OOS 35
Whether in Life or in Death: Fresh Perspectives on How Plants Affect Biogeochemical Cycling

Thursday, August 14, 2014: 8:00 AM-11:30 AM
204, Sacramento Convention Center
Organizer:
Amy T. Austin, University of Buenos Aires, IFEVA-CONICET
Co-organizer:
Amy E. Zanne, The George Washington University
Moderator:
Melinda D. Smith, Colorado State University
Plant species have been shown to be important in many aspects of biogeochemical cycling, but at the ecosystem scale, plants are often still considered as a photosynthetic ‘green blob’ that assimilate carbon and sessile competitors for nutrients with other organisms. However, recent research has shown that there are many ways in which plant species actively modulate biogeochemical cycling that go beyond the well-studied effects of changes in chemical composition of senescent litter. New perspectives demonstrate that plant species modulate biogeochemical cycling through variation in functional attributes, phylogenetic relationships, stoichiometric flexibility and interactions with beneficial or pathogenic organisms while living and post-senescence in a wide range of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Moreover, the ways in which plants actively respond to a changing biotic and abiotic environment can have important consequences during the lifetime of the plants and in the ‘afterlife’ once these plant tissues have senesced. Finally, dynamic responses of plants to a variety of human impacts including land-use change, elevated CO2 and rising temperatures have opened a wide array of new interesting research avenues to evaluate the importance of plant identity on biogeochemical cycling at the ecosystem scale. This session will present research on some fresh perspectives which broaden our understanding of how plants and the sum of their interactions can modulate biogeochemical cycling.
8:00 AM
8:20 AM
 Seaweeds alter ocean carbon chemistry and carbon access through changes in seawater alkalinity
Courtney C. Stepien, University of Chicago; Catherine A. Pfister, University of Chicago; J. Timothy Wootton, University of Chicago
8:40 AM
9:00 AM
 Plants in the sun: linking controls of photodegradation and plant species on carbon turnover in aridland ecosystems of Patagonia
Amy T. Austin, University of Buenos Aires, IFEVA-CONICET; Patricia I. Araujo, University of Buenos Aires, IFEVA-CONICET; Adelia González-Arzac, University of Buenos Aires, IFEVA-CONICET; M. Soledad Méndez, University of Buenos Aires, IFEVA-CONICET; Carlos L. Ballaré, University of Buenos Aires, IFEVA-CONICET
9:20 AM
 Exploring the importance of time and location - when plant genotypes shape biogeochemical cycling
Aimee T. Classen, University of Tennessee, Knoxville; Samantha K. Chapman, Villanova University; Sara E. Kuebbing, University of Tennessee; Leigh C. Moorhead, University of Tennessee; Quentin D. Read, University of Tennessee; Nathan J. Sanders, The University of Copenhagen
9:40 AM
9:50 AM
 Changes in litter quality and fungal physiology enhance negative effect of simulated nitrogen addition on litter decay
Linda T.A. Van Diepen, University of New Hampshire; Eric W. Morrison, University of New Hampshire; Christopher M. Sthultz, University of Minnesota, Crookston; Anne Pringle, Harvard University; Serita D. Frey, University of New Hampshire
10:10 AM
 Tree species effects on belowground biogeochemistry in diverse tropical rain forests
Sasha C. Reed, U.S. Geological Survey; Cory C. Cleveland, University of Montana; Alan R. Townsend, University of Colorado at Boulder
10:30 AM
 Nutrients and vertebrate herbivores interact to control global grassland productivity
Elizabeth T. Borer, University of Minnesota; John L. Orrock, University of Wisconsin - Madison; Eric W. Seabloom, University of Minnesota; Nutrient Network, Multiple Institutions
10:50 AM
 Biogeochemical impacts of phytoplankton community structure and their alteration by global change stressors
Elena Litchman, Michigan State University; Paula de Tezanos Pinto, University of Buenos Aires; Christopher A. Klausmeier, Michigan State University; Colin T. Kremer, Yale University; Mridul K. Thomas, Michigan State University
11:10 AM
 Geomorphic control and temporal variability of Alnus-derived nutrients: Implications for aquatic ecosystem resilience
Denise A. Devotta, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Jennifer M. Fraterrigo, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Patrick Walsh, US Fish and Wildlife Service; Feng Sheng Hu, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign