bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
North Atlantic Oscillation signatures in aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems—a meta‐analysis
Authors: Blenckner Thorsten , Hillebrand Helmut 
Published: March 2003

AbstractClimate variations over the Northern Hemisphere are to a substantial proportion associated with the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO). Recently, many studies revealed the impacts of the NAO on the dynamics of organisms in different ecosystems but the results in the single studies were inconsistent. Here, we used meta‐analysis techniques for a quantitative synthesis of results. We tested the influence of the NAO on the timing of life history events, on biomass of organisms, and on biomass of different trophic levels. We found a clear NAO signature in freshwater, marine, and terrestrial ecosystems. The response of life history events to the NAO was similar in all environments but less pronounced at higher latitudes. The magnitude of the biomass response was significantly related to the NAO, either positively in aquatic or negatively in terrestrial ecosystems. The response depended on longitude, the effect being less pronounced in Eastern Europe. The results stressed that a meta‐analysis is a valuable tool in the field of climate‐driven ecosystem responses and can identify more general ecological responses than single studies. We recommend the inclusion of nonsignificant results in order to archive an objective view of the strength of NAO and climate impacts in general.
Foliar resistance to simulated extreme temperature events in contrasting plant functional and chorological types
Authors: GURVICH DIEGO E. , DÍAZ SANDRA , FALCZUK VALERIA , HARGUINDEGUY NATALIA PÉREZ‐ , CABIDO MARCELO , THORPE P. CHRISTOPHER 
Published: March 2003

AbstractWe analysed leaf resistance of 41 Angiosperms belonging to a wide range of plant functional (PFTs) and chorological types (PCTs) to simulated frost and high‐temperature extreme events (EE). Leaf resistance was estimated as percentage of membrane electrolyte leakage under heating and freezing treatments in the lab.Leaf resistance to heating or freezing was not significantly correlated with the main resource‐use characteristics that defined PFTs, such as leaf specific area, toughness, N concentration or thickness. Leaf resistance to heating differed among PFTs (graminoids and bromeliads were the more resistant groups), but not among PCTs. In contrast, leaf resistance to freezing significantly differed among PCTs. Along a steep regional climatic gradient, climate variables (annual mean temperature, mean minimum temperature, mean maximum temperature and number of frost‐free months) at the locations where the given species were most abundant were also significantly correlated with freezing resistance. Species from colder habitats both at the sub‐continental and regional scales showed the highest leaf resistance to freezing. Our work indicates that leaf resistance to climatic EE and resource‐use strategy (assessed in previous studies) represent two different, partially decoupled axes of plant specialisation. It also suggests that changes in the frequency of very low temperature events might have regional‐scale impacts on vegetation, whereas changes in the frequency of very high temperature events might have more influence at the local scale.
Effects of climate change on labile and structural carbon in Douglas‐fir needles as estimated by δ13C and Careameasurements
Authors: HOBBIE ERIC A. , GREGG JILLIAN , OLSZYK DAVID M. , RYGIEWICZ PAUL T. , TINGEY DAVID T. 
Published: March 2003

