Nitrogen isotopes reveal high N retention in plants and soil of old Norse and Inuit deposits along a wet-dry arctic fjor
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Nitrogen isotopes reveal high N retention in plants and soil of old Norse and Inuit deposits along a wet-dry arctic fjord transect in Greenland Emil Alexander Sherman Andersen & Anders Michelsen & Rasmus Fenger-Nielsen & Jørgen Hollesen & Per Lennart Ambus & Bo Elberling Received: 11 December 2019 / Accepted: 17 August 2020 # Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
Abstract Aims Plant growth in the Arctic is often nutrient limited due to temperature constraints on decomposition and low atmospheric input of nitrogen (N). Local hotspots of nutrient enrichment found in up to 4000-year-old archaeological deposits can be used to explore the recycling and long-term retention of nutrients in arctic ecosystems. Responsible Editor: Xinhua He. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-020-04683-1) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. E. A. S. Andersen : A. Michelsen : R. Fenger-Nielsen : P. L. Ambus : B. Elberling (*) Center for Permafrost (CENPERM), Department of Geosciences and Natural Resource Management, University of Copenhagen, Øster Voldgade 10, DK-1350 Copenhagen K, Denmark e-mail: [email protected] E. A. S. Andersen (*) : A. Michelsen Terrestrial Ecology Section, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark e-mail: [email protected] R. Fenger-Nielsen : J. Hollesen Environmental Archaeology and Materials Science, The National Museum of Denmark, IC Modewegsvej, Brede, DK-2800 Lyngby, Denmark
Methods We investigated old Inuit and Norse deposits (known as middens) and adjacent tundra ecosystems along a wet-dry fjord gradient in western Greenland to explore the isotopic fingerprinting of plant and soil carbon and nitrogen (13C/12C and 15N/14N) derived from human presence. Results At all locations we observed a significant isotopic fingerprint in soil and plant N related to human deposits. This demonstrates a century-long legacy of past human habitation on plant and soil characteristics and indicates a surprisingly high N retention in these ecosystems. This is consistent with the significantly higher plant biomass in areas with archaeological deposits. Conclusion Vegetation composition and N in plants and soils displayed marked differences along the wetdry fjord gradient. Furthermore, the profound nutrient enrichment and organic matter accumulation in archaeological deposits compared to surrounding tundra demonstrates a century-long legacy of past habitation on plant and soil characteristics as well as efficient N cycling with surprisingly limited N loss. Keywords Archaeological remains . Low Arctic . Soil chemistry . Stable isotopes . Vegetation
Introduction Present Address: E. A. S. Andersen Climate Impacts Research Centre (CIRC), Department of Ecology and Environmental Science, Umeå University, Abisko, Sweden
The cold climate, short growing season, and low nutrient availability due to temperature constraints on decomposition are important factors limiti
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