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SMP01 Spatial variation of soil microbial processes under Cornus drummondii shrubs of varying size at Konza Prairie, 2017

Soil was collected from multiple locations under individual Cornus drummondii shrub islands of varying size to measure within-shrub heterogeneity in soil microbial processes. Soil chemistry (Total C, Total N, extractable inorganic N, extractable P, and organic matter cotent), microbial biomass C and N, and potential extracellular enzymatic activity of β-glucosidase, phosphatase, NAG-ase, and LAP-ase were measured. Potential carbon mineralization and the isotopic composition of respired soil carbon was measured over a 77-day laboratory incubation.

SMB01 Variation in soil respiration and bacterial community due to species-specific plant-soil history at konza prairie

We conducted a “home vs. away” plant-soil feedback greenhouse experiment using two C3 grass species (Bromus inermis and Pascopyrum smithii) grown in soil collected from Konza Prairie. We used a closed-circuit CO2 trapping method and isotopic analysis to differentiate between root-derived and SOM-derived CO2 production. We investigated how soil chemistry and soil bacterial communities differed in soils with a history of B. inermis vs soils with a history of P. smithii.

SLP01 Leaf physiology in response to fire and climate within Cornus drummondii shrubs at Konza prairie

Woody encroachment threatens the loss of remaining grasslands. Clonal shrubs are of particular concern because of their ability to resprout after disturbance, spread vegetatively, and share resources among interconnected stems. These traits contribute to the encroachment of deep-rooted clonal shrubs in tallgrass prairie. In this study, we investigated how leaf physiological traits differ among interconnected stems within a dominant encroaching shrub in tallgrass prairie, Cornus drummondii. Accounting for intra-clonal differences among stems in response to disturbance may be useful to more accurately parameterize models that predict the effects of shrub encroachment on ecosystem processes. Gas exchange rates, water potential, carbon isotopes, and leaf traits were collected from the periphery to the center of discrete C. drummondii shrubs. Measurements took place in the summers of 2015 and 2018

SDR01 Intra-clonal stem demography of Cornus drummondii in response to fire and browsing at Konza Prairie

Intra-clonal stem density, natality, mortality, flowering and relative growth rate within discrete Cornus drummondii shrubs in response to fire frequency (4- vs 20-yr burn intervals) and simulated browsing. Tagged stems within individual shrubs were tracked and measured at the beginning and end of each growing season in 2018 and 2019 to assess the interactions of fire and browsing on stem demography.

WER01 Elevated CO2 counteracts effects of water stress on woody rangeland-encroaching species at Konza Prairie

Woody plants are increasing prevalence and dominance in many rangelands around the world. The reason for their increase is various but two common drivers that have changed are an increase in CO2 concentrations and alteration to precipitation dynamics. We asked what the physiological growth dynamics of four juvenile woody plant species (Cornus drummondii, Rhus glabra, Gleditsia triacanthos and Juniperus osteosperma) when grown in elevated CO2 and chronically water stressed. We found that elevated CO2 counteracts much of the physiological effects of chronic water stress in the four different woody plant species measured. The alleviation of water stress from increased CO2 concentrations will result in juvenile woody plants continuing to expand and establish in North American rangelands. This information will aid land managers in making long-term management objectives for reducing woody plants in rangelands.

RFP01 Properties of large hillslope blocks and cliff faces along the cottonwood limestone near the konza prairie nature trail

This data is a collection of point observations and measurments of large rock fragments on grassland hillslopes. Data was collected from 30 hillslope transects that extend downslope perpidicular from the bedrock cliff formed from the Cottonwodd limestone. Transects are 30 meters long and 1 meter wide. Observations of blocks include properites such as size, shape, and surface weathering. This data set also includes observtions of cliff properties associated with each transpect location. Measurments we made in field by hand for rock fragments larger than pebble (>64mm).

