Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Net carbon exchange and evapotranspiration in postfire and intact sagebrush communities in the Great Basin

  • Ecosystem Ecology
  • Published:
Oecologia Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Invasion of non-native annuals across the Intermountain West is causing a widespread transition from perennial sagebrush communities to fire-prone annual herbaceous communities and grasslands. To determine how this invasion affects ecosystem function, carbon and water fluxes were quantified in three, paired sagebrush and adjacent postfire communities in the northern Great Basin using a 1-m3 gas exchange chamber. Most of the plant cover in the postfire communities was invasive species including Bromus tectorum L., Agropyron cristatum (L.) Gaertn and Sisymbrium altissimum L. Instantaneous morning net carbon exchange (NCE) and evapotranspiration (ET) in native shrub plots were greater than either intershrub or postfire plots. Native sagebrush communities were net carbon sinks (mean NCE 0.2–4.3 μmol m−2 s−1) throughout the growing season. The magnitude and seasonal variation of NCE in the postfire communities were controlled by the dominant species and availability of soil moisture. Net C exchange in postfire communities dominated by perennial bunchgrasses was similar to sagebrush. However, communities dominated by annuals (cheatgrass and mustard) had significantly lower NCE than sagebrush and became net sources of carbon to the atmosphere (NCE declined to −0.5 μmol m−2 s−1) with increased severity of the summer drought. Differences in the patterns of ET led to lower surface soil moisture content and increased soil temperatures during summer in the cheatgrass-dominated community compared to the adjacent sagebrush community. Intensive measurements at one site revealed that temporal and spatial patterns of NCE and ET were correlated most closely with changes in leaf area in each community. By altering the patterns of carbon and water exchange, conversion of native sagebrush to postfire invasive communities may disrupt surface-atmosphere exchange and degrade the carbon storage capacity of these systems.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Anderson EW (1986) A guide for estimating cover. Rangelands 8:236–238

    Google Scholar 

  • Angell R, Svejcar T (1999) A chamber design for measuring net CO2 exchange on rangeland. J Range Manag 52:27–31

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Angell RF, Svejcar T, Bates J, Saliendra NZ, Johnson DA (2001) Bowen ratio and closed chamber carbon dioxide flux measurements over sagebrush steppe vegetation. Agric For Meteorol 108:153–161

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Arnone JA, Obrist D (2003) A large daylight geodesic dome for quantification of whole-ecosystem CO2 and water vapour fluxes in arid shrublands. J Arid Environ 55:629–643

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Black RA, Mack RN (1986) Mount St. Helens ash: recreating its effects on the steppe environment and ecophysiology. Ecology 67:1289–1302

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blank RR, Allen F, Young JA (1994) Extractable anions in soils following wildfire in a sagebrush–grass community. Soil Sci Soc Am J 58:564–570

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bonan GB (1999) Frost Followed the Plow: Impacts of Deforestation on the Climate of the United States. Ecol Appl 9:1305–1315

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bremer DJ, Ham JM (1999) Effect of spring burning on the surface energy balance in a tallgrass prairie. Agric For Meteorol 97:43–54

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bremer DJ, Ham JM, Owensby CE, Knapp AK (1998) Responses of soil respiration to clipping and grazing in a tallgrass prairie. J Environ Qual 27:1539–1548

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Busch DE, Smith SD (1995) Mechanisms associated with decline of woody species in riparian ecosystems of the southwestern U.S. Ecol Monogr 65:347–370

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Campbell GS, Harris GA (1977) Water relations and water use patterns for Artemisia tridentata Nutt. in wet and dry years. Ecology 58:652–659

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chapin FS (2003) Effects of plant traits on ecosystem and regional processes: a conceptual framework for predicting the consequences of global change. Ann Botany 91:455–463

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chapin FS, Walker BH, Hobbs RJ, Hooper DU, Lawton JH, Sala O, Tilman D (1997) Biotic control over the functioning of ecosystems. Science 277:500–504

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Chapin FS, Zavaleta ES, Eviner VT, Naylor RL, Vitousek PM, Reynolds HL, Hooper DU, Lavorel S, Sala OE, Hobbie SE, Mack MC, Diaz S (2000) Consequences of changing biodiversity. Nature 405:234–242

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Charley JL, West NE (1975) Plant-induced soil chemical patterns in some shrub-dominated semi-desert ecosystems of Utah. J Ecol 63:945–963

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Cunningham GL, Strain BR (1969) An ecological significance of seasonal leaf variability in a desert shrub. Ecology 50:100–408

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • D’Antonio CM, Vitousek PM (1992) Biological invasions by exotic grasses, the grass/fire cycle, and global change. Annu Rev Ecol Syst 23:63–87