AbstractModels of photosynthesis, respiration, and export predict that foliar labile carbon (C) should increase with elevated CO2but decrease with elevated temperature. Sugars, starch, and protein can be compared between treatments, but these compounds make up only a fraction of the total labile pool. Moreover, it is difficult to assess the turnover of labile carbon between years for evergreen foliage. Here, we combined changes in foliar Carea(C concentration on an areal basis) as needles aged with changes in foliar isotopic composition (δ13C) caused by inputs of13C‐depleted CO2to estimate labile and structural C in needles of different ages in a four‐year, closed‐chamber mesocosm experiment in which Douglas‐fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii(Mirb.) Franco) seedlings were exposed to elevated temperature (ambient + 3.5 °C) and CO2(ambient + 179 ppm). Declines inδ13C of needle cohorts as they aged indicated incorporation of newly fixed labile or structural carbon. Theδ13C calculations showed that new C was 41 ± 2% and 28 ± 3% of total needle carbon in second‐ and third‐year needles, respectively, with higher proportions of new C in elevated than ambient CO2chambers (e.g. 42 ± 2% vs. 37 ± 6%, respectively, for second‐year needles). Relative to ambient CO2, elevated CO2increased labile C in both first‐ and second‐year needles. Relative to ambient temperature, elevated temperature diminished labile C in second‐year needles but not in first‐year needles, perhaps because of differences in sink strength between the two needle age classes. We hypothesize that plant‐soil feedbacks on nitrogen supply contributed to higher photosynthetic rates under elevated temperatures that partly compensated for higher turnover rates of labile C. Strong positive correlations between labile C and sugar concentrations suggested that labile C was primarily determined by carbohydrates. Labile C was negatively correlated with concentrations of cellulose and protein. Elevated temperature increased foliar %C, possibly due to a shift of labile constituents from low %C carbohydrates to relatively high %C protein. Decreased sugar concentrations and increased nitrogen concentrations with elevated temperature were consistent with this explanation. Because foliar constituents that vary in isotopic signature also vary in concentrations with leaf age or environmental conditions, inferences ofci/cavalues fromδ13C of bulk leaf tissue should be done cautiously. Tracing of13C through foliar carbon pools may provide new insight into foliar C constituents and turnover.
Effects of elevated CO2 and cutting frequency on plant community structure in a temperate grassland
Authors: Teyssonneyre Florence , Picon‐cochard Catherine , Falcimagne Robert , Soussana Jean‐François 
Published: March 2003

AbstractMonoliths of a fertile, N limited, C3 grassland community were subjected (or not) to an atmospheric CO2 enrichment (600 µmol mol‐‐1) using a Mini‐FACE system, from August 1998 to June 2001 and were subjected to two contrasting cutting frequencies (3 and 6 cuts per year). We report here the effects of the CO2 and cutting frequency factors on the plant community structure and its diversity.Species‐specific responses to elevated CO2 and cutting frequency were observed, which resulted in significant changes in the botanical composition of the grassland monoliths. Elevated CO2 significantly increased the proportion of dicotyledones (forbs + legumes) and reduced that of the monocotyledones (grasses). Management differentiated this response as elevated CO2 increased the proportion of forbs when infrequently and of legumes when frequently defoliated. However, among the two dominant forbs species only one was significantly enhanced by elevated CO2. Moreover, not all grass species responded negatively to high CO2. At a low cutting frequency, the observed decline under ambient CO2 in species diversity (Shannon‐Weaver index) and in forb species number was partly alleviated by elevated CO2.This experiment shows that the botanical composition of temperate grasslands is likely to be affected by the current rise (+ 0.5% per year) in the atmospheric CO2 concentration, and that grassland management guidelines may need to be adapted to a future high CO2 world.
Site and temporal variation of soil respiration in European beech, Norway spruce, and Scots pine forests
Authors: BORKEN WERNER , XU YI‐JUN , DAVIDSON ERIC A. , BEESE FRIEDRICH 
Published: March 2003

AbstractGlobal warming and changes in rainfall amount and distribution may affect soil respiration as a major carbon flux between the biosphere and the atmosphere. The objectives of this study were to investigate the site to site and interannual variation in soil respiration of six temperate forest sites. Soil respiration was measured using closed chambers over 2 years under mature beech, spruce and pine stands at both Solling and Unterlüß, Germany, which have distinct climates and soils. Cumulative annual CO2fluxes varied from 4.9 to 5.4 Mg C ha−1 yr−1at Solling with silty soils and from 4.0 to 5.9 Mg C ha−1 yr−1at Unterlüß with sandy soils. With one exception soil respiration rates were not significantly different among the six forest sites (site to site variation) and between the years within the same forest site (interannual variation). Only the respiration rate in the spruce stand at Unterlüß was significant lower than the beech stand at Unterlüß in both years. Soil respiration rates of the sandy sites at Unterlüß were limited by soil moisture during the rather dry and warm summer 1999 while soil respiration at the silty Solling site tended to increase. We found a threshold of −80 kPa at 10 cm depth below which soil respiration decreased with increasing drought. Subsequent wetting of sandy soils revealed high CO2effluxes in the stands at Unterlüß. However, dry periods were infrequent, and our results suggest that temporal variation in soil moisture generally had little effect on annual soil respiration rates. Soil temperature at 5 cm and 10 cm depth explained 83% of the temporal variation in soil respiration using the Arrhenius function. The correlations were weaker using temperature at 0 cm (r2 = 0.63) and 2.5 cm depth (r2 = 0.81). MeanQ10values for the range from 5 to 15 °C increased asymptotically with soil depth from 1.87 at 0 cm to 3.46 at 10 cm depth, indicating a large uncertainty in the prediction of the temperature dependency of soil respiration. Comparing the fitted Arrhenius curves for same tree species from Solling and Unterlüß revealed higher soil respiration rates for the stands at Solling than in the respective stands at Unterlüß at the same temperature. A significant positive correlation across all sites between predicted soil respiration rates at 10 °C and total phosphorus content and C‐to‐N ratio of the upper mineral soil indicate a possible effect of nutrients on soil respiration.
Methane (CH4) release from littoral wetlands of Boreal lakes during an extended flooding period
Authors: JUUTINEN SARI , ALM JUKKA , LARMOLA TUULA , HUTTUNEN JARI T. , MORERO MICAELA , SAARNIO SANNA , MARTIKAINEN PERTTI J. , SILVOLA JOUKO 
Published: March 2003