WAT03 Climate legacy effects shape tallgrass prairie nitrogen cycling

Climate change is expected to shift precipitation regimes in the North American Central Plains with likely impacts on ecosystem functioning. In tallgrass prairies, water and nitrogen (N) can co-limit ecosystem processes, so changes in precipitation may have complex effects on carbon (C) and N cycling. Rates of N supply such as N mineralization and nitrification respond differently to short- and long-term patterns in water availability, and previous climate patterns may exert legacy effects on current N cycling that could alter ecosystem sensitivity to current precipitation regimes. We used a long-term precipitation manipulation at Konza Prairie (Kansas, USA) to assess how previous and current precipitation influence tallgrass prairie N cycling. Supplemental irrigation was applied across upland and lowland prairie for ~25 years to reduce water deficits; in 2017, we reversed some of these treatments and added a reduced rainfall treatment across both historic rainfall regimes, allowing us to assess how previous climate and current rainfall patterns interact to shape N cycling. In lowland prairie, previous irrigation doubled N mineralization and nitrification rates the year following cessation of irrigation. Reduced microbial C/N ratio and lower relative investment in N-acquiring enzymes in previously irrigated lowlands suggested that a wetter climate created a legacy of increased N availability for microbes. Internal plant N resorption increased under short-term irrigation but recovered to ambient levels following previous irrigation. Together, these results suggest that a history of wetter conditions prairie can create a legacy of accelerated N cycling and with consequences for both plant and microbial functioning.

AWT02 Water temperature measured continuously in Konza Prairie streams

Water temperature is measured in streams draining catchments with annual, 2-year, 4-year, and 20-year burn treatments. Hourly measurements of water temperature (degrees C) are made in each of the four streams where discharge is continuously monitored (see data set ASD02).

RIV01 Stream water isotopes in wooded riparian areas and areas where canopy had been cut at Konza Prairie

The stream water samples are the same as collected for the NWC01 dataset. Water samples are frozen (-3 C) in sealed polyvinyl bottles until time of processing. These water samples are thawed, subsampled at 1 mL, and analyzed for delta18O and delta2H using a Picarro L2130-i isotopic water analyzer. Samples are corrected using in-house standards calibrated to the international standard, V-SMOW. The long-term precision for delta18O is 0.1 permil and for delta2H is 1 permil.

RIV03 Channel morphology in streams in wooded riparian areas and areas before and after canopy cutting at Konza Prairie

Our project was designed to test if woody removal in a riparian zone allowed the system to rebound to a grassland stream state. We hypothesized that removal would increase stream width due to increased erosion without plant cover.

RIV05 Leaf mass in streams in wooded riparian areas and areas where canopy had been cut at Konza Prairie

Our project was designed to test if woody removal in a riparian zone allowed the system to rebound to a grassland state. We hypothesized that removal would decrease organic matter input into streams.

RIV07 Seeding rates woody removal of a tallgrass prairie stream and riparian zone after a decade of woody vegetation removal

In fall of 2010 in watershed N2B ( 39.088976°, -96.588599°), we established plant community plots to assess the potential ability of the riparian zone to shift to a grassland state based on cutting alone and cutting with replanting. The three treatments were 1) naturally open riparian grassland before the removal, 2) areas cleared of woody vegetation, and 3) areas cleared of woody vegetation and seeded with prairie plant species. The addition of the seeded treatment was designed to address if recovery of grassland vegetation is hindered by propagule limitation. The seeded and non-seeded removal plots were adjacent to each other and randomly assigned. In each community type, there were four plots, each of which was 10 m parallel along and 3 m perpendicular to the stream channel. Each plot had four plant composition transects along which we sampled four one m2 subplots along each transect. Vegetative cover of vascular plant species was determined using a modified Daubenmire scale (Gibson and Hulbert 1987).

WPE01 Assessing the value added of NEON for using machine learning to quantify vegetation mosaics and woody plant encroachment at Konza Prairie

Woody encroachment, or invasion of woody plants, is rapidly shifting tallgrass prairie into shrub and evergreen dominated ecosystems, mainly due to exclusion of fire. Tracking the pace and extent of woody encroachment is difficult because shrubs and small trees are much smaller than the coarse resolution (>10m2) of common remote sensed images. However, the US government has been investing in finer resolution (<2m2) remote sensing through USDA NAIP and the National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON), both of which cost multi-million dollars each year and contain different remote sensed products. We compared two methods of classification (random forests and support vector machines) with these two freely available remotely sensed aerial images to determine if and how much NEON adds to classification accuracy and determine which method of machine learning was more accurate. All models have very high overall classification accuracy (>91%), with the NEON image a few percent more accurate than NAIP. The NEON image significantly relies on canopy height (LiDAR) to make classifications, but the importance of bands is more evenly distributed during NAIP classification. Lastly, accuracy for Eastern Red Cedar specifically is high with NEON (78-84%), compared to the relatively low classification accuracy using NAIP imagery (55-61%).

