Exploration of remotely sensed forest structure and ultrasonic range sensor metrics to improve empirical snow models

Current methods to estimate snow accumulation and ablation at the plot and watershed levels can be improved as new technologies offer alternative approaches to more accurately monitor snow dynamics and their drivers. Here we conduct a meta‐analysis of snow and vegetation data collected in British Columbia to explore the relationships between a wide range of forest structure variables – obtained from Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR), hemispherical photography (HP) and Landsat Thematic Mapper – and several indicators of snow accumulation and ablation estimated from manual snow surveys and ultrasonic range sensors. By merging and standardizing all the ground plot information available in the study area, we demonstrate how LiDAR‐derived forest cover above 0.5 m was the variable explaining the highest percentage of absolute peak snow water equivalent (SWE) (33%), while HP‐derived leaf area index and gap fraction (45° angle of view) were the best potential predictors of snow ablation rate (explaining 57% of variance). This study reveals how continuous SWE data from ultrasonic sensors are fundamental to obtain statistically significant relationships between snow indicators and structural metrics by increasing mean r² by 20% when compared to manual surveys. The relationships between vegetation and spectral indices from Landsat and snow indicators, not explored before, were almost as high as those shown by LiDAR or HP and thus point towards a new line of research with important practical implications. While the use of different data sources from two snow seasons prevented us from developing models with predictive capacity, a large sample size helped to identify outliers that weakened the relationships and suggest improvements for future research. A concise overview of the limitations of this and previous studies is provided along with propositions to consistently improve experimental designs to take advantage of remote sensing technologies, and better represent spatial and temporal variations of snow. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The response in floodplain respiration of an alpine river to experimental inundation under different temperature regimes

The respiratory potential [i.e. electron transport system activity (ETSA)] of soils and sediments from five floodplain habitats (channel, gravel, islands, riparian forest and grassland) of the Urbach River, Switzerland, and actual respiration rate (R) of the same samples exposed to experimental inundation were measured. Measurements were carried out at three incubation temperatures (4°C, 12°C and 20°C), and ETSA/R ratios (i.e. exploitation of the overall metabolic capacity) were investigated to better understand the effects of temperature and inundation on floodplain functional heterogeneity. Furthermore, ETSA/R ratios obtained during experimental inundation were compared with ETSA/R ratios from field measurements to investigate the exploitation in total metabolic potential at different conditions. Lowest ETSA and R were measured in samples from channel and gravel habitats, followed by those from islands. Substantially higher values were measured in soils from riparian forest and grassland. Both ETSA and R increased with increasing temperature in samples from all habitats, while the ETSA/R ratio decreased because of a rapid response in microbial community respiration to higher temperatures. The metabolic capacity exploitation (i.e. ETSA/R) during experimental inundation was lowest in predominantly terrestrial samples (riparian forest and grassland), indicating the weakest response to wetted conditions. Comparison of experimentally inundated and field conditions revealed that in rarely flooded soils, the metabolic capacity was less exploited during inundation than during non‐flooded conditions. The results suggest high sensitivity in floodplain respiration to changes in temperature and hydrological regime. ETSA/R ratios are considered good indicators of changes in metabolic activity of floodplain soils and sediments, and thus useful to estimate the impact of changes in hydrological regime or to evaluate success of floodplain restoration actions. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Bismuth‐melt trails trapped in cassiterite–quartz veins

Native bismuth in the form of metallic melt has been considered instrumental to the formation of some metallic ore deposits via a mechanism dubbed the “Liquid Bismuth Collector Model.” Here, we provide petrographical documentation of trail‐forming, μm‐sized blebs of native bismuth in cassiterite–quartz veins from the Santa Bárbara greisen Sn deposit in the Rondônia tin province of northern Brazil. These inclusions suggest the trapping of a Bi melt that took place during vein formation, in a mechanism similar to the entrapment of fluid inclusions.     

