large-scale, integrated field experiments at the Jornada Basin LTER site that address the relationship between wind erosion, vegetative cover, soil nutrients, and plant function. The research will improve the understanding of the role of aeolian processes in plant-soil interactions in deserts, the role of abiotic transport in the evolution of soil patchiness, and the sources and sinks of dustborne nutrients.