Our first study site is located just outside the Bonanza Creek Experimental Forest, situated in the boreal forest of interior Alaska, USA. Click here for more information on the Bonanza Creek Long Term Ecological Research site. The APEX fen is a rich fen located in the Tanana River floodplain. It has a diverse vegetation community, with many herbaceous, brown moss, and Sphagnum species. Marsh hawks and a pair of great grey owls roam our site. In 2006 a pair of Great Blue Herons nested near our experimental plots.
The APEX is designed to investigate interactions between hydrologic and thermal controls on peatland carbon cycling. Our water table manipulation includes three water table treatments: a control plot, a lowered plot, and a raised water table plot. Each plot is about 200 m2 in dimension with a permanent wooden boardwalk surrounding the vegetation. A deep trench surrounds the lowered water table plot for passive draining. We are pumping water into the raised water table plot from adjacent surface water sources using solar powered bilge pumps.
Embedded with each water table plot are 3 open top chambers (OTC), which we are using to passively warm air temperatures. Click here to read more about ITEX studies and templates for OTC construction. Our samples are collected within each OTC, and in an additional 3 locations/plot that receive no warming.
Our initial measurements showed rapid responses in air and soil temperatures and water table, demonstrating the success of our methods. We also have measured initial responses in vegetation and carbon emissions to our experimental treatments. Check out our Progress Page for more information on our preliminary data!