Soil Respiration in Native and Non-native Tree Formations
About my project
I spent the summer at the Universidad de Alcala under Pilar Castro working on soil respiration of tree formations in Monfragüe National Park, Spain through the Center for Undergraduate Research's Summer Undergraduate International Research Program.
The Monfragüe National Park has a long and diverse history of use and restoration, which has caused a variety of different tree formations composed of both native and non-native species. To further understand the extent of the impacts that the non-native pine and eucalyptus vegetation have on ecosystem services, compared with the native vegetation, the Biological Invasions Research Group at the University of Alcalá is investigating the carbon stock of the different coexisting tree formations, both in above and belowground compartments. Within the time frame of this program, we assessed potential soil respiration for each vegetation type to help determine potential carbon effluxes, as well as the effects of litter from each vegetation type on potential respiration of a standard soil.
Learn more about my experiences in SUIRP by looking at the Research updates and Reflections tabs!