AbstractLake littoral zones have a transitional nature and dynamic conditions, which are reflected in their CH4 emissions. Thus, detailed studies are needed to assess the littoral CH4 emissions in a regional scale. In this study, CH4 fluxes were followed during the ice‐free seasons in 1998 and 1999 by using the static chamber method in the littoral zone of two lakes in Finland. An exceptionally high water level in 1998 caused an unusually long inundation in otherwise ephemerally flooded zone. The flooding was normal in year 1999. The factors controlling CH4 emissions were examined and statistical response functions were constructed. Further, the effect of extended flooding on the littoral CH4 budged was estimated. The methane flux was primarily regulated by the water level in grass and sedge dominated eulittoral zone, but not in infralittoral reed and water lily stands. Methane emissions in the sedge dominated zone decreased significantly, when the flood was high enough to submerge the venting structures of the plants. Besides water level, sediment temperature determined CH4 emission. The cumulative CH4 emissions from the whole littoral wetlands in wet year were 1.1 times (L. Kevätön), or 0.61 and 0.79 times (L. Mekrijärvi) those in dry year. The crucial factor was the discrepancy between the exceptional and the average water level. The extension of inundated area does not necessarily increase CH4 emissions if the flood reaches infrequently inundated areas, which apparently have low CH4 production potential. This is the case especially, if the emissions in lower zones simultaneously decrease due to high water level. Our study analyses these complex responses between CH4 emissions and water level.
Implications of nitrogen fertilizer applications and extended grazing for the N economy of grassland
Authors: Laidlaw  , Watson  , Mayne  
Published: March 2003

The response of swards which have been previously grazed to N fertilizer applied in early February was studied in two experiments in Northern Ireland. The effect of N fertilizer applied at a range of dates in autumn and spring on swards for out‐of‐season utilization was studied in a further experiment. Deep soil coring was also undertaken, subsequent to grazing with dairy cows, in grazed and protected areas in November and March to investigate the effect of out‐of‐season grazing on soil mineral N levels.Dry‐matter (DM) yield response to early spring N application in previously grazed swards was low, with no effect on DM yield in February or March. Progressively delaying N application (and commencement of herbage accumulation) in autumn from 8 September until 18 October reduced herbage availability in late autumn and early spring but increased leaf lamina content. The greater the amount of herbage accumulated to 1 December, the lower the tiller density in the following April.N fertilizer had a greater impact on soil mineral N in spring than in late autumn/early winter, suggesting that fertilizer N was more prone to loss in the latter. Soil mineral N was not significantly affected by out‐of‐season grazing.It is concluded that in well‐fertilized, previously grazed swards response to N for out‐of‐season herbage is low and the probability for N loss is increased. Herbage quality will decline and the sward may be damaged if about 2 t DM ha−1 or more of harvestable herbage accumulates for use in winter or in early spring.
Differences in the nitrogen use efficiency of perennial ryegrass varieties under simulated rotational grazing and their effects on nitrogen recovery and herbage nitrogen content
Authors: Wilkins  , Allen  , Mytton  
Published: March 2003

