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Influence of bark beetle outbreaks on nutrient cycling in native pine stands in western Canada

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Abstract

Aims

Using a natural gradient of recent (0–4 years) mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae)-caused mortality in lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta) stands in west central Alberta, Canada, we tested the effects of different levels of tree mortality, and time since bark beetle infestation, on initial abiotic environmental changes, and nutrient inputs and cycling.

Methods

We quantified the impacts of D. ponderosae outbreak on input rates of pine needle litter and nutrients, live root mass (both course and fine), supply rates of plant-available nutrients, and concentrations of total mineral soil phenols.

Results

Pine needle litter, nutrient concentrations, and needle nutrient inputs are all increased as a function of either tree mortality or time since bark beetle infestation. Supply rates of many mineral nutrients increased in soils across gradients of mortality or time. Shallow fine root mass declined by half in response to beetle disturbance; concentrations of soil phenols also shrank by over half, potentially due to increased root losses. Soil phenolics were negatively associated with the supply rate of soil nitrate.

Conclusion

We concluded that the effects of tree mortality on stand biogeochemistry in pine stands with no recorded history of mountain pine beetle is similar to earlier studies conducted in the beetle’s historical range.

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Acknowledgments

This study was made possible by awards through Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada Strategic and Discover grants to NE and JFC; funding sources played no role in the development of the study’s design, or collection, analysis, and interpretation of data, nor the decision to submit this article for publication. We also thank to Canada Research Chairs Program (http://www.chairs-chaires.gc.ca/home-accueil-eng.aspx) for their support NE. We thank Morgan Randall and Brittany Wingert for field assistance, Pak Chow (the University of Alberta) for assistance in the analysis of soil phenolics, Jonathan Bennett for assistance with statistical analyses, and numerous AESRD and Foothills Research Institute staff for assistance with field-site selection. The critical examinations by two anonymous reviewers are greatly appreciated as their comments substantially improved the quality of this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Renewable Resources, 442 Earth Sciences Building, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2E3, Canada

    Paul W. Cigan, Justine Karst & Nadir Erbilgin

  2. Department of Biological Sciences, B717, Biological Sciences Building, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2E9, Canada

    Paul W. Cigan, Justine Karst, James F. Cahill Jr., Alexandra N. Sywenky & Gregory J. Pec

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  1. Paul W. Cigan
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  2. Justine Karst
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  3. James F. Cahill Jr.
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  4. Alexandra N. Sywenky
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  5. Gregory J. Pec
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  6. Nadir Erbilgin
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Nadir Erbilgin.

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Responsible Editor: Jeffrey Walck .

Appendix

Appendix

Table 4

Table 4 Characteristics of forest structure and mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae; MPB) disturbance in lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta var. latifolia Engelm) forests in western Alberta (Canada) by site (means; N = 11)
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Table 5

Table 5 Results from Pearson product-moment correlations to determine the significance and direction of relationships between lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta var. latifolia Engelm) forest structure and soil parameters, and the percentage of basal area killed by, and time since initial infestation of, mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae; MPB) (0–84 % and 0–4 years, respectively)
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Table 6

Table 6 Nutrient concentrations (% dry mass) of lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta var. latifolia Engelm) needles collected in July at 11 sites in western Canada
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Table 7

Table 7 Nutrient inputs (mg m−2 over 84 days) derived from deposition of lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta var. latifolia Engelm) needles at 11 sites in western Canada
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Table 8

Table 8 Mineral soil A-horizon nutrient supply rates of 11 lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta var. latifolia Engelm) sites in western Canada
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Cigan, P.W., Karst, J., Cahill, J.F. et al. Influence of bark beetle outbreaks on nutrient cycling in native pine stands in western Canada. Plant Soil 390, 29–47 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-014-2378-0

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