Comparative use of lichens, mosses and tree bark to evaluate nitrogen deposition in Germany

Stefanie H Boltersdorf; Roland Pesch; Willy Werner

doi:10.1016/j.envpol.2014.02.017

Comparative use of lichens, mosses and tree bark to evaluate nitrogen deposition in Germany

Environ Pollut. 2014 Jun:189:43-53. doi: 10.1016/j.envpol.2014.02.017. Epub 2014 Mar 14.

Authors

Stefanie H Boltersdorf¹, Roland Pesch², Willy Werner³

Affiliations

¹ Department of Geobotany, University of Trier, Behringstr. 21, D-54296 Trier, Germany. Electronic address: stefanie.boltersdorf@gmx.de.
² Chair of Landscape Ecology, University of Vechta, PO Box 1553, D-49356 Vechta, Germany. Electronic address: rpesch@iuw.uni-vechta.de.
³ Department of Geobotany, University of Trier, Behringstr. 21, D-54296 Trier, Germany. Electronic address: werner@uni-trier.de.

PMID: 24631972
DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2014.02.017

Abstract

To compare three biomonitoring techniques for assessing nitrogen (N) pollution in Germany, 326 lichen, 153 moss and 187 bark samples were collected from 16 sites of the national N deposition monitoring network. The analysed ranges of N content of all investigated biomonitors (0.32%-4.69%) and the detected δ(15)N values (-15.2‰-1.5‰), made it possible to reveal species specific spatial patterns of N concentrations in biota to indicate atmospheric N deposition in Germany. The comparison with measured and modelled N deposition data shows that particularly lichens are able to reflect the local N deposition originating from agriculture.

Keywords: Bark; Lichens; Mosses; Nitrogen deposition; Stable isotopes (15)N.

Publication types

Comparative Study
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Agriculture
Air Pollutants / analysis*
Bryophyta / chemistry*
Environmental Monitoring / methods*
Germany
Lichens / chemistry*
Nitrogen / analysis*
Plant Bark / chemistry*

Substances

Air Pollutants
Nitrogen