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Warming in mountain regions is projected to be three times faster than the global average. Pronounced climate change will likely lead to species reshuffling in mountain plant communities and consequently change ecosystem resilience and functioning. Yet, little is known about the role of inter‐ versus intraspecific changes of plant traits and their consequences for functional richness and evenness of mountain plant communities under climate change. We performed a downslope translocation experiment of intact plant‐soil mesocosms from an alpine pasture and a subalpine grassland in the Swiss and Austrian Alps to simulate an abrupt shift in climate and removal of dispersal barriers. Translocated plant communities experienced warmer and dryer climatic conditions. We found a considerable shift from resource conservative to resource acquisitive leaf‐economy in the two climate change scenarios. However, shifts in leaf‐economy were mainly attributable to species turnover, namely colonization by novel lowland species with trait expressions for a wider range of resource use. We also found an increase in vegetative height of the warmed and drought‐affected alpine plant community, while trait plasticity to warming and drought was limited to few graminoid species of the subalpine plant community. Our results highlight the contrast between the strong competitive potential of novel lowland species in quickly occupying available niche space and native species' lack of both the intraspecific trait variability and the plant functional trait expressions needed to increase functional richness under warming and drought. This is particularly important for the trailing range of many mountain species (i.e. subalpine zone) where upward moving lowland species are becoming more abundant and abiotic climate stressors are likely to become more frequent in the near future. Our study emphasizes mountain plant communities' vulnerability to novel climates and biotic interactions under climate change and highlights graminoid species as potential winners of a warmer and dryer future. Keywords: alpine grassland, functional diversity, invasion, species turnover, traitspace, translocation [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the study is to reveal geomorphological characteristics and evolution of the periglacial landforms occurred on the summit of the Kaz Dağı (in Turkish) characterised with a specific mountain environment developed under the dry summer subtropical Mediterranean climate. To reach this aim, morphoclimatic processes-characteristics and soil development of the Kaz Dağı district have been evaluated. Kaz Dağı (1774 m a.s.l.), which had been called as the Mount Ida in Greek Mythology, forms a physical geographic border between Çanakkale and Balıkesir provinces. Periglacial landforms consisting of the non-sorted circles including mud circles and stony earth circles, non-sorted steps and cryoturbation terraces and block currents, are found in subalpine vegetation zone at upper boundary of Mount Ida. According to morphogenetic process analysis, on the summit of the Kaz Dağı, the dominant processes are freezing + freezing-thawing in the December-March period, freezing-thawing + weathering in the November and April months, and weat-hering in which frost is not effective in the April-November period. As for pedological processes and mineralogical characteristics of soils formed under the same climatic conditions but on different parent materials of various periglacial landforms, taxonomy of these soils was classified at the Entisol ordo described as young soils. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Frozen ground influences subsurface hydrology by reducing soil permeability, impeding infiltration, and inducing surface runoff. As the seasonal snowpack strongly controls the evolution of the ground thermal regime, it is necessary to represent the snowpack in models simulating frozen ground and its hydrologic consequences. Conventional understanding of the relationship between snowcover and frozen ground considers the snowpack as an insulator, shielding the ground from cold winter temperatures and thus inhibiting frozen ground. However, observations and modeling at Niwot Ridge, a seasonally snow‐covered alpine catchment in the headwaters of the Boulder Creek watershed, illustrate that snowpack cold content can promote and preserve frozen ground beneath the snowpack during the snowmelt season, unlike bare ground patches that thaw relatively rapidly due to exposure to solar radiation and warm spring temperatures. We present results from a coupled snowpack and subsurface thermo‐hydrologic model including freeze‐thaw processes that captures these contrasts