Cataloging Information
Ecological - First Order
Ecological - Second Order
Vegetation
Water
The effects of prescribed fires on nitrogen dynamics in N limited headwater ecosystems in the northern Rocky Mountains of central Idaho are being investigated. This replicated study studies causal mechanisms that regulate nitrogen (N) dynamics between small headwater streams, riparian vegetation and soil following spring prescribed burns. Mechanisms investigated include soil N pool sizes, mineralization and nitrification rates, N retention by terrestrial vegetation and stream biota, and N export in stream water. This study is linked to another project funded by JFSP (wildfire effects on N dynamics, JFSP project number: 05-2-1-41). This project will help land managers to understand the tradeoffs and synergy between fuel reduction programs and watershed ecosystem functions.