Biological soil crusts: diminutive communities of potential global importance

Ferrenberg, Scott; Tucker, Colin L.; Reed, Sasha C.

doi:10.1002/fee.1469

Title: Biological soil crusts: diminutive communities of potential global importance

Journal Article · Mon Mar 13 00:00:00 EDT 2017 · Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1002/fee.1469· OSTI ID:1533175

Ferrenberg, Scott ^[1]; Tucker, Colin L. ^[1]; Reed, Sasha C. ^[1]

US Geological Survey, Moab, UT (United States)

Biological soil crusts (biocrusts) are widespread, diverse communities of cyanobacteria, fungi, lichens, and mosses living on soil surfaces, primarily in drylands. Biocrusts can locally govern primary production, soil fertility, hydrology, and surface energy balance, with considerable variation in these functions across alternate community states. Further, these communities have been implicated in Earth system functioning via potential influences on global biogeochemistry and climate. Biocrusts are easily destroyed by disturbances and appear to be exceptionally vulnerable to warming temperatures and altered precipitation inputs, signaling possible losses of dryland functions with global change. Despite these concerns, we lack sufficient spatiotemporal data on biocrust function, cover, and community structure to confidently assess their ecological roles across the extensive dryland biome. Here, we present the case for cross‐scale research and restoration efforts coupled with remote‐sensing and modeling approaches that improve our collective understanding of biocrust responses to global change and the ecological roles of these diminutive communities at global scales.

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Research Organization:: USGS Western Region, Menlo Park, CA (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE Office of Science (SC)

Grant/Contract Number:: SC0008168; DESC‐0008168

OSTI ID:: 1533175

Alternate ID(s):: OSTI ID: 1401283

Journal Information:: Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, Vol. 15, Issue 3; ISSN 1540-9295

Publisher:: Ecological Society of America (ESA)Copyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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Cited by: 73 works

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Biocrusts benefit from plant removal Dettweiler-Robinson, Eva; Sinsabaugh, Robert L.; Rudgers, Jennifer A. American Journal of Botany, Vol. 105, Issue 7 https://doi.org/10.1002/ajb2.1120	journal	July 2018
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Life in interstitial space: Biocrusts inhibit exotic but not native plant establishment in semi‐arid grasslands Slate, Mandy L.; Callaway, Ragan M.; Pearson, Dean E. Journal of Ecology, Vol. 107, Issue 3 https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.13117	journal	December 2018
Biocrust science and global change Reed, Sasha C.; Delgado‐Baquerizo, Manuel; Ferrenberg, Scott New Phytologist, Vol. 223, Issue 3 https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.15992	journal	May 2019
Patterns of longer-term climate change effects on CO ₂ efflux from biocrusted soils differ from those observed in the short term Darrouzet-Nardi, Anthony; Reed, Sasha C.; Grote, Edmund E. Biogeosciences, Vol. 15, Issue 14 https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-4561-2018	journal	January 2018
Differences in structure of northern Australian hypolithic communities according to location, rock type, and gross morphology P. Guenther, Susannah; S. Gibb, Karen AIMS Microbiology, Vol. 4, Issue 3 https://doi.org/10.3934/microbiol.2018.3.469	journal	January 2018

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