Cited by 90Fire effects on ecosystemsSoil Carbon and Nitrogen DynamicsMycorrhizal Fungi and Plant Interactions

Fire severity effects on soil carbon and nutrients and microbial processes in a Siberian larch forest

Ludwig, Sarah M., Alexander, Heather D., Kielland, Knut, Mann, Paul J., Natali, Susan M., Ruess, Roger W.·2018·Global Change Biology

Abstract

Fire frequency and severity are increasing in tundra and boreal regions as climate warms, which can directly affect climate feedbacks by increasing carbon (C) emissions from combustion of the large soil C pool and indirectly via changes in vegetation, permafrost thaw, hydrology, and nutrient availability. To better understand the direct and indirect effects of changing fire regimes in northern ecosystems, we examined how differences in soil burn severity (i.e., extent of soil organic matter combustion) affect soil C, nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P) availability and microbial processes over time. We created experimental burns of three fire severities (low, moderate, and high) in a larch forest in the northeastern Siberian Arctic and analyzed soils at 1, 8 days, and 1 year postfire. Labile dissolved C and N increased with increasing soil burn severity immediately (1 day) postfire by up to an order of magnitude, but declined significantly 1 week later; both variables were comparable or lower than unburned soils by 1 year postfire. Soil burn severity had no effect on P in the organic layer, but P increased with increasing severity in mineral soil horizons. Most extracellular enzyme activities decreased by up to 70% with increasing soil burn severity. Increasing soil burn severity reduced soil respiration 1 year postfire by 50%. However, increasing soil burn severity increased net N mineralization rates 1 year postfire, which were 10‐fold higher in the highest burn severity. While fires of high severity consumed approximately five times more soil C than those of low severity, soil C pools will also be driven by indirect effects of fire on soil processes. Our data suggest that despite an initial increase in labile C and nutrients with soil burn severity, soil respiration and extracellular activities related to the turnover of organic matter were greatly reduced, which may mitigate future C losses following fire.

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Crossref · 10.1111/gcb.14455

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  • Intense or repeated fires can alter nutrient concentrations and stoichiometry when compared with unburned sites.

    “Because combustion results in losses of carbon and nitrogen, but not other elements such as phosphorus (Bodi et al., 2014;Butler, Elser, Lewis, Mackey, & Chen, 2018), intense or repeated fires can alter nutrient concentrations and stoichiometry when compared with unburned sites (Ludwig et al., 2018;Pellegrini et al., 2018).”

    From Fire as a fundamental ecological process: Research advances and frontiers (2020) · cites this paper as Ludwig et al., 2018

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Authors
Ludwig, S. M., Alexander, H. D., Kielland, K., Mann, P. J., Natali, S. M., & Ruess, R. W.
Affiliations
  • Woodwell Climate Research Center (US)
  • Mississippi State University (US)
  • University of Alaska Fairbanks (US)
  • Northumbria University (GB)
Corresponding author
Ludwig, Sarah M.
Venue
Global Change Biology
Publisher
Wiley
Published
2018-10-19
Volume
24
Issue
12
Pages
5841-5852
ISSN
  • 1354-1013 (ISSN-L)
  • 1365-2486
OpenAlex
W2891129216
Cited by
90
References
61
Citations by year
2026: 12 · 2025: 10 · 2024: 9 · 2023: 13 · 2022: 18 · 2021: 17 · 2020: 7 · 2019: 1 · 2018: 2
FWCI
3.95
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Locations
  • Global Change Biology (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Northumbria Research Link (Northumbria University) (acceptedVersion)
Funders
  • National Science Foundation (1044610, 1103443, 1304007, 1304040)
  • National Geographic Society
Topics
  • Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Global and Planetary Change › Fire effects on ecosystems
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Soil Science › Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Plant Science › Mycorrhizal Fungi and Plant Interactions
Keywords
fire severity, soil carbon, soil nitrogen, soil phosphorus, soil microbial processes, Siberian larch forests, boreal forest fires, labile dissolved organic carbon, extracellular enzyme activity, soil respiration, net nitrogen mineralization, soil organic matter turnover, post-fire recovery, fire regimes, CO2 emissions
MeSH terms
Nutrients, Arctic Regions, Carbon, Fires, Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Siberia, Soil, Soil Microbiology, Ecosystem, Larix, Climate Change, Forests, Tundra, Permafrost

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