Endangered plants persist under phosphorus limitation.

Nitrogen enrichment is widely thought to be responsible for the loss of plant species from temperate terrestrial ecosystems. This view is based on field surveys and controlled experiments showing that species richness correlates negatively with high productivity and nitrogen enrichment. However, as the type of nutrient limitation has never been examined on a large geographical scale the causality of these relationships is uncertain. We investigated species richness in herbaceous terrestrial ecosystems, sampled along a transect through temperate Eurasia that represented a gradient of declining levels of atmospheric nitrogen deposition--from approximately 50 kg ha(-1) yr(-1) in western Europe to natural background values of less than 5 kg ha(-1) yr(-1) in Siberia. Here we show that many more endangered plant species persist under phosphorus-limited than under nitrogen-limited conditions, and we conclude that enhanced phosphorus is more likely to be the cause of species loss than nitrogen enrichment. Our results highlight the need for a better understanding of the mechanisms of phosphorus enrichment, and for a stronger focus on conservation management to reduce phosphorus availability.

Connecting biodiversity and human dimensions through ecosystem services: The Numto Nature Park in West Siberia.

An assessment of the socio-ecological system of the Nature Park "Numto" in West Siberia was carried out based on ecosystem services (ES) mapping, applying a "cascade approach" which was modified according to the specific conditions of low commercial land-use by Indigenous Peoples and adopted with a focus on making it practicable and understandable by decision-makers. The ES values were defined through stakeholder analysis, while the mapping was based on the biophysical traits of the ecosystems and related spatial distribution of ecosystem functions. The mapped ecosystem values differ from the perceived ones. The assessment identified conflicting land uses and groups of stakeholders, including Indigenous Peoples vulnerable to future climate change-induced deficits in access to ES. The ES that are important for climate change mitigation and adaptation are not valued highly by Indigenous Peoples. ES mapping is suggested as an appropriate method for the development of straightforward recommendations for Nature Park management.

Key periods of peatland development and environmental changes in the middle taiga zone of Western Siberia during the Holocene.

The response of peatlands to climate change can be highly variable. Through understanding past changes we can better predict the response of peatlands to future climate change. We use a multi-proxy approach to reconstruct the surface wetness and carbon accumulation of the Mukhrino mire (Western Siberia), describing the development of the mire since peat formation in the early Holocene, around 9360 cal. year BP. The mire started as a rich fen which initiated after paludification of a spruce forest (probably in response to a wetter climate), while the Mukhrino mire progressed to ombrotrophic bog conditions (8760 cal. year BP). This transition coincided with the intensive development of mires in Western Siberia and was associated with active carbon accumulation (31 g m-2 year-1). The ecosystem underwent a change to a tree-covered state around 5860 cal. year BP, likely in response to warming and possible droughts and this accompanied low carbon accumulation (12 g m2 year-1). If the future climate will be warmer and wetter, then regional mires are likely to remain a carbon sink, alternatively, a reversion to the wooded state with reduced carbon sink strength is possible.

Great Vasyugan Mire: How the world's largest peatland helps addressing the world's largest problems.

Peatlands cover 3% of the land, occur in 169 countries, and have-by sequestering 600 Gt of carbon-cooled the global climate by 0.6 °C. After a general review about peatlands worldwide, this paper describes the importance of the Great Vasyugan Mire and presents suggestions about its protection and future research. The World's largest peatland, the Great Vasyugan Mire in West-Siberia, forms the border between the Taiga and the Forest-Steppe biomes and harbours rare species and mire types and globally unique self-organizing patterns. Current oil and gas exploitation may arguably be largely phased out by 2050, which will pave the way for a stronger focus on the mire's role in buffering climate change, maintaining ecosystem diversity, and providing other ecosystem services. Relevant new research lines will benefit from the extensive data sets that earlier studies have gathered for other purposes. Its globally unique character as the 'largest life form on land' qualifies the Great Vasyugan Mire in its entirety to be designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance.

Nitrogen-rich organic soils under warm well-drained conditions are global nitrous oxide emission hotspots.

Nitrous oxide (N2O) is a powerful greenhouse gas and the main driver of stratospheric ozone depletion. Since soils are the largest source of N2O, predicting soil response to changes in climate or land use is central to understanding and managing N2O. Here we find that N2O flux can be predicted by models incorporating soil nitrate concentration (NO3-), water content and temperature using a global field survey of N2O emissions and potential driving factors across a wide range of organic soils. N2O emissions increase with NO3- and follow a bell-shaped distribution with water content. Combining the two functions explains 72% of N2O emission from all organic soils. Above 5 mg NO3--N kg-1, either draining wet soils or irrigating well-drained soils increases N2O emission by orders of magnitude. As soil temperature together with NO3- explains 69% of N2O emission, tropical wetlands should be a priority for N2O management.

Author Correction: Nitrogen-rich organic soils under warm well-drained conditions are global nitrous oxide emission hotspots.

The original version of this Article contained an error in the first sentence of the Acknowledgements section, which incorrectly referred to the Estonian Research Council grant identifier as "PUTJD618". The correct version replaces the grant identifier with "PUTJD619". This has been corrected in both the PDF and HTML versions of the Article.

Ecological and environmental transition across the forested-to-open bog ecotone in a west Siberian peatland.

Climate change may cause increasing tree cover in boreal peatlands, and the impacts of this encroachment will be noted first at forested-to-open bog ecotones. We investigate key metrics of ecosystem function in five such ecotones at a peatland complex in Western Siberia. Stratigraphic analysis of three cores from one of these transects shows that the ecotone has been dynamic over time with evidence for recent expansion of forested peatland. We observed that the two alternative states for northern boreal peatlands (forested/open) clearly support distinct plant and microbial communities. These in turn drive and respond to a number of feedback mechanisms. This has led to steep ecological gradients across the ecotones. Tree cover was associated with lower water tables and pH, along with higher bulk density, aquatic carbon concentrations, and electrical conductivity. We propose that the conditions found in the forested peatland of Western Siberia make the carbon sink more vulnerable to warmer and drier conditions.