Ecosystem Dynamics in a Polar Desert: The McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica (Antarctic Research Series)

About The Product Published by the American Geophysical Union as part of the Antarctic Research Series . Content: Title page ......Page 4 Copyright ......Page 5 Contents ......Page 6 Preface ......Page 9 INTRODUCTION......Page 10 GEOMORPHIC BACKGROUND AND METHODS......Page 14 RESULTS......Page 19 DISCUSSION......Page 39 REFERENCES......Page 44 INTRODUCTION......Page 48 METHODOLOGY......Page 52 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION......Page 55 CONCLUSIONS......Page 70 REFERENCES......Page 72 INTRODUCTION......Page 74 GLACIER CHARACTERISTICS......Page 76 GLACIAL HISTORY......Page 77 GLACIER MASS BALANCE PROCESSES......Page 78 MELT PROCESSES AND FLOW HYDRAULICS......Page 79 CONCLUSIONS......Page 81 REFERENCES......Page 83 INTRODUCTION......Page 85 GEOCHEMICAL CONTINUUM......Page 87 CONCLUSIONS......Page 97 REFERENCES......Page 99 INTRODUCTION......Page 101 SITE DESCRIPTION......Page 102 METHODS......Page 104 RESULTS......Page 106 DISCUSSION......Page 110 CONCLUSIONS......Page 114 REFERENCES......Page 115 INTRODUCTION......Page 117 SITE DESCRIPTION......Page 118 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION......Page 123 REFERENCES......Page 135 INTRODUCTION......Page 136 PRIMARY PRODUCERS......Page 137 METHODS......Page 138 RESULTS......Page 140 DISCUSSION......Page 142 REFERENCES......Page 146 INTRODUCTION......Page 148 MODELING APPROACH......Page 149 RESULTS......Page 152 DISCUSSION......Page 154 REFERENCES......Page 157 INTRODUCTION......Page 159 STUDY SITES, AND SUMMARY AND RELEVANCE OF EARLIER WORK......Page 162 METHODS......Page 168 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION......Page 171 CONCLUSION......Page 188 REFERENCES......Page 190 INTRODUCTION......Page 194 INFLUENCE OF THE PERENNIAL ICE COVER......Page 195 SEASONAL CHANGES IN ICE TRANSPARENCY......Page 197 SPECTRAL INFLUENCE OF THE ICE COVER......Page 198 THE WATER COLUMN......Page 199 IMPLICATIONS FOR PHOTOTROPHS......Page 206 REFERENCES......Page 207 INTRODUCTION......Page 209 SITE DESCRIPTION......Page 210 FIELD AND LABORATORY METHODS......Page 212 RESULTS......Page 213 DISCUSSION......Page 216 CONCLUSIONS......Page 217 REFERENCES......Page 218 INTRODUCTION......Page 220 METHODS AND MATERIALS......Page 222 RESULTS......Page 225 DISCUSSION......Page 227 REFERENCES......Page 229 INTRODUCTION......Page 232 METHODS......Page 233 RESULTS......Page 234 DISCUSSION......Page 239 REFERENCES......Page 241 INTRODUCTION......Page 243 METHODS......Page 246 RESULTS......Page 247 DISCUSSION......Page 252 REFERENCES......Page 254 INTRODUCTION......Page 256 SAMPLING AND ANALYTICAL PROCEDURES......Page 258 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION......Page 259 REFERENCES......Page 266 INTRODUCTION......Page 269 METHODS......Page 270 RESULTS......Page 272 DISCUSSION......Page 276 REFERENCES......Page 279 PERMANENT ICE COVERS OF THE MCMURDO DRY VALLEY LAKES,ANTARCTICA: BUBBLE FORMATION AND METAMORPHISM......Page 281 METHODS......Page 282 FIELD OBSERVATIONS......Page 283 ANALYSIS AND LABORATORY RESULTS......Page 284 DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS......Page 292 REFERENCES......Page 294 SOILS OF THE COLD DESERTS......Page 296 SOIL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE MCMURDO DRY VALLEYS......Page 297 SOIL CHEMISTRY......Page 308 THE SOIL MICROCLIMATE......Page 309 IMPACTS OF HUMAN ACTIVITIES ON THE SOIL ENVIRONMENT......Page 314 CONCLUSIONS......Page 318 REFERENCES......Page 319 INTRODUCTION......Page 322 CONCEPTUAL MODEL......Page 325 SOIL HABITATS......Page 326 CONCLUSIONS......Page 331 REFERENCES......Page 332 INTRODUCTION......Page 335 ACCESS TO AND MOVEMENT WITHIN THE MCMURDO DRY VALLEYS......Page 337 IMPACTS FROM SCIENCE......Page 338 PROTECTED AREAS......Page 341 MONITORING......Page 343 CODE OF CONDUCT FOR ACTIVITIES IN THE MCMURDO DRY VALLEYS......Page 344 DISCUSSION......Page 345 REFERENCES......Page 347 INTRODUCTION......Page 349 CONCEPTUAL MODEL OF THE DRY VALLEY SYSTEM......Page 350 GENERIC BIOMASS MODEL......Page 351 CONCLUSIONS......Page 356 FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS......Page 357 REFERENCES......Page 358 INTRODUCTION......Page 362 ACCESS TO CDROM......Page 363 SUMMARY......Page 365 REFERENCE......Page 366

The McMurdo Dry Valleys of southern Victoria Land comprise the largest ice?]free expanse (about 4000 km2) on the Antarctic continent. Research in this region began during British expeditions of the early 1900's and has yielded much information on specific physical, chemical and biological features of the area. Only recently have scientists begun to view the region as an integrated system which includes dynamic interactions among biotic and abiotic components of the environment. The McMurdo Dry Valleys represents the coldest and driest desert on this planet. Photoautotrophic and heterotrophic microorganisms that are intimately linked with the presence of liquid water and nutrients dominate the biological assemblages. Owing to the low average temperature (−20° C) in the region, liquid water is a rare commodity that often exists for a short period only and occurs in many inconspicuous places. It is now clear that the presence of liquid water produces a cascade of tightly coupled events that ultimately leads to the biological production and cycling of organic carbon and related elements. It also is clear that an integrated knowledge of biological, chemical, and physical factors is required to understand biogeochemical dynamics within the cold desert ecosystem of the McMurdo Dry Valleys. While various aspects of this ecosystem have formed the basis of several excellent publications, the compendium of manuscripts published within this volume represents a first attempt to compile complementary information on the abiotic and biotic components of the McMurdo Dry Valleys and link them in a final synthesis chapter.

Presents information from the primary abiotic forces defining the system, and from the present hydrology, biogeochemistry and physics of major sites of organic carbon production of the McMurdo Dry Valleys. Additionally, research on the physical, chemical, and biological properties of the dry valley soils is included. The role of environmental management in long-term ecological studies is also addressed. The accompanying CDROM provides details and scale to visualize the McMurdo Dry Valleys from an ecosystem perspective Alan K. Cooper, Peter F. Barker, Giuliano Brancolini, Editors. Discs In Case. Twenty-two Folded Charts In Case (9 Col. Maps, 13 Charts). Includes Bibliographical References. System Requirements For Accompanying Computer Discs: Ibm Pc Or Compatible System; Ms Or Pc-dos Version 3.1 Or Later; Macintosh With Floating Point Unit; Macos V6.0 Or Later; Unix. About The ProductPublished by the American Geophysical Union as part of the __Antarctic Research Series__. Content: