Papers by Tatiana Gavrilova
Ekosistemy, 2021
The rate of plant litter decomposition depends on two simultaneous processes: the decomposition a... more The rate of plant litter decomposition depends on two simultaneous processes: the decomposition and stabilization of organic matter. To compare the rates of these processes in various ecosystems now a Tea Bag Index (TBI) is widely used. The samples of standard material (green tea and rooibos) were buried into soil at the depth of 8 cm in four herbaceous plant communities of Central Forest State Nature Biosphere Reserve (CFSNBR) and seven communities of the Moscow river floodplain near the MSU Zvenigorod biological station (ZBS). Considering the mass losses of samples during the incubation time we calculated the values of decomposition constant and stabilization factor according to the protocol by J. A. Keuskamp et al. (2013) and estimated the links of these parameters with Ellenberg’s ecological indicator values. The stabilization factor values ranged from 0.122 g/g in Filipendula community of CFSNBR to 0.379 g/g at the natural levee of the Moscow river, and the decomposition consta...
Botany Letters
ABSTRACT Widespread ecological succession occurs in abandoned temperate semi-natural meadows, but... more ABSTRACT Widespread ecological succession occurs in abandoned temperate semi-natural meadows, but the process is still not fully understood. In the Central Forest Reserve, located in the Tver Oblast of northwest Russia, meadows that were abandoned in the 1980s and 1990s still have not been fully overgrown by woody vegetation. The aim of our study was to examine how abandonment influences the structure of aboveground phytomass and community weighted means of leaf traits in the meadows of this forest zone. We compared the phytomass structures of abandoned meadows in the core area of the reserve and managed meadows in the surrounding area, which both belong to the Cynosurion cristati Tx. 1947 alliance. Mixed effect models were applied to estimate the effects of management on the phytomass fractions and community weighted means of the specific leaf area and leaf area apart from differences in other factors of the ecotope, estimated as Ellenberg’s indicator values based on 100 m2 relevés. The vascular plant biomass was significantly lower while moss biomass and the specific leaf area were significantly higher in abandoned meadows than in managed meadows, but there was no significant difference in litter accumulation. The studied abandoned meadows lacked sufficient productivity to allow rapid changes toward tall-herb ruderal communities. However, the observed changes of community structure indicate that appropriate management will be required to maintain these meadows.
Uploads
Papers by Tatiana Gavrilova