1997 measurements of Leaf area, foliar C and N for 14 sites along a transect down the Kuparuk River basin, North Slope, Alaska.
Methods:
Quadrat sample size: 20 cm x 20 cm 10 quadrats per site, but time constraints limited analysis to less (~7). The samples were dried at 60 degrees C in a drying oven and after several days weighed to nearest milligram. In each quadrat all foliage was plucked and separated by species. For each species we determined leaf mass, foliar %N and %C, leaf area. From these data we calculate leaf mass per area, Moss and lichen biomass and %N for moss/lichen were determined by plucks and/or subsampling for each quadrat. Some species were grouped - for instance all graminoids were grouped together. Reference Citations: Williams, M. and E.B. Rastetter (1999) Vegetation characteristics and primary productivity along an arctic transect: implications for scaling up. Journal of Ecology, 87:885-898 Sampling Description. None
| Variable | Definition |
|---|---|
| site name | Study specific name of each site Study specific name of each site |
| latitude | (decimal degrees) |
| longitude | (decimal degrees) |
| UTMX | Universal Transverse Mercator X coordinate, zone 6 north |
| UTMY | Universal Transverse Mercator Y coordinate, zone 6 north |
| elevation (m) | site elevation |
| slope | site slope |
| aspect (degrees) | aspect in compass degrees from north |
| region | name of nearby landmark or location name of nearby landmark or location |
| quadrat | sample quadrat number (1-10) sample quadrat number (1-10) |
| species or other taxonomic grouping | name of species or taxonomic group name of species or taxonomic group |
| leaf area (m2/m2) | leaf area index by species or taxonomic group |
| % moss cover | percent of quadrat covered by moss |
| % lichen cover | percent of quadrat covered by lichen |
| dry weight (g/m2) | dry weight of leaf material or moss/lichen |
| %C | percent carbon in leaf material per unit dry weight (sub samples only) |
| %N | percent nitrogen in leaf material per unit dry weight (sub samples only) |
| C/N | carbon-to-nitrogen ratio of leaf material |
