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Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research

Published by: Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research (INSTAAR), University of Colorado

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Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research 41(4):426-433. 2009
doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1657/1938-4246-41.4.426

Determination of Leaf Area Index, Total Foliar N, and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index for Arctic Ecosystems Dominated by Cassiope tetragona

Matteo Campioli*^,^$, Lorna E. Street^†, Anders Michelsen^‡, Gaius R. Shaver^§, Thomas Maere^#, Roeland Samson^@, and Raoul Lemeur*

*Department of Applied Ecology and Environmental Biology, Ghent University, B-9000 Ghent, Belgium

^†School of GeoSciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH9 3JN, U.K

^‡Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, DK-1353 Copenhagen K, Denmark

^§The Ecosystems Center, Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, Massachusetts 02543, U.S.A

^#BIOMATH, Ghent University, B-9000 Ghent, Belgium

^@Department of Bioscience Engineering, University of Antwerp, B-2020 Antwerp, Belgium

^$Corresponding author. Present address: Research Group of Plant and Vegetation Ecology, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, B-2610 Wilrijk, Belgium matteo.campioli@ua.ac.be

Abstract

Leaf area index (LAI) and total foliar nitrogen (TFN) are important canopy characteristics and crucial variables needed to simulate photosynthesis and ecosystem CO₂ fluxes. Although plant communities dominated by Cassiope tetragona are widespread in the Arctic, LAI and TFN for this vegetation type have not been accurately quantified. We address this knowledge gap by (i) direct measurements of LAI and TFN for C. tetragona, and (ii) determining TFN-LAI and LAI–normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) relationships for typical C. tetragona tundras in the subarctic (Sweden) and High Arctic (Greenland and Svalbard).

Leaves of C. tetragona are 2–6 mm long and closely appressed to their stems forming parallelepiped shoots. We determined the LAI of C. tetragona by measuring the area of the leaves while still attached to the stem, then doubling the resulting one-sided area. TFN was determined from leaf N and biomass. The LAI-NDVI and TFN-LAI relationships showed high correlation and can be used to estimate indirectly LAI and TFN. The LAI-NDVI relationship for C. tetragona vegetation differed from a generic LAI-NDVI relationship for arctic tundra, whereas the TFN-LAI relationship did not. Overall, the LAI of C. tetragona tundra ranged from 0.4 to 1.1 m² m⁻² and TFN from 1.4 to 1.7 g N m⁻².

Accepted: April 2009

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¹Wind-exposed site with sparse vegetation (less than 20% of the total cover) and very dry soil.

Cited by

Terry V. Callaghan, Torben R. Christensen, Elin J. Jantze. (2011) Plant and Vegetation Dynamics on Disko Island, West Greenland: Snapshots Separated by Over 40 Years. AMBIO: A Journal of the Human Environment 40:6, 624-637
Online publication date: 1-Sep-2011.

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