DEM01 Demographic studies of four forb species at Konza Prairie

Plant survival, growth, reproduction, and recruitment of 4 forb species (Amorpha canescens, Echinacea angustifolia, Aster oblongifolius, Kuhnia eupatorioides) were estimated annually within permanent transects in 20 watersheds, starting in 2020.

openCC0Jan 2026View details →

BGPVC Plant species composition in the Belowground Plot Experiment at Konza Prairie

Two permanent plant composition plots were marked with conduit in each of the 64 plots. Canopy cover was recorded in a 5 m2circular area surrounding each of the plots. At approximately 5-year intervals, coverage is assessed in late July, using visual estimates of cover by species, based on a modified Daubenmire scale. In 1989, sampling was done once in early July after mowing using one 10 m2 plot placed randomly in the approximate center of each plot. In 1994, plant composition sampling was done in early June in the unmowed plots; sampling in the mowed plots occurred in August. In 1999, two permanent conduits were placed in each plot, and sampling was conducted in June, before mowing, and again in August using 5 m2 plot sizes. In 2005 and afterward, sampling was reduced to one time in late July. Sampling occurred once every five years until 2015. Plots have been sampled annually since 2016. Two of the long-term unburned plots in a wildfire in 1994 and 1995. Those plots and years of the fire are indicated on the linked plot map. The mowing treatment was discontinued after 2002 due to invasion of the mowed plots by old world bluestem grasses. Data users should check for exotic species impacts on specific mowed subplots prior to this. In addition, fertilization in all plots ceased in 2017 as part of recovery from chronic N enrichment experiment.

openCC0Apr 2023View details →

SPW01 Spatial and physical characteristics of bison wallows on Konza Prairie since 2011

The objective of this study was to characterize spatial and physical attributes of bison wallows at the Konza Prairie Biological Station in northeastern Kansas. We used aerial imagery from two different years (2011 and 2019) to assess the abundance and spatial distribution of wallows in relation to fire frequency, elevation, and slope. We also recorded physical characteristics for a randomly selected subset of wallows (n = 966) and analyzed these data in relation to the same landscape features. Results indicate that wallows are more abundant on areas characterized by combinations of more frequent burning, higher elevations, and little or no slope. Wallows were smaller in areas burned more often and shallower at higher elevations, particularly when located on grazing lawns. Terrestrial plants were found in approximately 72.1% of the wallows sampled, and their prevalence increased with increasing slope. We found some quantity of aquatic plants in approximately 7.1% of the sampled wallows. The probability of finding aquatic vegetation in wallows was higher on grazing lawns and in areas burned less frequently, particularly every 20 years.

openCC0Aug 2023View details →

WAT05 Soil organic matter response to thirty years of increased precipitation at Konza Prairie

This dataset contains carbon and nitrogen concentrations and stocks in total soil organic matter and its fractions from the Konza Prairie Irrigation Transect Experiment. The dataset also includes pyrogenic organic matter C and N, as well as microbial amino sugars and root quality measurements. Data are availble for irrigated and control plots. Total pyrogenic and unburned soil organic matter C and N are availble for both the upland and lowland positions at 0-5, 5-15, and 15-30cm depth increments. Fraction and root data are avaible at both landscape positions, but for only the 0-5cm and 5-15cm depths and 0-5 and 5-30cm depths, respectively. Amino sugar data are only available for the lowland plots for the 0-5 and 5-15cm depths.

BMS01 Mycorrhizae spore density and composition in the Belowground Plot Experiment at Konza Prairie

Spore densities of 14 groups (13 species + unknown) were measured the 64 belowground plots (record type 1). Effects of burning, mowing, and N + P additions on spore densities (an index of AM fungi infection rates). Community indices and percent root colonization (record type 2). Effects of burning, mowing, and N + P additions on mycorrhizal community composition and root colonization.

openCC0Aug 2024View details →

WES01 Woody encroachment impacts on the subsurface at Konza Prairie

Soil sampling pits across three hillslope positions - toeslope, backslope, and summit - were dug in 2020 in watershed N4D (burned every 4 years) and N1D (burned annually) to characterize the impacts of woody encroachment on subsurface soil physical, chemical, and biological properties. Pits were hand-dug to 120 cm in the toeslope position and to 60 cm deep at the backslope and summit positions. Soil pits in N4D were dug directly under dogwood shrubs (Cornus drumondii) while pits in N1B were dug under grasses and forbs. Soil pit faces were photographed to determine root fractions with depth, soil monoliths were take to charaterize soil macroporosity with depth while soil cores were taken in each horizon for water retention analysis. Soil sensors were also installed at four soil depths at the toeslope position and 3 soil depths at the backslope and summit positions to record half hourly soil moisture, soil temperature, soil water potential, soil electrical conductivity, and soil carbon dioxide, and soil oxygen. In addition, geophysical measurements were taken in N4D using time-lapse electrical resistivity in 2023.