reasonably well. Our results suggest that the cold snowpack at this site acts as a heat sink and promotes frozen ground, in contrast to the conventional understanding of the snowpack as an insulator. In the subalpine zone, infiltration simulations show that shallow freezing beneath snow‐covered ground has a much stronger effect on infiltration than shallow freezing beneath bare ground because the soil beneath the snow remained frozen during snowmelt, whereas bare patches thawed by the time they received excess snowmelt run‐on. Key Points: Cold alpine and subalpine snowpacks promote frozen ground due to snowpack cold contentDue to snowpack cold content, frost beneath snowcover persists during snowmelt and limits infiltrationRepresentation of the snowpack significantly improves soil temperature estimates [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The hydrology of alpine and subalpine areas in the Colorado Front Range (USA) is evolving, driven by warming and by the alteration of precipitation patterns, the timing of snowmelt, and other components of the hydrologic budget. Field measurements of soil hydraulic conductivity and moisture along 30-m transects (n = 13) of representative soils developed in surficial deposits and falling head slug tests of shallow groundwater in till demonstrate that hydraulic conductivity in the soil is comparable to hydraulic conductivity values in the shallow aquifer. Soil hydraulic conductivity values were variable (medians ranged from 5.6 × 10−7 to 4.96 × 10−5 m s−1) and increased in alpine areas underlain by periglacial deposits. Hydraulic conductivities measured by a modified Hvorslev technique in test wells ranged from 4.86 × 10−7 to 1.77 × 10−4 m s−1 in subalpine till. The results suggest a gradient from higher hydraulic conductivity in alpine zones, where short travel paths through periglacial deposits support ephemeral streams and wetlands, to lower hydraulic conductivity in the till-mantled subalpine zone. In drier downstream areas, streambed infiltration contributes substantially to near-channel groundwater. As summer temperatures and evapotranspiration (ET) increase and snowmelt occur earlier, alpine soils are likely to become more vulnerable to drought, and groundwater levels in the critical zone may lower, affecting the connectivity between late-melting snow, meltwater streams, and the areas they affect downstream. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydrophilic-hydrophobic properties of organic matter and the content and distribution of water-soluble organic matter (WSOM) in soils of the Subpolar Urals are discussed. It is shown that the type of predominant vegetation in the system of altitudinal zones controls the amount and nature of soil organic matter (SOM). The litter of moss–lichen vegetation of the alpine tundra is enriched in hydrophobic compounds (up to 24.0%). In the grass communities of the subalpine zone, hydrophilic fractions of the SOM predominate (first fraction, 42.4–77.0%; second fraction, 0.3–12.6%). Woody vegetation of the mountainous forest zone is specified by an increased content of hydrophobic lignin-containing fractions (16.4–34.8%). Permafrost-affected soils of the alpine tundra are characterized by an increased hydromorphism leading to the accumulation of compounds associated with Fe and Al (up to 75.4%) in mineral horizons. The calculation of the WSOM carbon stock indicates that it reaches 0.3 to 9% of the total carbon stock in the soil profiles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mountain protected areas are characterized by high biodiversity, which makes it a great challenge for managers to maintain a balance between their use and the stability of natural ecosystems. Maintaining that balance is particularly difficult in areas with high tourism pressure. The expected volume of tourist traffic should be considered at the planning stage of the tourist infrastructure development process. Insufficient capacity of tourist infrastructure can lead to environmental degradation, which is hard, or at times impossible, to repair. In our research, we identified patterns of tourist footpath and road functioning in an environmentally protected area with high volumes of tourist traffic. Data from geomorphologic mapping was analyzed in order to identify tourist footpath and road structures in the Tatra National Park (TNP). Fieldwork was conducted in several stages between 1995 and 2019. Orthophotomaps from the years 1977, 2009, 2017 and 2019 were used to identify and compare degraded zones along selected tourist footpaths. Degraded zones were defined as areas surrounding a footpath or tourist road with a mean width larger than or equal to 10 meters, with heavily damaged or completely removed vegetation