C-RUI: Calcium Depletion in Adirondack Forests Affected by Acid Deposition and its Effect on Aquatic and Terrestrial Food Chains

酸沉积已经改变了世界各地水生和陆地环境的结构和功能，其中最著名的是纽约州的阿迪朗达克山区。某些营养物质的损失，特别是钙的损失，是酸沉积改变生态系统的重要机制。该项目将研究土壤和地表水中钙的有效性如何影响受酸沉积影响的地区的生物。同时，该项目将估计阿迪朗达克地区已获得历史数据的土壤化学参数的变化。该项目以营养相互作用为重点，将检查对酸沉积具有不同敏感性的流域内的环境条件，并控制土壤和溪流中钙的可用性。这项研究将集中在凋落物分解、土壤无脊椎动物、森林中的哺乳动物食虫动物和溪流中的细菌、藻类和无脊椎动物。该项目将进一步关注酸性水的间歇性脉冲作为影响社区结构和功能的干扰的作用。通过研究酸沉积对阿迪朗达克地区的短期和长期影响，这项工作将能够为了解这一复杂生态系统的可持续性、退化和恢复潜力提供关键信息。更广泛地说，这项研究的结果将帮助美国和世界上其他受酸沉积影响地区的研究人员估计，随着化石燃料排放的污染物负荷随着时间的推移而改善，森林生态系统的化学和生物恢复潜力。高露洁大学和阿尔弗雷德大学生物学、地质学和环境科学专业的本科生将参与这项工作，以实质性的方式为项目做出贡献，并向科学界和公众展示成果。计划中的外展项目将为当地科学教师提供机会，通过积极参与科学研究和让自己的学生参与这一过程，了解更多关于酸沉积及其生态后果的知识。因此，该项目有望向年轻人（其中一些人可能成为未来的科学家）灌输对酸沉积、其生态后果和科学研究性质的更深入理解。欲了解更多信息，请访问http://crui.colgate.edu。

Acid deposition has changed the structure and function of aquatic and terrestrial environments around the world, including notably the Adirondack Mountain Region (Adirondacks) of New York State. The loss of certain nutrients, particularly calcium, is an important mechanism by which acid deposition changes ecosystems. This project will study how calcium availability in soils and surface waters affects organisms in areas impacted by acid deposition. Concurrently, the project will estimate changes in the chemical parameters of soils at sites in the Adirondacks for which historical data has been obtained.Focusing on trophic interactions, the project will examine ambient conditions within watersheds with different sensitivities to acid deposition and manipulate the availability of calcium in soils and streams. The study will focus on litter decomposition, soil invertebrates, and mammalian insectivores in forests and bacteria, algae, and invertebrates in streams. This project will further focus on the role of episodic pulses of acidic water as disturbances affecting community structure and function. By studying both the short- and long-term effects of acid deposition in the Adirondacks, this work will be able to provide information critical to understanding the sustainability, degradation and recovery potential of this complex ecosystem. More broadly, results from this study will aid researchers in the U.S., and other areas around the world impacted by acid deposition, to estimate the potential for chemical and biological recovery of forested ecosystems as pollutant loadings from fossil fuel emissions ameliorate over time.Undergraduate students in the biology, geology, and environmental science programs at Colgate and Alfred universities will be involved in this work, contributing to the project in substantial ways and presenting results to the scientific community and the public. The planned outreach programs will provide opportunities for local science teachers to learn more about acid deposition and its ecological consequences, by actively engaging in scientific research themselves and involving their own students in the process. Thus, the project will hopefully instill a greater understanding of acid deposition, its ecological consequences, and the nature of scientific research in young adults, some of whom may be future scientists. For more information, visit http://crui.colgate.edu.