Hello ecologists,
My colleague and I are sponsoring a session at the American Association of Geographers annual meeting in Washington D.C., titled "Thinking beyond climate: Biogeomorphology and biotic drivers of landscape evolution". I have pasted the session abstract below. We still have one slot open, so please consider presenting. If you have any questions, please contact me or my co-sponsor. Thinking beyond climate: Biogeomorphology and biotic drivers of landscape evolution Organizers: Paul Reyerson ([email protected]) & Jacquelyn Gill ([email protected]), University of Wisconsin-Madison, Dept. of Geography Sponsors: AAG Biogeography Specialty Group, Geomorphology Specialty Group Abstract While many studies have linked climate as the primary driver of landscape evolution, increasingly, research has shown that other influences play important roles. Indeed, biotic processes can be critical determinants of landscape evolution, often rivaling or even eclipsing climate at the local scale. In this session we consider biotic processes that influence landscape evolution (e.g. biogeomorphology). Biogeomorphological processes include plant-soil interactions, herbivory, bioturbation, dune stabilization, and even anthropogenic disturbance, among others. Any change in these processes may manifest as changes in landscape. For example, the removal of herbivores can lead to a buildup of vegetation, and subsequent increase in fire, which can have important consequences for soil development, plant succession, and nutrient cycling. Earthworms have been referred to as "ecosystem engineers," indicating a disproportionate impact on the landscape. How do these biotic processes affect landscape evolution, and to what degree? How do we disentangle biogeomorphic processes from climate? What are the long-term ecological and geomorphic implications, if any? Biogeomorphology is at the crux of geomorphology and biogeography, incorporating research from above- and below-ground processes on terrestrial, aquatic and fluvial systems. The goal of this session is to broadly identify biogeomorphic processes operating at a range of spatial and temporal scales, and to highlight recent advances in this interdisciplinary field of physical geography. *** Paul E. Reyerson PhD Candidate Department of Geography University of Wisconsin-Madison 160 Science Hall 550 North Park Street Madison, Wisconsin 53706 [email protected]
