Journal Staff

Multi-decadal studies of community and ecosystemdynamics are rare; however, this time frame is most relevant for assessing the impact of anthropogenic influences and climate change on ecosystems. For this reason, we investigated changes in vegetation and microtopography over 52 years in two contrasting mire ecosystems, one ombrotrophic (bog) and one minerotrophic (fen), representing different successional stages and contrasting hydrological settings. In both peatlands, floristic composition was recorded in the same permanent plots (n = 55-56, 0.25 m(2)) in both 1960 and 2012 and microtopography was mapped over a large area (ca. 2500 m(2)) that encompassed these same plots. We quantified and compared the community-level changes and internal spatial dynamics, tested associations between pH/microtopography and community/species change, and examined how the area and location of hummock microforms had changed over time. The bog exhibited little site level change in vegetation, where few species changed significantly in cover and plot frequency. However, detailed analyses revealed some large within-plot changes over time in the bog, illustrating that bogs can be highly dynamic systems at a fine scale. In contrast, the rich fen experienced a clear directional change; specifically, bryophyte abundance decreased by 70% and brown mosses were almost extinct. Although pH had decreased over time at the rich fen, this decrease at the plot-level was not associated with the decline of brown moss abundance. The microtopographic structure did not change substantially at the bog where similar to 70% was covered by lawn/hummocks; however, in the rich fen hummocks expanded (from 10% to 16% cover) and moved or expanded down slope. Our study suggests, that at the site-level, the bog ecosystem was more resistant to environmental changes over time compared to the rich fen, as evidenced by shifts in vegetation and microtopography. The contrasting scales of vegetation dynamics observed within a bog (i.e., within-plot changes vs. site-level) indicate that plant-environment feedbacks contribute to the peatland level stability. While in rich fens, internal feedbacks may be weaker and the ecosystem's vegetation and microtopographic structure are vulnerable to shifting hydrological fluxes

The distribution of Cs-137, K, Rb and Cs in plants in a Sphagnum-dominated peatland in eastern central Sweden

We record the distribution of 137Cs, K, Rb and Cs within individual Sphagnum plants (down to 20 cm depth) as well as 137Cs in vascular plants growing on a peatland in eastern central Sweden. In Calluna vulgaris 137Cs was mainly located within the green parts, whereas Andromeda polifolia, Eriophorum vaginatum and Vaccinium oxycoccos showed higher 137Cs activity in roots. Carex rostrata and Menyanthes trifoliata showed variable distribution of 137Cs within the plants. The patterns of 137Cs activity concentration distribution as well as K, Rb and Cs concentrations within individual Sphagnum plants were rather similar and were usually highest in the capitula and/or in the subapical segments and lowest in the lower dead segments, which suggests continuous relocation of those elements to the actively growing apical part. The 137Cs and K showed relatively weak correlations, especially in capitula and living green segments (0–10 cm) of the plant (r ¼ 0.50). The strongest correlations were revealed between 137Cs and Rb (r¼ 0.89), and between 137Cs and stable Cs (r ¼ 0.84). This suggests similarities between 137Cs and Rb in uptake and relocation within the Sphagnum, but that 137Cs differs from K

Melodies...

Double CD album with solo pian