and exposed, weathered cover, where geomorphic processes that would not take place under normal conditions are readily observable. The examined tourist footpaths and roads vary in terms of their morphometric parameters. Research has shown important differences between mean and maximum footpath width as well as maximum incision depth for the forest zone versus the subalpine and alpine zones. A lack of differences in these parameters was noted between the alpine and subalpine zones. Research has shown that an increase in the surface area of degraded zones found adjacent to tourist footpaths occurred in all the studied geo-ecological zones in the study period. However, the largest increase occurred atop wide ridgelines found in the alpine zone. Degraded zones may be an indication of exceeding the tourist carrying capacity of a mountain tourist area. Mass tourism in TNP contributes to the formation of degraded zones adjacent to footpaths, whose continuous evolution may lead to irreversible changes in local relief. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Soil organic matter at high latitudes is an important and sensitive indicator of climate change. This article describes the main morphological features, chemical properties, and composition of organic matter in the main types of soils along the altitudinal gradient of the Subpolar Urals. Soils formed in the mountain tundra zone (gleyic humus-illuvial podbur/Skeletiс Stagnic Entic Podzol (Turbic)), in the mountain subalpine zone (gray-humus soil/Skeletiс Umbrisol), in the mountain taiga zone (iron-illuvial podzol/Skeletiс Albic Podzol), and in the mountain tundra zone with permafrost (permafrost-affected gleyic humus-illuvial podbur/Skeletiс Folic Cryosol (Humic)) were studied. The method of densimetric fractionation was applied to study soil organic matter; it enabled us to distinguish its three fractions, differing in carbon participation in the biological turnover: free particulate organic matter (fPOM<1.6), occluded particulate organic matter (oPOM<1.6), and heavy organic matter bound with the mineral phase (MaOM>1.6). The latter fraction dominated in the upper mineral soil horizons and comprised 89–93% of the total organic carbon. The content of light fractions was significantly lower (0.6–4.7%). However, the content of organic carbon and nitrogen in the studied soils directly correlated with the contents of light fractions fPOM<1.6 (r = 0.40 and r = 0.79, p < 0.05) and oPOM<1.6 (r = 0.68 and r = 0.83, p < 0.05). Aliphatic fragments dominated in the composition of POM; their content varied from 74.5 to 80.5% for fPOM<1.6 and from 77.9 to 84.2% for oPOM<1.6. In addition, it was found that the organic matter of the oPOM<1.6 fraction was characterized by a higher decomposition rate (0.4–2.4) and hydrophobicity (34.7–66.5%). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cryogenic oligotrophic (Hyperdystric Cryic Fibric Histosols), oligomesotrophic (Dystric Fibric Histosols), mesoeutrophic (Oligeoeutric Fibric Histosols), and eutrophic (Hypereutric Fibric Histosols) peat soils were studied on the eastern slopes of the Kuznetsk Alatau Ridge (Republic of Khakassia). Their altitudinal differentiation was examined, and clustering according to the qualitative and quantitative composition of organic matter was performed. The most informative indicators of similarity and/or differences between the clusters were suggested. The group composition of organic matter was analyzed using acid and alkaline extractions. Multivariate statistical analyses (cluster, discriminant, and canonic) were applied for evaluation of the humus status. Indicators of organic matter status, which are significant for discrimination form two discriminant functions. Function 1 discriminates between the clusters (80%) and includes the indicators characterizing the depths of peat soil transformation: humification degree (∑HA + ∑FA), type of humus (CHA/CFA ratio), and ratio between the fractions of humic acids extracted by 0.02 N NaOH and 0.1 N NaOH (С0.02 n NaOH/C0.1 n NaOH). Function 1 clearly separates clusters of permafrost-affected oligotrophic peat soils of the alpine tundra zone (>1460 m a.s.l.) from oligo-mesotrophic peat soils of the subalpine zone (1087 m a.s.l.). Function 2 discriminates (at the 16% difference level) the clusters of peat soils of the forest zone—meso-eutrophic peat soils of the taiga zone (832 m a.s.l.) and eutrophic peat soils of the subtaiga–forest-steppe zone (622–573 m a.s.l.); it also includes hemicellulose and cellulose—characteristics of the initial state of peat-forming plants. The humus status of the mountainous peat soils corresponds to their diagnostics according to the base saturation and pH criteria and reflects a general pedogenetic trend in mountains: an increase in the humus content in soils with the altitude, which was earlier shown for mineral soils. