Repository logo

Browsing by Author "Melzer-Drinnen, Susan E., author"

Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
  • Thumbnail Image
    ItemOpen Access
    Pedological and ecological controls on biogenic silica cycling in grass dominated ecosystems
    (Colorado State University. Libraries, 2009) Melzer-Drinnen, Susan E., author; Kelly, Eugene F., advisor
    The biogeochemical behavior of silica is closely linked to the carbon cycle as marine Si-based diatoms are a major control on the distribution of silica in oceans, and play a major role in controlling atmospheric pCO2 via the "biological pump." The importance of biological controls on silica cycling in the terrestrial environment has only recently been known and our studies point to grasslands and grass dominated ecosystems as important repositories. Although the structure and ecological functioning of these ecosystems are strongly influenced by fire and grazing, the role of these key ecological drivers in the production and storage of Si represents a significant knowledge gap. Additionally, the effect of biogenic silica dissolution on the weathering of rock with different mineral assemblages is also insufficiently understood. I evaluated the effects of fire, grazing and parent material on the range and variability of plant derived biogenic silica stored in plant biomass and soils by sampling plants and soils in the mesic grasslands of North America and savannas of South Africa. Using these and other intensive study sites, along with extant productivity and soil texture data I estimated the global Si storage based on two approaches: "measure and multiply" and "paint by numbers".