Articles | Volume 21, issue 12
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-3075-2024
© Author(s) 2024. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-3075-2024
© Author(s) 2024. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
01 Jul 2024
Research article |
| 01 Jul 2024
| 01 Jul 2024
Vegetation patterns associated with nutrient availability and supply in high-elevation tropical Andean ecosystems
Armando Molina
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Soil Science of Tropical and Subtropical Ecosystems, Faculty of Forest Sciences and Forest Ecology, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
Facultad de Ciencias Agropecuarias, Universidad de Cuenca, Campus Yanuncay, Cuenca, Ecuador
Veerle Vanacker
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Earth and Life Institute, Centre for Earth and Climate Research, Université catholique de Louvain, 3 Place Louis Pasteur, 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
Oliver Chadwick
Department of Geography, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106-4060, USA
Santiago Zhiminaicela
Subgerencia de Operaciones, Agua Potable y Saneamiento, Empresa Pública Municipal de Telecomunicaciones, Agua Potable, Alcantarillado y Saneamiento de Cuenca (ETAPA EP), Cuenca, Ecuador
Marife Corre
Soil Science of Tropical and Subtropical Ecosystems, Faculty of Forest Sciences and Forest Ecology, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
Edzo Veldkamp
Soil Science of Tropical and Subtropical Ecosystems, Faculty of Forest Sciences and Forest Ecology, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
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Short summary
The tropical Andes contains unique landscapes where forest patches are surrounded by tussock grasses and cushion-forming plants. The aboveground vegetation composition informs us about belowground nutrient availability: patterns in plant-available nutrients resulted from strong biocycling of cations and removal of soil nutrients by plant uptake or leaching. Future changes in vegetation distribution will affect soil water and solute fluxes and the aquatic ecology of Andean rivers and lakes.
The tropical Andes contains unique landscapes where forest patches are surrounded by tussock...
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