Succession and climate-change responses of nitrification properties of soils in a glacier foreland in the European High Arctic

2018 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 26304018
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B)
• Allocation Type: Partial Multi-year Fund
• Section: 海外学術
• Research Field: Ecology/Environment
• Research Institution: National Agriculture and Food Research Organization (2016-2018); National Institute for Agro-Environmental Sciences (2014-2015)
• Principal Investigator: Hayashi Kentaro 国立研究開発法人農業・食品産業技術総合研究機構, 農業環境変動研究センター, ユニット長 (70370294)
• Research Collaborator: UCHIDA Masaki ; HAYATSU Masahito ; Loonen Maarten J.J.E. フローニンゲン大学 ; TANABE Yukiko ; ONO Keisuke ; FUJITAKE Nobuhide ; ASANO Maki ; FUJITANI Hirotsugu ; HATTORI Shohei ; SHIROUZU Takashi
• Project Period (FY): 2014-04-01 – 2019-03-31
• Keywords: 硝化 / 高緯度北極 / 氷河後退域 / 窒素循環 / 陸域 / 細菌 / 古細菌 / 鳥類営巣地

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Field survey on nitrification properties (ammonia oxidation potential and flora of ammonia oxidizer) of soils in a glacier foreland was conducted near Ny-Alesund, Svalbard in the European High Arctic. Immature soil in such the High Arctic showed nitrification. Relevant information utilizable for future study was derived, for example, a chronosequence is difficult to be applied such a glacier foreland due to perturbation by melting water and debris, and an open top chamber showed a passive warming effect with an 0.5 deg C increase in the mean soil temperature. Furthermore, talus soils under bird cliffs showed very high nitrification and denitrification potentials with positive temperature responses and in-situ nitrous oxide emissions.

Free Research Field

生物地球化学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

未熟で物質循環が遅いと考えられている高緯度北極の土壌も硝化能を有し，窒素循環の駆動に寄与することが明らかとなった．特に海鳥営巣の影響を受ける有機質土壌はきわめて高い硝化能を示し，また，20℃という現地では起こりがたい高温に対して10℃よりも顕著に高い値を示した．これは，将来の温暖化が高緯度北極土壌の硝化を促進し，窒素循環ひいては生態系の物質循環に大きな影響を及ぼす可能性を示す重要な知見である．