    Google Scholar 

  • DePuit EJ, Caldwell MM (1973) Seasonal pattern of net photosynthesis of Artemisia tridentata. Am J Bot 60:426–435

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dugas WA, Hicks RA, Gibbens RP (1996) Structure and function of C-3 and C-4 Chihuahuan Desert plant communities. Energy balance components. J Arid Environ 34:63–79

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Eastman JL, Coughenour MB, Pielke SRA (2001) The regional effects of CO2 and landscape change using a coupled plant and meteorological model. Global Change Biol 7:797–815

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Frasier GW, Cox JR (1994) Water balance in pure stand of Lehmann lovegrass. J Range Manag 47:373–378

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gilmanov TG, Johnson DA, Saliendra NZ (2003) Growing season CO2 fluxes in a sagebrush-steppe ecosystem in Idaho: bowen ration/energy balance measurements and modeling. Basic Appl Ecol 4:167–183

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Halvorson JJ, Bolton H, Smith JL (1997) The pattern of soil variables related to Artemisia tridentata in a burned shrub-steppe site. Soil Sci Soc Am J 61:287–294

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ham JM, Knapp AK (1998) Fluxes of CO2, water vapor, and energy from a prairie ecosystem during the seasonal transition from carbon sink to carbon source. Agric For Meteorol 89:1–14

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Harris GA (1967) Some competitive relationships between Agropyron spicatum and Bromus tectorum. Ecol Monogr 37:89–111

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Holmes TH, Rice KJ (1996) Patterns of Growth and Soil-water utilization in some exotic annuals and native perennial bunchgrasses of California. Ann Botany 78:233–243

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hooper DU, Vitousek PM (1997) The effects of plant composition and diversity on ecosystem processes. Science 277:1302–1305

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hooper DU, Cardon ZG, Chapin III FS, Durant M (2002) Corrected calculations for soil and ecosystem measurements of CO2 flux using the LI-COR 6200 portable photosynthesis system. Oecologia, pp 1–18

  • Houghton RA (1999) The annual net flux of carbon to the atmosphere from changes in land use 1850–1990. Tellus 51B:298–313

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Huenneke LF, Anderson JP, Remmenga M, Schlesinger H (2002) Desertification alters patterns of aboveground net primary production in Chihuahuan ecosystems. Global Change Biol 8:247–264

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kolb KJ, Sperry JS (1999) Differences in drought adaptation between subspecies of sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata). Ecology 80:2373–2384

    Google Scholar 

  • Lacey JR, Olson BE (1991) Environmental and economic impacts of noxious range weeds. In: James LF, Evans JO, Ralphs MH, Child RD (eds) noxious range weeds. Westview, San Francisco, pp 5–16

    Google Scholar 

  • Law BE, Falge E, Gu L, Baldocchi DD, Bakwin P, Berbigier P, Davis K, Hollinger D, Janssens IA, Jarvis P, Jensen NO, Katul G, Mahli Y, Matteucci G, Meyers T, Monson R, Munger W, Oechel W, Olson RA, Pilegaard K, Paw U KT, Thorgeirsson H, Valentini R, Verma S, Vesala T, Wilson K, Wofsy S (2002) Environmental controls over carbon dioxide and water vapor exchange of terrestrial vegetation. Agric For Meteorol 113:97–120

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • LeCain DR, Morgan JA, Schuman GE, Reeder JD, Hart RH (2000) Carbon exchange rates in grazed and ungrazed pastures of Wyoming. J Range Manag 53:199–206

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • LeCain DR, Morgan JA, Schuman GE, Reeder JD, Hart RH (2002) Carbon exchange and species composition of grazed pastures and exclosures in thes hortgrass steppe of Colorado. Agric, Ecosyst Environ 93:421–435

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Link SO, Gee GW, Thiede ME, Beedlow PA (1990) Response of a shrub-steppe ecosystem to fire: Soil water and vegetational change. Arid Soil Res Rehabil 4:163–172

    Google Scholar 

  • Mack RN (1981) Invasion of Bromus tectorum L. into western North America: An ecological chronicle. Agro-Ecosyst 7:145–165

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Melgoza G, Nowak RS, Tausch RJ (1990) Soil water exploitation after fire: competition between Bromus tectorum (cheatgrass) and two native species. Oecologia 83:7–13

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Miller RF, Shultz LM (1987) Development and longevity of ephemeral and perennial leaves on Artemisia tridentata Nutt. ssp. wyomingensis. Great Basin Nat 47:227–230

