Abstract
The effects of tree pollen on precipitation chemistry are not fully understood and this can lead to misinterpretations of element deposition in European forests. We investigated the relationship between forest throughfall (TF) element fluxes and the Seasonal Pollen Integral (SPIn) using linear mixed-effects modelling (LME). TF was measured in 1990–2018 during the main pollen season (MPS, arbitrary two months) in 61 managed, mostly pure, even-aged Fagus, Quercus, Pinus, and Picea stands which are part of the ICP Forests Level II network. The SPIn for the dominant tree genus was observed at 56 aerobiological monitoring stations in nearby cities. The net contribution of pollen was estimated as the TF flux in the MPS minus the fluxes in the preceding and succeeding months. In stands of Fagus and Picea, two genera that do not form large amounts of flowers every year, TF fluxes of potassium (K+), ammonium-nitrogen (NH4+-N), dissolved organic carbon (DOC), and dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) showed a positive relationship with SPIn. However- for Fagus- a negative relationship was found between TF nitrate-nitrogen (NO3−-N) fluxes and SPIn. For Quercus and Pinus, two genera producing many flowers each year, SPIn displayed limited variability and no clear association with TF element fluxes. Overall, pollen contributed on average 4.1–10.6% of the annual TF fluxes of K+ > DOC > DON > NH4+-N with the highest contribution in Quercus > Fagus > Pinus > Picea stands. Tree pollen appears to affect TF inorganic nitrogen fluxes both qualitatively and quantitatively, acting as a source of NH4+-N and a sink of NO3−-N. Pollen appears to play a more complex role in nutrient cycling than previously thought.
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Data availability
The TF data can be obtained by submitting an official data request through the ICP Forests website http://icp-forests.net/. Data on airborne pollen concentrations can be requested from the national/regional monitoring networks representatives (https://www.zaum-online.de/pollen/pollen-monitoring-map-of-the-world/).
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Acknowledgements
This study is based on data collected by partners of the official UNECE ICP Forests Network (http://icp-forests.net/contributors), partly co-financed by the European Commission (data downloaded on 8 May 2020). The authors would like to express their gratitude to the members of the ICP Forests Expert Panel on Deposition for giving their consent to use the throughfall data for this study. The Italian Aerobiological Monitoring Network POLLnet, belonging to the National System for Environmental Protection - SNPA (http://www.pollnet.it/default_it.asp#), is kindly acknowledged for the provision of airborne pollen concentration data from their stations listed in Table S2. We also want to thank the Air Pollution and Plant Analysis unit at the Austrian Research Centre for Forests (BFW), Astma-Allergi Danmark, Gábor Bobvos, Andrea–Pil Holm, Gergely Mányoki, Marijke Hendrickx, Iben Margrete Thomsen, Michel Thibaudon, Trond Einar Brobakk, Charlotte Sindt, Malgorzata Latałowa, Marcelina Zimny, Joanna Święta–Musznicka, Michael Tatzber and Hans–Peter Dietrich for technical advice on the aerobiological monitoring data and Pieter Verschelde for advice on the statistical analysis.
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AV, EG and N.B. designed the study; AV compiled the data, analysed the data and drafted the manuscript; and all other authors provided data and/or commented critically to the drafts and gave final approval for publication.
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Verstraeten, A., Bruffaerts, N., Cristofolini, F. et al. Effects of tree pollen on throughfall element fluxes in European forests. Biogeochemistry 165, 311–325 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10533-023-01082-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10533-023-01082-3