Graduate Thesis Or Dissertation
 

Effects of burrowing by mountain beaver (Aplodontia rufa) on soil in a young forest in the Oregon Coast Range

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  • Soil effects from mountain beaver (Aplodontia rufa ) burrowing were investigated in Oregon Coast Range soils formed from Tyee sandstone. The potential for observed changes in soil to affect productivity was assessed. Soil horizons from mountain beaver mound soil and adjacent unmounded profiles were collected with a monolith-type quantitative sampler. Bulk density, changes in soil depth, soil C (estimated from LOI), Kjeldahl-N, Kjeldahl-P, and Oxalate extractable P and K were measured. Results from these analyses were normalized for differences in organic material by calculating variables as a mass per hectare per fixed weight of ashed soil. This approach combined the advantages of sampling by individual soil horizons, with statistical tools to compare soil profiles with dissimilar horizonal arrangements. Patterns of soil mixing due to mountain beaver, as well as dimensions and arrangement of a single burrow are described. Mountain beaver mixing altered the depth distribution of C, N, and P, increased soil depth, and reduced bulk density. The distribution of gravel in unmounded profiles suggested a history of soil mixing on this site that obscured mixing effects attributable to recent mountain beaver activity. Colluvial action, windthrow, and past animal activity are the most likely causes of background mixing in unmounded profiles. Soil mixing attributed to mountain beavers has the potential to increase site production by increasing soil depth and decreasing bulk density, which can in turn affect moisture holding capacity and rooting depth. Results suggest that mountain-beaver mixing did not change site capital of plant nutrients but altered their distribution within the soil. Potential effects of described changes on short-term and long-term weathering release of plant nutrients is discussed. Mountain beaver mixing resulted in exposure of loose mineral soil on the surface which may increase dry ravel erosion. Thus, burrowing animal activity may represent an important sediment export mechanism from managed stands.
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Déclaration de droits
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