Abstract
The overall goal of this project is to understand how forest clear-cutting and re-growth influence the ecosystem services provided by headwater streams in the Swedish landscape. Headwater streams are important habitats that support diverse communities whose processes influence the downstream transport of materials, and contribute significantly to the maintenance of water quality. The physical, chemical, and ecological properties of these ecosystems are strongly influenced by the terrestrial landscapes they drain, and are therefore sensitive to current and historical patterns of forest management. While the effects of forest management on the ecological status of Sweden´s terrestrial systems has received much attention, much less is known about how the ´Swedish Forestry Model´ influences the structure and function of small woodland streams. In this project, we will take advantage of monitoring sites within the Svartberget LTER network to evaluate how different ´functional attributes´ of headwater streams - secondary production of dominant consumers, rates of litter decomposition, and whole-system nitrate (NO3-) retention - respond to forest clear-cutting, and subsequently change over the decades of forest re-growth. Research will address the capacity for these key processes to recover from clear-cutting, and will provide mechanistic understanding of the landscape and habitat characteristics that shape the long-term functioning of headwater streams in managed landscapes.
Sweden