The University of Arizona

The ecological trajectories of Biosphere 2 biomes through time

The linkages between ecological structure, community organization, and ecosystem function are among the central questions in ecology. The nature of these connections is particularly important in the face of global changes such as species invasions and climate change. Biosphere 2 provides the opportunity to investigate questions related to the organization of ecological communities and ecosystem functions through time. Previous detailed analyses of ecological characteristics of the B2 biomes provide an excellent baseline from which to conduct new surveys. Analysis of newly collected and integrated data sets will contribute to an understanding of the evolution of these model systems through time. Additionally, evaluation of the successional patterns in B2 biomes can indicate the degree of confidence we can have in them as analogs for real world systems.

Current projects:

Soil surveys to investigate changes in the soil chemical, physical, and microbiological properties

A supplemental study was conducted in 2009 in conjunction with the EEB IGERT in genomics to investigate soil microbial genomic signatures of community structure and diversity.  Samples were collected in the tropical rain forest and desert, additional samples were collected from the “cattle tank” off-site that was used to initially construct the rain forest soils. Physical and chemical characteristics of the soil have been analyzed; DNA has been extracted from soil samples and is awaiting further analysis and interpretation.

For questions contact Katerina Dontsova dontsova@email.arizona.edu or Mitchell Pavao-Zuckerma mzucker@email.arizona.edu.

Characterization of litter dynamics

A combination of litter fall traps and leaf decomposition studies will investigate litter dynamics in the rainforest, savannah, and desert biomes.  Study design will mimic that used in previous studies at B2 in the early 1990s, allowing us to see how litter dynamics have changed following years of soil and community development.

For questions contact Mitchell Pavao-Zuckerma mzucker@email.arizona.edu.