Doctoral Dissertation Research: The Changing Face of the Andean Peatlands: The Effects of Climate and Human Disturbance on Ecosystem Structure and Function

泥炭地储存了全球土壤碳的近30%，相当于全球27年的碳排放量。泥炭地生态系统在正常情况下具有正的碳积累平衡，但全球变暖可能会将这些生态系统从净汇转变为碳源。全球变化对热带山脉的影响程度与对北方森林的影响程度相同。这些变化缩小了冰川的范围，并将不同的植被类型推升，包括被称为帕拉莫的热带高山地区。安第斯泥炭地被认为比全球变化更受当地环境条件的影响，但它们与北方泥炭地之间的功能相似性表明，安第斯泥炭地比之前认为的更容易受到全球变化的影响。安第斯泥炭地的功能和结构几乎是未知的，本博士论文研究项目旨在通过回答四个问题在北方泥炭地的概念框架中定位安第斯泥炭形成的植被。1)不同的泥炭植物群落在海拔、降水和人类干预梯度上的分布是什么？2)安第斯山脉形成泥炭的植被与其环境条件有什么关系？3)安第斯山脉形成泥炭的植被在过去200年中是否有明显的碳平衡变化？4)在过去200年中观察到的泥炭物种组成的变化是否与过去200年的环境变化有关？对泥炭形成的植被的调查将在24个不同海拔、不同降水条件和不同人类活动的地点进行。从每个地点采集的岩心将显示泥炭功能和结构在过去200年中变化的证据，而年代学将使用铅-210放射性衰变来控制。目前形成泥炭的群落与其环境条件之间的关系为在人类干预和全球变化的背景下确定和再现北安第斯森林、气候和环境最近的变化提供了框架。这项研究始于一个可行的假设，即安第斯泥炭地与北方泥炭地的联系比之前认为的更密切。北安第斯山脉的高山生态系统，或称帕洛莫斯，具有高度的地方性，为当地社区提供多种生态服务。安第斯山脉的泥炭地调节着安第斯国家近40%的人口使用的水流；然而，在气候变化和人类干预的背景下，它们的命运是未知的。这项研究将模拟这些变化的程度，并为即将到来的改进计划提供基础科学。了解安第斯山脉的高海拔泥炭地使我们有机会将我们的研究超越科学限制，将所获得的知识回报给当地社区，并培训当地科学家进行泥炭地植被科学方面的培训。

Peatlands store nearly thirty percent of global soil carbon, an amount equivalent to twenty-seven years of global carbon emissions. Peatland ecosystems have a positive balance of carbon accumulation under normal conditions, but global warming could turn these ecosystems from net sinks to sources of carbon. Global changes are affecting tropical mountains in the same degree as they are affecting boreal forests. These changes have reduced the extent of the glaciers and pushed the different vegetation types upward, including the tropical alpine region known as paramo. Andean peatlands have been considered to be more affected by local environmental conditions than global changes, but the functional similarity between them and boreal peatlands indicates that Andean peatlands are more susceptible to global changes than previously thought. The function and structure of Andean peatlands are almost unknown and this doctoral dissertation research project aims to locate the Andean peat-forming vegetation in the conceptual framework of boreal peatlands by answering four questions. 1) What is the distribution of the different peat-forming plant communities across elevation, precipitation, and human intervention gradients? 2) What is the relationship between peat-forming vegetation in the Andes and their environmental conditions? 3) Are there observable changes in the carbon balance of the Andean peat-forming vegetation in the last 200 years? 4) Are the changes in species composition observed in the peat related to environmental changes in the last 200 years? Surveys of the peat-forming vegetation will be carried out in twenty-four sites at different elevations, conditions of precipitation, and human activity. Cores taken from each site will show evidence of the changes in peat function and structure during the last 200 years, while the chronology will be controlled using lead-210 radioactive decaying. The relationship between the current peat-forming communities and their environmental conditions provide the framework to identify and recreate recent changes in the Northern-Andean forests climate and environment in the context of human intervention and global change. The research begins with a working hypothesis that Andean peatlands are more connected to boreal peatlands than previously thought. The alpine ecosystems in the Northern Andes, or paramos, have high levels of endemism and provide multiple ecological services to local communities. Peatlands in the Andes regulate water flow used by nearly forty percent of the population in Andean countries; however their fate in the context of climate change and human intervention is unknown. This research will model the extent of these changes and provide basic science for the oncoming amelioration programs. Understanding the high elevation peatlands in the Andes give us the opportunity to project our research beyond the scientific limits and return the knowledge acquired to the local communities, as well as training of local scientists in peatland vegetation science.