RAPID: Invasion of Geoengineering Earthworms in Alaska: Extents, Mechanisms, and Impacts

自从上一次盛冰期以来，地球上几乎所有的北方生物群落都是在没有蚯蚓的情况下进化的。然而，由于人类活动的加剧和世界寒冷地区土地使用的变化，这一现状正在迅速改变。入侵的欧洲蚯蚓现在开始出现在阿拉斯加永久冻土的边缘。在这些入侵蚯蚓中，地球工程蚯蚓包括物理干扰土壤环境的物种。地球工程蚯蚓的入侵是一个不可逆转的过程，导致生态系统功能的迅速恶化，包括土壤碳和养分循环以及动植物生物多样性的减少。早期干预是关键，迫切需要建立阿拉斯加入侵的基本科学知识。在这里，首席研究员建议进行快速评估的分布和主要引进机制的外来蚯蚓在阿拉斯加不同的生态区。这项研究还将揭示入侵蚯蚓在阿拉斯加扰乱北方和苔原土壤的程度。通过与基奈国家野生动物保护区、阿拉斯加大学农业推广站、费尔班克斯和阿拉斯加大学博物馆合作，调查人员将利用这个快速项目作为促进机构、公众、和政策层面的行动，以阻止阿拉斯加州的入侵在其婴儿期-阿拉斯加广阔的北方森林和苔原正日益受到持续气候变化的威胁。全球范围内的气候对土壤生态地球化学的影响，但是，大大加快了引进外来欧洲地球工程蚯蚓。该项目的目标是（1）为即将到来的变化做好紧急准备，（2）促进早期干预，以阻止阿拉斯加的入侵。研究人员试图测试以下假设：1）人类的引入（而不是气候条件）主要限制了阿拉斯加目前的蚯蚓分布; 2）外来地球工程蚯蚓对阿拉斯加土壤的影响比美国邻近地区以前冰川化的温带森林更引人注目; 3)外来地球工程蚯蚓的物种组成在阿拉斯加的人类引入机制不同;和4）蚯蚓入侵北方和苔原的能力取决于他们的人口组成。为了验证这些假设，研究人员将研究在人类干扰地区和周围自然植被之间的界面上的土壤中的蝗虫种群及其对土壤的影响，这些土壤反映了主要的生态区域和气候条件的范围，包括阿拉斯加的永久冻土范围。该RAPID项目将通过重新强调阿拉斯加北极地区对人类土地利用变化和气候变化的脆弱性来促进科学发展。除了同行评审的出版物外，研究人员还将出版一本小册子，帮助土地管理者和公民识别其财产上的外来地球工程蚯蚓，并评估其对阿拉斯加自然植被和土壤的影响。收集到的标本将被保存在阿拉斯加大学博物馆，并将通过博物馆的数据库向更广泛的科学界和公众在线发布特定的信息。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Almost all of Earth's northern biomes have evolved in the absence of earthworms since the last glacial maximum. This status quo is rapidly changing, however, due to advancing human disturbances and land use changes in the cold regions of the world. Invasive European earthworms are now beginning to appear at the edge of Alaskan permafrost. Among these invasive earthworms, geoengineering earthworms include species that physically disturb soil environments. Invasion of geoengineering earthworms is an irreversible process resulting in rapid deterioration of ecosystem functions including soil carbon and nutrient cycling and reduction of floral and faunal biodiversity. Early intervention is key, and it is urgent to establish the underlying scientific knowledge of earthworm invasion in Alaska. Here the principal investigator proposes to conduct rapid assessments of the distribution and primary introduction mechanisms of exotic earthworms across diverse ecoregions in Alaska. This research will also reveal the extents that the invasive earthworms, where present, disturb boreal and tundra soils in Alaska. By collaborating with Kenai National Wildlife Refuge, Agricultural Extension Station of the University of Alaska, Fairbanks, and the University of Alaska Museum, the investigator will leverage this RAPID project as a way to facilitate agency-, public-, and policy-level actions to stop earthworm invasion in Alaska in its infancy - before it is too late to act.The vast boreal forests and tundra of Alaska are increasingly threatened by ongoing climate change. Global scale climate impacts on soil biogeochemistry can, however, be substantially accelerated by increasing introductions of exotic European geoengineering earthworms. The project goal is to (1) urgently prepare research community for this upcoming change and (2) facilitate early intervention to stop earthworm invasion in Alaska. The investigator seeks to test the following hypotheses: 1) human introduction (not climate conditions) primarily limits the current earthworm distribution in Alaska; 2) impacts of exotic geoengineering earthworms on Alaskan soils are more dramatic than those reported for the formerly glaciated temperate forests in the contiguous U.S.; 3) species composition of exotic geoengineering earthworms differs by human introduction mechanisms in Alaska; and 4) earthworms' ability to invade into boreal and tundra depend on their population compositions. To test the hypotheses, the investigator will examine earthworm populations and their impacts on soils at the interfaces between human-disturbed areas and the surrounding natural vegetation at field sites that reflect the major eco-regions and range of climate conditions including extents of permafrost in Alaska. This RAPID project will contribute to advancing science by newly highlighting the vulnerability of the Alaskan Arctic to the combination of both human land use changes and climate change. In addition to peer-reviewed publications, the investigator will publish a booklet that helps land managers and citizens to identify exotic geoengineering earthworms on their properties and assess their impacts on the natural vegetation and soils in Alaska. Collected earthworm specimens will be archived in the University of Alaska Museum, and specimen-specific information will be published online through the Museum's database for the broader scientific community and the public.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.