Carbon-mineral interactions along an earthworm ivasion gradient at a sugar maple forest in northern Minnesota

Abstract

The interactions of organic matter and minerals contribute to the capacity of soils to store C. Such interactions may be controlled by the processes that determine the availability of organic matter and minerals, and their physical contacts. One of these processes is bioturbation, and earthworms are the best known organisms that physically mix soils. Earthworms are not native species to areas previously glaciated, and the introduction of earthworms to these regions has been associated with often dramatic changes in soil structure and geochemical cycles. The authors are studying C mineral interaction along an approximately 200 m long earthworm invasion transect in a hardwood forest in northern Minnesota. This transect extends from the soils where earthworms are absent to soils that have been invaded by earthworms for nearly 30-40 years.

Citation

Lyttle, Amy; Yoo, Kyungsoo; Hale, Cindy; Aufdenkampe, Anthony; Sebestyen, Stephen. 2011. Carbon-mineral interactions along an earthworm ivasion gradient at a sugar maple forest in northern Minnesota. Applied Geochemistry. 26: S85-S88.