Short-term experimental flooding impacts soil biogeochemistry but not aboveground vegetation in a coastal forest
Abstract
Rising sea levels and intensifying storms increase flooding pressure on coastal forests, triggering tree mortality, ecosystem transitions, and changes to the coastal carbon cycle. However, the mechanisms that drive coastal forest mortality remain elusive due to the complex interplay between belowground and aboveground processes during flooding disturbances and limitations of observations typically reported in coastal forest mortality studies. We used an ecosystem-scale manipulation to simulate hurricane-level flooding of a coastal forest and explore the individual and interactive impacts of inundation and salinity. Monitoring real-time soil conditions and tree physiological responses, we observed consistent impacts on soil biogeochemistry aligned with belowground drivers of tree mortality, but no consistent responses in aboveground vegetation immediately following flooding. Our findings provide empirically based insight into the earliest stages of a hypothesized forest mortality spiral and offer critical benchmarks for predicting coastal forest resilience in the face of accelerating climate change.
Article Details
Journal Info
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
National Academy of Sciences
Authors (25)
Peter Regier
Marine and Coastal Research Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Ben Bond-Lamberty
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Nicholas Ward
Marine and Coastal Research Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Vanessa Bailey
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Roberta Bittencourt Peixoto
University of Toledo
Fausto Machado-Silva
University of Toledo
Nate McDowell
Kendalynn A. Morris
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Allison Myers-Pigg
Marine and Coastal Research Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Stephanie C. Pennington
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Mizanur Rahman
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Roy Rich
Smithsonian Environmental Research Center
Richard W. Smith
Global Aquatic Research LLC
Stephanie J. Wilson
Smithsonian Environmental Research Center
Stella C. Woodard
Global Aquatic Research LLC
Alice Stearns
Smithsonian Environmental Research Center
Donnie Day
University of Toledo
Kennedy Doro
University of Toledo
Efemena Emmanuel
University of Toledo
Charlotte Grossiord
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Anya Hopple
Smithsonian Environmental Research Center
Olawale Ogunsola
University of Toledo
Kaizad Patel
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Evan Phillips
Smithsonian Environmental Research Center
J. Patrick Megonigal
Smithsonian Environmental Research Center