Biological activity of mountain meadow subalpine soils of Central Caucasus

Fatima Gedgafova,Tatyana Uligova,Olga Gorobtsova,Elena Khakunova,Rustam Tembotov,F.A Tembotova

doi:10.1051/bioconf/20213500008

Fatima Gedgafova, Tatyana Uligova + Show 4 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1051/bioconf/20213500008

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Abstract

Indicators of biological activity (humic content and stock, Cmic content and stock, hydrolytic and redox enzymes activity) were measured for the first time in the upper horizons of mountain meadow subalpine soils of Central Caucasus (elbrus altitudinal zonality in Kabardino-Balkaria). The comparative assessment was performed for the biological characteristics together with soil density and acid-base properties for soils of natural and pasture ecosystems. The integral index of ecological and biological soil state (IIEBSS) was calculated to estimate the level of changes in biological activity. It was shown that pasture degradation leads to 30% decrease of IIEBSS compared to the undisturbed soil. The defined biological parameters of natural undisturbed mountain meadow soils could be used as diagnostic indicators for the ecological studies of ecosystems under anthropogenic load.

Highlights

The area of Kabardino-Balkaria, located on the northern slopes of the Central Caucasus, is only 12.500 km2, and half of its territory is occupied by mountain ranges
For a comparative assessment of the general level of biological activity of natural and pasture mountain meadow subalpine soils, we used the methodology for calculating the integral index of ecological and biological soil state (IIEBSS), which allows integrating the relative values of the studied parameters [19]
The revealed decreases in the indicators of soil microbial respiration: the rate of basal respiration (BR) – 34% and substrate-induced respiration (SIR) – 36%, the content of content of microbial biomass (Cmic) – 36% indicate a possible deterioration in the functioning of the microbial community in disturbed soils

Summary

Introduction

The area of Kabardino-Balkaria, located on the northern slopes of the Central Caucasus, is only 12.500 km, and half of its territory is occupied by mountain ranges. Of all the variety of soils in the mountain system of the Republic, the objects of this study were mountain meadow soils (subalpine subtype), that are common in the elbrus variant of the Kabardino-Balkaria zonality (typified by Tembotov A.K., 1989 [7]) These soils are more widespread than other types of mountain soils and occupy vast areas within the subalpine belt (1400-2800 above sea level). The considered mountain soils are characterized by a high content of coarsely dispersed humus (15-20%) and its exceptional reserves in the upper horizons This specific feature could be described by the climatic conditions of mountain landscapes, which provide constant sufficient soil moisture for the formation of rich meadow vegetation [3,4,5,6, 8,9,10,11,12]. Activity in the upper horizons (0-10 cm) of mountain meadow subalpine soils of natural and pasture ecosystems of Central Caucasus (elbrus altitudinal zonality in Kabardino-Balkaria)

Objects and methods

Results and Discussion

Conclusions