    Google Scholar 

  • Obrist D, DeLucia EH, Arnone III JA (2003) Consequences of wildfire on ecosystem CO2 and water vapour fluxes in the Great Basin. Global Change Biol 9:563–574

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Obrist D, Yakir D, Arnone III JA (2004) Temporal and spatial patterns of soil water following wildfire-induced changes in plant communities in the Great Basin in Nevada, USA. Plant Soil 262:1–12

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Pellant M (1994) History and Applications of the Intermountain Greenstripping Program. In: proceedings-ecology and management of annual rangelands, General Technical Report INT-GTR-313 edn. USDA Forest Service, Intermountain Research Station

  • Raich JW, Schlesinger WH (1992) The global carbon dioxide flux in soil respiration and its relationship to vegetation and climate. Tellus 44B:81–89

    Google Scholar 

  • Sala A, Smith SD, Devitt DA (1996) Water use by Tamarix ramosissima and associated phreatophytes in a Mojave desert floodplain. Ecol Appl 6:888–898

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schlesinger WH, Reynolds JF, Cunningham GL, Huenneke LF, Jarrell WM, Virginia RA, Whitford WG (1990) Biological feedbacks in global desertification. Science 247:1043–1048

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Schlesinger WH, Raikes JA, Hartley AE, Cross AF (1996) On the spatial pattern of soil nutrients in desert ecosystems. Ecology 77:364–374

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shukla J, Nobre C, Sellers P (1990) Amazon deforestation and climate change. Science 247:1322–1325

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Sims PL, Bradford JA (2001) Carbon dioxide fluxes in a southern plains prairie. Agric For Meteorol 109:117–134

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Smith WK, Kelly RD, Welker JM, Fahnestock JT, Reiners WA, Hunt ER (2003) Leaf-to-aircraft measurements of net CO2 exchange in sagebrush steppe ecosystem. J Geophys Res 108:4122–4155

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tilman D, Knops J, Wedin D, Reich P, Ritchie M, Siemann E (1997) The influence of functional diversity and composition on ecosystem processes. Science 277:1300–1302

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Vitousek PM, Walker LR (1989) Biological invasion by myrica faya in hawai’i: plant demography, nitrogen fixation, ecosystem effects. Ecol Monogr 59:247–265

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vourlitis GL, Oechel WC, Hastings SJ, Jenkins MA (1993) A system for measuring in situ CO2 and CH4 flux in unmanaged ecosystems: an arctic example. Funct Ecol 7:369–379

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wylie BK, Johnson DA, Laca E, Saliendra NZ, Gilmanov TG, Reed BC, Tieszen LL, Worstell BB (2003) Calibration of remotely sensed, coarse resolution NDVI to CO2 fluxes in a sagebrush-steppe ecosystem. Remote Sens Environ 85:243–255

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Young JA, Evans RA (1978) Population dynamics after wildfires in sagebrush grasslands. J Range Manag 31:283–289

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Young JA, Evans RA, Major J (1972) Alien plants in the Great Basin. J Range Manag 25:194–201

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Young JA, Evans RA, Eckert RE Jr, Kay BL (1987) Cheatgrass Rangelands 9:266–270

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

We gratefully acknowledge G. Bollero for assistance with the experimental design and statistical analyses, S.P. Long for his guidance in calculating gas-exchange fluxes, D. Schorran for technical assistance in calibration and operation of field equipment, and E. Barrett, L. Beers, R. Bergin, C. Bowman, K. Reodica, J. Rosta, L. Sotoodeh, L. Tarnay, M. Van, H. Weatherly and B. Williams for invaluable logistical support. We thank O. Dermody, R. Knepp, A. Leakey, D. Moore, J. Tang and anonymous reviewers for thoughtful criticisms of the manuscript. This research was funded by grants from the International Arid Lands Consortium (Project 00R-05 and 02R-03), with additional support provided by the University of Illinois Graduate College and the Francis M. and Harlie M. Clark Research Support Grant.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Plant Biology, University of Illinois, 505 S. Goodwin Ave, Urbana, IL, 61801, USA

    Margaret R. Prater & Evan H. DeLucia

  2. Division of Earth and Ecosystem Sciences, Desert Research Institute, Reno, NV, USA

    Daniel Obrist & John A. Arnone III

Authors
  1. Margaret R. Prater
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Daniel Obrist
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. John A. Arnone III
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Evan H. DeLucia
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Evan H. DeLucia.

Additional information

Communicated by Jim Ehleringer

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Prater, M.R., Obrist, D., Arnone, J.A. et al. Net carbon exchange and evapotranspiration in postfire and intact sagebrush communities in the Great Basin. Oecologia 146, 595–607 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-005-0231-0

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-005-0231-0

Keywords

Search

Navigation