Assessing the Linkages between Tree Species Composition and Stream Water Nitrate in a Reference Watershed in Central Appalachia

• Published in: Forests 2021-08, Vol.12 (8), p.1116
• Main Authors: Burnham, Mark B., Christ, Martin J., Adams, Mary Beth, Peterjohn, William T.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Acer saccharum; Ammonium; Composition; Deposition; Forest ecosystems; Forests; Leaching; nitrate export; Nitrates; Nitrification; Nitrogen; nitrogen cycle; nitrogen uptake; Plant species; Retention; Species composition; Stream water; Terrestrial ecosystems; Trees; Trends; watershed biogeochemistry; Watersheds
• ISSN: 1999-4907; 1999-4907
• DOI: 10.3390/f12081116

Many factors govern the flow of deposited nitrogen (N) through forest ecosystems and into stream water. At the Fernow Experimental Forest in WV, stream water nitrate (NO3−) export from a long-term reference watershed (WS 4) increased in approximately 1980 and has remained elevated despite more recent reductions in chronic N deposition. Long-term changes in species composition may have altered forest N demand and the retention of deposited N. In particular, the abundance and importance value of Acer saccharum have increased since the 1950s, and this species is thought to have a low affinity for NO3−. We measured the relative uptake of NO3− and ammonium (NH4+) by six important temperate broadleaf tree species and estimated stand uptake of total N, NO3−, and NH4+. We then used records of stream water NO3− and stand composition to evaluate the potential impact of changes in species composition on NO3− export. Surprisingly, the tree species we examined all used both mineral N forms approximately equally. Overall, the total N taken up by the stand into aboveground tissues increased from 1959 through 2001 (30.9 to 35.2 kg N ha−1 yr−1). However, changes in species composition may have altered the net supply of NO3− in the soil since A. saccharum is associated with high nitrification rates. Increases in A. saccharum importance value could result in an increase of 3.9 kg NO3−-N ha−1 yr−1 produced via nitrification. Thus, shifting forest species composition resulted in partially offsetting changes in NO3− supply and demand, with a small net increase of 1.2 kg N ha−1 yr−1 in NO3− available for leaching. Given the persistence of high stream water NO3− export and relatively abrupt (~9 year) change in stream water NO3− concentration circa 1980, patterns of NO3− export appear to be driven by long-term deposition with a lag in the recovery of stream water NO3− after more recent declines in atmospheric N input.