Sampling at Kiattuut 2009

Objectives

• Collection of 40 microarthropod samples with soil corer from one location in 5 grazed and 5 ungrazed plots (4 samples per plot).
  
• Place 100 litterbags, 10 in each plot, to determine decomposition of cellulose filter paper after one year of field incubation.
  
• Collection of 16 30x20 cm blocks of soil/foerne to a depth of approx. 10 cm for bulk microarthropod extraction.
  
• Collection of soil samples for physico-chemical soil characterisation.
  

Sampling location

The location of the soil ecology sampling area is approx. 3 km north of Narsarsuaq at the Kiattuut location, see Google maps, based on Jon Feilbergs  plots established in 1985. It is a Betula shrub.

Selection and positioning of sampling plots

The grazed and ungrazed habitats were unreplicated. Within the ungrazed habitat habitat there 5 plots of 10x15 meter were established. Due to the small area of the slope with the grazed habitat 5 parallel transects of 20 meter were established.  

Microarthropod samples

16 big 20x30 cm blocks for bulk extraction were carefully cut and dug out of the soil and kept in plastic boxes during shipping on July 26 until bulk extraction in Silkeborg initiated August 3. 8 of the 16 blocks were from the plots in the ungrazed habitat (Plot 1-4) while the remaining 8 were from the transects in the grazed habitat (Plot 6-9).

Compression was avoided in all stages of handling soil samples for microarthropods. The samples were kept at 5 ^oC until processing.

4 soil samples (6 cm diameter, depth 5.5 cm) were collected randomly from each plot using a split corer soil sampler.

Litterbags

VWR filter paper was used as a surrogate for indigenous litter and filled into litterbags. 100 litterbags each containing 2 g filter paper, corresponding to 4 round pieces 9 cm Ø, were buried horizontally 3-5 cm into the soil. The litterbags were left open in one end for ease of emptying and further processing. White marker sticks (from DMU) were used to locate the litterbags after 1 year for retrieval.

The 50 litterbags within the ungrazed exclosure were buried within the 5 plots (1-5) along the line between two plots eg. the 10 litterbags in plot 1 were placed along the borderline between the vegetation plot and Plot 1. Within the grazed habitat litterbags were placed at the 5 transects (6-10) parallel to the vegetation transect. Both within the ungrazed and the grazed habitat litterbags were buried 1 meter apart from eachother starting from 1 meter and ending at 10 meter.

Collection of soil samples for physico-chemical soil characterisation

Sample treatment at Naturinstituttet

After 1 year litterbags are retrieved and brought to the laboratory, and then cleaned for roots, organic matter, soil particles etc. dried at 60 degrees and weighed. If the remaining dried filter paper is still contaminated by soil particles, they will have to be burned and loss on ignition (LOI) is used to determine the breakdown rate.

See detailed filter paper decomposition procedure.

Sample treatment at DMU/Silkeborg

• Extraction of microarthropods from standard 5.5 cm depth x 6 cm diameter soil cores, 40 pcs.
  
• Bulk extraction of large 20x30 cm soil/foerne blocks of microarthropods for natural isotope analysis, 16 pcs.
  
• Stable isotope analyses according to Analysis of trophic structure.
  
• Determination of
• • actual water content by drying a subsample of minimum 3 samples at 105 ^oC
  • nutrients (minimum NPK) (Foulum)
  • soil texture incl. pH and organic matter (Foulum) from each plot (5+5)
    upper 20 cm of the soil profile (concerning samples see above 
    The soil texture analyses will be done at Institut for Jordbrugsproduktion og Miljø, Forskningscenter Foulum, contact:
    Ulla Husballe Rasmussen phone: 89991475 and NPK at a commercial lab such as Eurofins.

• A number of representative pieces of the filter paper batch are heated at 50 ^oC to determine water content and dry-weight and ignited in a muffle oven to determine organic matter and ash content.
  

• VWR cat. no. 516-0814; Qualitative filterpaper, 413; medium filtrationrate; particle retention 5-13 ym; size: 90 mm

Shipment list

Jon Feilberg will bring a cardboard box containing the following items:

• 40 cylinders for soil cores and 80 red lids
• 16 boxes for large 20x30 samples
• 10 zipper plastic bags each with 10 litterbags with filterpaper, ready to dig into the soil 
• 100 white pins for marking the placement of a litterbags
• 1 plastic box with handles, 28x38x17 (depth), can be used to return samples or whatever appropriate
  
• Filter paper for the Akia decomposition study 5 boxes >200 g.
  
• Some 200 empty litterbags for decomposition studies at Akia etc.
  

 Data from the sampling

Contacts

Jon Feilberg/Biomedia
Kastrupvej 8
4100 Ringsted
Tlf.  57 60 01 25; Mob. 40 15 05 98

Katrine Raundrup, Naturinstituttet: +299 36 12 28; +299 27 03 06

Paul Henning Krogh

Department of Terrestrial Ecology
University of Aarhus
P.O. Box 314, Vejlsoevej 25
DK-8600 Silkeborg, Denmark
Office +45 89 20 15 88
Switchboard +45 89 20 14 00
Mobile +45 27 57 10 34
Fax +45 89 20 14 13
Private +45 32 11 71 06
E-mail krogh.ph@gmail.com

Speditør

DSV (aftale med Hilda Norberg) - Tlf. +4579297000