Eight varieties of perennial ryegrass (six new varieties and two old ones) grown at five levels of applied fertilizer (100, 200, 300, 400 and 500 kg of N ha–1) were cut monthly during two growing seasons (March to October in 1997 and 1998) and their herbage dry‐matter (DM) yield and nitrogen (N) content were determined. Herbage leaf content and the N content of young fully expanded leaves were also measured in 1997, and monthly recovery of applied N was determined in both the first and second harvest years by using 15N.The rank order of varieties was similar for annual yield of DM and N at all five fertilizer levels. Proportional differences between varieties in DM yield were greatest in the first cut of each year, the late‐heading candidate variety Ba12151 out‐yielding the old late‐heading variety S23 by more than 70%. However, differences in annual DM yield were much more modest than in early spring yield, up to 10% in 1997 and up to 21% in 1998. The relatively small differences in total annual DM yield were attributed to only a small proportion of the applied N being recovered during a single regrowth period, most of the remainder becoming available for uptake in subsequent regrowth periods.There were small but highly statistically significant differences among varieties in the N content of their leaves, leaf N content being inversely related to yield of DM and N. This lends further support to the hypothesis that the metabolic cost of protein synthesis and turnover is a key factor controlling genetic variation both in leaf yield and in annual DM and N yield under frequent harvesting. Seasonal variation in herbage N content was much greater than differences among varieties in mean N content over all harvests. In May of both years at all applied fertilizer levels, herbage N content fell below the 20 g N kg–1 DM level required by productive grazing animals.
The effect of a silage additive and level of concentrate supplementation on silage intake, animal performance and carcass characteristics of finishing beef cattle
Authors: Agnew  , Carson  
Published: March 2003

An experiment was carried out to examine silage fermentation, effluent production and aerobic stability in unwilted grass silage, which was either ensiled without additive or with a commercially available blend of ammonium hexamethanoate, ammonium hexapropionate and octanoic acid (6 l t−1, Maxgrass, BP Chemicals Ltd., Northwich, UK) and to determine alternative approaches to obtaining the same performance in finishing beef cattle.Seventy‐two Limousin × Friesian and Charolais × Friesian steers (mean initial live weight 424 kg s.d. 28·3) were blocked into groups of nine according to live weight and previous performance and offered silage, either with or without the additive, and supplemented with 0, 1·5, 3·0 or 4·5 kg d−1 of a concentrate with a crude protein content of 150 g kg−1 DM or allocated to a pre‐experimental slaughter group to enable calculation of daily carcass gain. Daily silage intakes were recorded for 112 days. At the end of the experiment, all cattle were slaughtered and daily carcass gain, omental, mesenteric, perinephric and retroperitoneal fat depots [kidney‐knob and channel fat (KKCF)], fatness, conformation, subcutaneous fat depth over M. longissimus dorsi muscle and carcass fat, protein and bone contents were assessed.Across all levels of supplementation, cattle offered the silage with the additive showed significantly (P < 0·001) higher daily DM intakes than those offered the silage without additive. Cattle offered the silage with the additive but unsupplemented had significantly (P < 0·001) higher daily carcass gains than those offered the silage without additive and unsupplemented. The response in carcass gain was 76 and 35 g kg−1 additional concentrate for the silages with and without the additive respectively.
Advanced analysis of dry‐weight‐rank data to discriminate direct and indirect interactions between white clover and grasses in a multi‐species pasture under a range of management strategies
Authors: Schulte R. P. O. , Neuteboom J. H. 
Published: March 2003

