Abstract
Background and aims: Permafrost degradation has the potential to change the Arctic tundra landscape. We observed rapid local thawing of ice-rich permafrost resulting in thaw pond formation, which was triggered by removal of the shrub cover in a field experiment. This study aimed to examine the rate of permafrost thaw and the initial vegetation succession after the permafrost collapse. Methods: In the experiment, we measured changes in soil thaw depth, plant species cover and soil subsidence over nine years (2007–2015). Results: After abrupt initial thaw, soil subsidence in the removal plots continued indicating further thawing of permafrost albeit at a much slower pace: 1 cm y−1 over 2012–2015 vs. 5 cm y−1 over 2007–2012. Grass cover strongly increased after the initial shrub removal, but later declined with ponding of water in the subsiding removal plots. Sedges established and expanded in the wetter removal plots. Thereby, the removal plots have become increasingly similar to nearby ‘natural’ thaw ponds. Conclusions: The nine years of field observations in a unique shrub removal experiment at a Siberian tundra site document possible trajectories of small-scale permafrost collapse and the initial stage of vegetation recovery, which is essential knowledge for assessing future tundra landscape changes.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 147-162 |
Number of pages | 16 |
Journal | Plant and Soil |
Volume | 420 |
Issue number | 1-2 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 1 Nov 2017 |
Funding
Acknowledgements This study is financed by the Darwin Center for Biogeosciences (grant 142.16.3052), Wageningen Institute for Environment and Climate Research (WIMEK), the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO-ALW, grant 864.09.014) and EU-INTERACT (European Union Seventh Framework Programme, grant 262693). We kindly thank Alexander Kononov and other staff of the IBPC institute, Yakutsk, and staff of the Regional Inspection of Nature Protection of Allaikhovsky Region, Chokurdakh, for logistic support and Luca Belelli Marchesini for providing the meteorological data of the Kytalyk field station.
Funders | Funder number |
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Darwin Center for Biogeosciences | 142.16.3052 |
EU-INTERACT | |
European Union Seventh Framework Programme | 262693 |
NWO-ALW | 864.09.014 |
Regional Inspection of Nature Protection of Allaikhovsky Region | |
WIMEK | |
Wageningen Institute for Environment and Climate Research | |
Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek |
Keywords
- Arctic tundra
- Betula nana
- Permafrost degradation
- Thermokarst
- Vegetation dynamics