Short‐ and long‐term evapotranspiration rates at ecological restoration sites along a large river receiving rare flow events

Many large rivers around the world no longer flow to their deltas, due to ever greater water withdrawals and diversions for human needs. However, the importance of riparian ecosystems is drawing increasing recognition, leading to the allocation of environmental flows to restore river processes. Accurate estimates of riparian plant evapotranspiration (ET) are needed to understand how the riverine system responds to these rare events and achieve the goals of environmental flows. In 2014, historic environmental flows were released into the Lower Colorado River at Morelos Dam (Mexico); this once perennial but now dry reach is the final stretch to the mighty Colorado River Delta. One of the primary goals was to supply native vegetation restoration sites along the reach with water to help seedlings establish and boost groundwater levels to foster the planted saplings. Patterns in ET before, during, and after the flows are useful for evaluating whether this goal was met and understanding the role that ET plays in this now ephemeral river system. Here, diurnal fluctuations in groundwater levels and Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data were used to compare estimates of ET specifically at 3 native vegetation restoration sites during 2014 planned flow events, and MODIS data were used to evaluate long‐term (2002–2016) ET responses to restoration efforts at these sites. Overall, ET was generally 0–10 mm d^?1 across sites, and although daily ET values from groundwater data were highly variable, weekly averaged estimates were highly correlated with MODIS‐derived estimates at most sites. The influence of the 2014 flow events was not immediately apparent in the results, although the process of clearing vegetation and planting native vegetation at the restoration sites was clearly visible in the results.     

Carbon fluxes through major phytoplankton groups during the spring bloom and post-bloom in the Northwestern Mediterranean Sea

The carbon flux through major phytoplankton groups, defined by their pigment markers, was estimated in two contrasting conditions of the Northwestern Mediterranean open ocean ecosystem: the spring bloom and post-bloom situations (hereafter Bloom and Post-bloom, respectively). During Bloom, surface chlorophyll a (Chl a) concentration was higher and dominated by diatoms (53% of Chl a), while during Post-bloom Synechococcus (42%) and Prymnesiophyceae (29%) became dominant. The seawater dilution technique, coupled to high pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis of pigments and flow cytometry (FCM), was used to estimate growth and grazing rates of major phytoplankton groups in surface waters. Estimated growth rates were corrected for photoacclimation based on FCM-detected changes in red fluorescence per cell. Given the 30% average decrease in the pigment content per cell between the beginning and the end of the incubations, overlooking photoacclimation would have resulted in a 0.40 d^?1 underestimation of phytoplankton growth rates. Corrected average growth rates (μ_o) were 0.90±0.20 (SD) and 0.40±0.14 d^?1 for Bloom and Post-bloom phytoplankton, respectively. Diatoms, Cryptophyceae and Synechococcus were identified as fast-growing groups and Prymnesiophyceae and Prasinophyceae as slow-growing groups across Bloom and Post-bloom conditions. The higher growth rate during Bloom was due to dominance of phytoplankton groups with higher growth rates than those dominating in Post-bloom. Average grazing rates (m) were 0.58±0.20 d^?1 (SD) and 0.31±0.07 d^?1. The proportion of phytoplankton growth consumed by microzooplankton grazing (m/μ_o) tended to be lower in Bloom (0.69±0.34) than in Post-bloom (0.80±0.08). The intensity of nutrient limitation experienced by phytoplankton indicated by μ_o/μ_n (where μ_n is the nutrient-amended growth rate), was similar during Bloom (0.78) and Post-bloom (0.73). Primary production from surface water (PP) was estimated with ¹⁴C incubations. A combination of PP and Chl a synthesis rate yielded C/Chl a ratios of 34±21 and 168±75 (g:g) for Bloom and Post-bloom, respectively. Transformation of group-specific Chl a fluxes into carbon equivalents confirmed the dominant role of diatoms during Bloom and Synechococcus and Prymnesiophyceae during Post-bloom.     

Coastal Occupations in Tierra del Fuego,Southernmost South America: A Late Holocene Hunter‐Gatherer Context at Marazzi 2

This paper focuses on the late Holocene occupation of hunter‐gatherers at the Marazzi 2 site located on the northwestern steppe of Tierra del Fuego, Chile. Our aim is to understand stratigraphy, formation processes, and pedogenesis with respect to human occupation over the last 3000 years. Based on archaeological excavations on a fluvial terrace of the Torcido River, we integrate soil micromorphology, mineralogy, geochemistry, magnetic susceptibility, and geomorphology, as well as the micro‐ and macrofrequency distributions of archaeological material. A micro‐taphonomical perspective is also applied to anthropogenic components recorded in sedimentary thin sections. We discuss various events in the interplay between soil development and human occupation through time. Marazzi 2 was witness to aggradation and pedogenesis with an episode of surface stability coincident with a phase of more intense human occupation at about 860 BC. Taphonomic analysis suggests that there are multiple occupation events mixed together, probably by biomechanical processes, resulting in a palimpsest with poor temporal resolution.