AbstractInfestations of pastures by species, such as creeping bentgrass (Agrostis stolonifera), may compromise the white clover (Trifolium repens) content in perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) mixtures. However, the interactions between white clover and species other than perennial ryegrass are not well understood. Strategies to prevent creeping bentgrass infestations require an understanding of its interactions with white clover, as the exclusion of white clover from infested pastures could be the result of either direct interaction or niche‐differentiation in response to management. A methodology is presented which enables the segregation of the effects of direct interaction and niche‐differentiation, based on existing dry‐weight‐rank measurements of a number of experimental pastures, subjected to a range of management strategies.Only between the two management extremities, i.e. permanent cutting of silage and lax grazing for long periods, did niche‐differentiation occur between white clover and creeping bentgrass. The white clover content was enhanced under the cutting regime, whereas lax grazing for long periods stimulated the content of creeping bentgrass. White clover was actively excluded from creeping‐bentgrass‐dominated patches by direct interaction, whereas it showed a high compatibility with perennial ryegrass. This direct interaction presents challenges to the prevention of creeping bentgrass by management, as creeping bentgrass and white clover showed nearly identical requirements in terms of environmental conditions and grassland management.
The long‐term effects on upland sheep production in the UK of a change to extensive management
Authors: Barthram G. T. , Marriott C. A. , Common T. G. , Bolton G. R. 
Published: March 2003

AbstractExtensification (a reduction in fertilizer inputs and stocking rate of grassland) is seen as one way of increasing the conservation value and of reducing the environmental impact of upland sheep production in the UK, but little is known about the consequences of such a change. This study determines the changes in animal production over ten years following the introduction of four extensive grazing management strategies to perennial ryegrass/white clover pastures at two upland sites. Fertilizer‐free treatments were maintained with sward heights of: 4 cm (treatment 4/4U) or 8 cm (8/8U) during the whole of the grazing year, 4 cm during summer and 8 cm during autumn (4/8U) and 8 cm during summer and 4 cm during autumn (8/4U). A control treatment that received 140 kg N ha−1 year−1 was also maintained with a sward surface height of 4 cm (4/4F). Scottish Blackface sheep grazed all treatments.The 4/4F treatment carried the greatest number of animals (3746 grazing days ha−1 year−1); the 4/4U and the 8/8U treatments carried 0·73 and 0·43 of this number respectively. The number on the 4/8U treatment was similar to that on the 4/4U while the 8/4U treatment carried 1·41 of that on the 8/8U treatment (0·61 of 4/4F). Mean individual animal performance was greatest on the 8 cm swards and tended to be lowest on the 4/4F treatment. However, the 4/4F treatment produced the greatest live weight of lamb (623 kg ha−1 year−1) with the 4/4U producing 0·77, and the 8/8U producing 0·55, of this amount. Although there was year‐to‐year variation in agricultural output, it was concluded that the lower levels of sheep production that result from a change to extensive systems of grazing management can be maintained for at least 10 years.
Use of regrowth for forage in crops of timothy (Phleum pratense L.) cv. Grindstad grown for seed in Norway
Authors: Havstad L. T. , Aamlid T. S. 
Published: March 2003

AbstractSix experiments were carried out in two climatically different regions in south‐east Norway in order to compare different procedures for autumn management and use of regrowth in seed crops of timothy (Phleum pratense L.) cv. Grindstad. The experiments were laid out after seed harvest in mid‐August in crops with a stubble height of 5 cm (two experiments) or 12–15 cm (four experiments). Cutting to 5 cm on 15 September or 15 October, with or without an application of 50 kg N ha−1 immediately after seed harvest, and with or without an additional application of 30 kg N ha−1 after cutting, were compared with an uncut and unfertilized control treatment. As a main effect,autumn cutting increased seed yield in the subsequent year in only one experiment; this was laid out in a 13 cm stubble on a fertile soil near the coast. In the remaining five experiments seed yields were unaffected byautumn management regardless of climate or stubble height. Autumn cutting and N application increased the number of seedheads in two experiments, but this was offset by a drop in other seed yield components.On average for two cutting dates and for plots receiving an application of 50 kg N ha−1 after seed harvest, the dry matter (DM) was 1430 kg ha−1 on an inland site with 12–15 cm stubble, 1400 kg ha−1 on a coastal site with 5 cm stubble and 2460 kg ha−1 for two coastal sites with 12–15 cm stubble. Whereas forage yield and quality were fairly stable from the first to the second cut at the inland site, the yield of DM increased, but the crude protein and energy concentrations decreased from 15 September to 15 October at the coastal sites. It is concluded that the stubble and regrowth in seed crops of timothy cv. Grindstad can be harvested for forage without any effect on seed yield in the next year.