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the study was to test the suitability of the 6th edition of Polish Soil Classification (SGP6) in reflecting the typical features of subalpine Bieszczady Mts. soils in comparison with the 5th edition of Polish Soil Classification (SGP5) and the newest version of World Reference Base for Soil Resources (WRB). Five soil profiles located in differentiated in terms of the parent material, topography and vegetation conditions of the natural environment were investigated. On the basis of described morphology and determined properties soils were classified according to different soil classifications. All soils under study were featured by presence of thick A horizons and high content of soil organic carbon accumulated even very deep in the profiles. Some of the mineral topsoil layers were classified as umbric/umbrik horizons. Moreover cambic/kambik horizons were present and in some cases also weak redoximorphic features occurred. The SGP6 enabled to distinguish soils with a thick, organic carbon-rich A horizons as umbrisols, a newly created subtype of grey soils. Furthermore, the soil taxonomic position according to SGP6 was more detailed in relation to the soil trophic status (in case of brown soils) and occurrence of weak redoximorphic features. That was reflected in number of subtypes to which analyzed soils were classified – 4 in SGP6 vs 2 in SGP5. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Summer temperature offset mapped at 20 m resolution from airborne LiDAR data. • Forest structure more important than topography for mapping temperature offset. • Temperature offset varies strongly between but also within forest types. • Disturbances impact temperature offset for up to two decades. Forests create unique microclimates that have the potential to serve as microrefugia for species under climate change. Yet, our understanding of the heterogenous thermal patterns at the forest floor of complex landscapes (e.g., in mountain forests) remains incomplete. We here used Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) for predicting summer temperature offsets in a mountain forest landscape in the European Alps. We calibrated models on a network of 150 microclimate loggers that were combined with data from 15 meteorological stations to estimate the maximum, mean, and minimum temperature offsets, using LiDAR-derived metrics of forest structure and topography as predictors. Models predicted summer temperature offsets with an R²/RMSE of 0.50/3.15 °C for maximum temperature, 0.51/0.41 °C for mean temperature and 0.55/0.57 °C for minimum temperature. Forest canopy openness and elevation were most important for predicting temperature offsets. The mean offset ranged from – 1.9 °C to 2.7 °C (mean of - 0.3 °C), but both minimum and maximum offsets varied considerably, with some forests even having warmer maximum and colder minimum temperatures than open areas. This was particularly prominent in forests of the subalpine zone, which are characterized by open canopies and a considerable presence of coniferous shrubs. In contrast, submontane forests with largely closed canopies had mostly colder maximum and warmer minimum temperatures within forests compared to open areas. Analysing the development of temperature offsets with time since disturbance, we found that recently disturbed forests had higher maximum temperatures compared to open areas, but they recovered to closed forest conditions within two decades. We conclude that mountain forests exhibit complex microclimate patterns that vary strongly with forest type and canopy openness. We further highlight that disturbances are an important driver of spatiotemporal dynamics in forest microclimate. Finally, temperature offset maps such as the ones generated here have strong potential to improve the robustness of species distribution models and to assess climate risks for biodiversity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A pilot study was undertaken in the Saint Marys Range, Canterbury, New Zealand to assess how soil moisture varies with depth in a shallow subalpine mineral soil. Observations of soil moisture over a threeweek period showed the top 35 cm of the profile to respond to both drying and wetting cycles, but at depths greater than 60 cm there was little change in volumetric water content. At field capacity the potential available water depth was 62 mm, over a 300 mm soil profile. Infiltration rates between 10 and13 mm hr-1 (high for a silty loam) reflect the rocky fragments contained in the soil. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Rainfall simulators are commonly used instruments to study sheet erosion, since they can be set to predefined values like rainfall duration and quantity. The comparison between different irrigation studies is difficult, because general standards or methodological protocols do not exist for rainfall simulators. One goal of this study was to assess the suitability of a novel field hybrid rainfall simulator (FH simulator) that combines characteristics of a spray nozzle and a drop former rain simulator for erosion research. The FH simulator was compared to a larger scale laboratory drop former simulator (DF simulator) with a 7m drop height by looking at the raindrop distribution, kinetic energy and the triggered runoff and sediment yield. Two soils with different textures were irrigated. A second goal of this study was to quantify the influence of vegetation and soil structure stability on soil erosion and runoff in a subalpine grassland area. Soil erosion and runoff reduction in relation to plant cover have been studied by numerous scientists in Mediterranean ecosystems, but researches in alpine grassland are spare. The kinetic energy, drop size, triggered runoff and sediment yield of both rain simulators were comparable, but kinetic energy and drop size differed for both simulators from natural rain. The clayish soil with stable soil structure and the silty soil with loose single grain structure differed significantly in runoff and sediment yield. Vegetation cover and sediment yield were correlated exponentially and soil structure stability improved significantly with increasing vegetation cover. Vegetation cover had no influence on surface runoff. These results demonstrate that vegetation cover plays a crucial role in alpine soils for soil structure stability and erosion. Even though it was not possible to achieve natural rain conditions with the used simulators, the proposed field simulator is a useful tool in steep alpine terrain to study relative differences in the effects of rain erosion on soils with differing characteristics and vegetation cover. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The knowledge of soil erosion processes and especially soil erosion rates in alpine grassland regions is scarce due to the lack of detailed studies. The non-existence of validated methods which are suitable to quantify alpine soil erosion is one of the key issues for the limited process understanding. The aim of this study is to compare different methods and to conclude on suitability for the determination of alpine soil erosion. Furthermore, the advantages and disadvantages of the single measurement methods with regard to alpine basins are focused. We distinguish between sediment traps and sediment cups to determine erosion rates bi-weekly in 2007 and 2008, and Cesium-137 based measurements to measure long term erosion rates since 1986. The latter method integrates over a time span of 22years. We investigate three different land cover types: hayfields, pasture with dwarf shrubs and pasture without dwarf shrubs in the Urseren Valley (Central Switzerland) with a mean slope steepness of 37°. Sediment traps are suitable to quantify erosion rates during summer time. However, measurements are not possible during winter time. Sediment cups are an ideal tool for soil movement observation within the plot size but are limited to quantitative measurements. Cesium-137 investigations enable erosion quantification all-throughout-the-year but without identifying related processes. The combination of all three methods turns out to be useful for erosion quantification and process understanding. Mean monthly erosion rates during the vegetation periods 2007 and 2008 based on the sediment traps are between 0.006tha−1 mo−1 and 0.045tha−1 mo−1. These generally low erosion rates can be explained by a low overland flow of 0.5–1.8% of the measured precipitation. Cesium-137 based measurements yield mean annual erosion rates for the time span 1986–2008 between 8.3tha−1 yr−1 and 26tha−1 yr−1. We conclude that erosion rates on alpine grassland are dominated by snow driven processes during winter time. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Subalpine and Alpine soils in Val di Sole (Trentino, Italy) have been investigated in order to reconstruct vegetation changes and human impact during the Holocene period. Archaeological findings have demonstrated that Alpine sites have been populated since pre-historical times. Humans have had a great impact on the natural landscape evolution. One of the most-used tools has been fire. The use of fire has enabled the landscape to be cleared to provide new pastures for grazing and also to allow it to be used for agricultural purposes. The 14C dating of charcoal fragments found in subalpine and Alpine soils provide information about the type of vegetation, fires, human impact and soil formation throughout the Holocene. The degree of podzolisation indicates weathering effects and provides information about the stability of the surfaces. According to our results, a quick forest expansion establishment phase must have occurred shortly after the Lateglacial around 10 500 cal. BP. Pinus sylvestris, Pinus mugo as well as Larix decidua established in the investigation area in that period. Picea abies had not yet migrated into this region at the transition to the Boreal (around 9000 cal. BP). The vegetation of the investigated area has not substantially changed during the last 10 000 years. Pinus mugo was more widespread in some areas during the Older Atlanticum, and the treeline was about 150 m higher at the end of the Younger Dryas than today. Some other sites were most probably used as pasture during the Bronze Age and later abandoned, leading to a natural reforestation. In the investigated area 13 fire events in the past 10 700 years have been recognised, and seven of them can reasonably be attributed to human origin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There were collected soil samples from five altitudinal vegetation zones of the Parâng Mountains, (the alpine zone, the subalpine zone, the conifers zone, beech zone and the Maleia flood plain) in the spring and summer of 2007 and they were microbiologically analysed. The microbiological analyses consisted in the study of the abundance, the dynamics, diversity and ecological significance on the groups of bacteria involved in the biogeochemical cycles of nitrogen (aerobic mesophilic heterotrophs, ammonifiers, denitrifiers, nitrate bacteria and nitrite bacteria and nitrogen fixing-bacteria from Azotobacter genus) from the mountainous soils. Based on the obtained results there was also calculated the bacterial indicator of the soils biological quality (BISQ) for each type of soil in each altitudinal vegetation zones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Pb isotope tracing provided a new information on Sudety Mts contamination. • Podzols in Sudety Mts. are affected by long distance emissions of lead. • Pb in surface organic horizons of Podzols originated mainly from the coal burning. • Podzolization contributed to translocation of Pb down to illuvial horizon. • Parent material horizons of Podzols has not been affected by lead pollution. The Karkonosze National Park (south-western Poland) represent central European medium-elevation mountains. At the end of the twentieth century, an ecological disaster was observed in this nature reserve, resulting in the defoliation of large areas of spruce forest. One of the considered reasons for this phenomenon was contamination with heavy metals. The aim of this study was to determine the origin of lead (lithogenic versus several specific anthropogenic sources) occurring in the soils of the highest located parts of the Karkonosze Mts. Lead concentrations and its isotope ratios were investigated in nine Podzol profiles located in the subalpine zone (1200–1400 m a.s.L.) of the Karkonosze Mts. Concentrations of total lead and its isotopes were measured in particular genetic horizons; then lead isotope ratios were calculated. On the basis of lead isotope signatures known from literature data, different anthropogenic sources of this element have been assessed (emissions from coal combustion, mining, metallurgy, and fuel combustion). The results obtained revealed the highest Pb concentrations (121.0–353.0 mg kg−1) in the surface horizons. The podzolization process, differentiating soil profiles into eluvial (Es) and illuvial (Bh and Bs) horizons, has contributed to different concentration of lead through the profile. The concentrations of this element in eluvial, illuvial Bh, and parent material horizons were 15.5–28.4 mg kg−1, 25.8–55.6 mg kg−1, and 8.7–29.6 mg kg−1, respectively. The Pb isotope composition determined in the ectohumus horizons and eluvial horizons showed that about 86–95% of lead existing in these surface horizons originated from emissions resulting from the burning of coal exploited in Poland and the Czech Republic. The Pb isotope signatures of lead present in the illuvial horizon (Bs) and parent material (C) pointed to the lithogenic origin of this element. The results obtained indicated that higher-elevation areas of the Karkonosze National Park have been contaminated with lead from long distance emissions. Pollution with lead has been limited only to ectohumus and eluvial horizons, although the soil-forming process contributed to translocation of lithogenic lead down the soil profile to the illuvial Bh horizon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]