Abstract
Background and aims
Forest soil has numerous ecological functions, some of which are regulated by biogeochemical processes involving trace elements (TEs). However, the accumulation and transport of TEs in remote pure forest ecosystems have been poorly understood to date.
Methods
We investigated the concentrations and pools of Cu, Zn, Cd, Pb, Ni, Cr, Hg, and As in the soil horizons of Qinghai spruce and Qilian juniper forests at various elevations in the central Qilian Mountains, northwest China. The Enrichment Factor and Biogeochemical Index were used to evaluate the ecological security of TEs in forest soils.
Results
The results indicate that the distribution of TEs concentrations in soil horizons of the two forest stands had spatial heterogeneity and element specificity. The TEs pools in the soil horizons of these stands increased with increasing soil depth. Among the elements studied, the total pools of Zn and Cr in the soil of the two stands were the largest, while the Hg and Cd pools were the smallest. Results further demonstrated that the forest ecosystem in the Tianlaochi catchment had large TEs storage, which was higher in Qinghai spruce forest than in Qilian juniper forest.
Conclusions
Forest soils with lower TEs concentrations have higher enrichment degrees and potential ecological risk. Our findings highlight the importance of TEs accumulation in forest soils and warrant more research on their cycling in the region.
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Data availability
The datasets generated during and/or analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.
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This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (32271710, 31901130) and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (lzujbky-2021-64).
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All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection and analysis were performed by Fei Zang, Yi Wu, Yapeng Chang and Li Wang. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Fei Zang and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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Zang, F., Wu, Y., Chang, Y. et al. Understanding trace element reserves and ecological security in remote pure forest ecosystems: a case of the Qilian Mountains, Northwest China. Plant Soil 498, 523–542 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-023-06451-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-023-06451-3