Biological Soil Crusts:

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Biological Soil Crusts An Emerging Restoration
Technology
Steven Paulsen Conservation Seeding
Restoration, Inc.
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Biological Soil Crusts

• Definition
• Biological soil crusts are a matrix of organisms
  that co-occur on the soil surface and act to
  stabilize and protect the surface from erosion.

aka BSC, cryptobiotic soils, cryptogamic soils,
microphytic crusts, microbiotic crusts Physical
Crusts are NOT Biological Soil Crusts!
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BSC Organisms

• Cyanobacteria
• Green algae
• Lichens
• Mosses
• Microfungi
• Bacteria

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North American Distribution of BSC

• Found in ecosystems ranging from alpine to desert
  
• However, commonly occur and have most diverse
  communities in arid and semi-arid eco-regions
• Occur in both hot and cool desert ecosystems

Belnap et al. 2001
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BSC Ecology in Cold Deserts BSC are a major
component of the semi-arid ecosystem!

• Found in the soil surface in the open spaces
  between higher plants.
• May constitute as much as 70 of living cover.
• Belnap 1994, Belnap et al. 2003

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Macro-view of BSC
Biological soil crusts predominate the
interspaces of a sagebrush community in western
Wyoming.
Sagebrush
Bunchgrass
Shadscale
BSC
Forb
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Belnap et al. 2001
Ecological Relationships for Biological Soil
Crusts
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Ecological Roles of BSC

• Photosynthetic organisms
• Soil Fertility
• nitrogen fixation dominant source of nitrogen
  for desert systems
• carbon fixation
• Soil hydrology
• aids in soil aggregate formation, soil organic
  matter, water infiltration
• Ecosystem resilience to invasion
• inhibition of the germination of introduced
  annual grasses and weeds such as Bromus spp. and
  Salsola spp.
• SOIL STABILITY AND PROTECTION!!!!
• Belnap et al. 2001, Warren 2003, West 1990,
  Kaltenecker et al. 1999, Deines et al. 2007

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BSC DisturbanceBSC are FRAGILE!
Soil surface disturbance damages BSC

• Dirt work such as scraping, ripping stockpiling
  soil kills BSC.
• Lower level disturbances including grazing,
  vehicle traffic, human animal traffic are
  detrimental to BSC.

Belnap et al. 2001
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Sequence of BSC Species Re-colonization
Regeneration of BSC in Great Basin Deserts
Years to Recovery
Belnap and Eldridge 2003
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Why Include BSC in Reclamation?

• BSC are a major component of the ecosystem
• Potential benefits of including BSC
• Reduce time needed for reclamation
• Reduce need for inputs (erosion control, soil
  nutrients and conditioners, etc.)
• Reduce susceptibility to weed invasion
• Decrease need for erosion control measures
• Air quality improvement with soil stability

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BSC and Oil Gas Reclamation
Wyoming Reclamation Policy, March 2009

• Reclamation Goals
• Short term goal immediately stabilize disturbed
  areas and provide conditions necessary to achieve
  the long term goal.
• Long term goal facilitate eventual ecosystem
  reconstruction to maintain a safe and stable
  landscape and meet the desired outcomes of the
  land use plan.

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Current Reclamation Criteria Goals Include

• Erosion Control
• Vegetation Cover
• Vegetation Density
• Species Diversity
• Weed Composition
• Plant Vigor
• .Soil Health????

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How to Include BSC in Reclamation?

• Promote BSC Recovery
• Manage or reduce disturbance regime
• Traffic, grazing, erosion
• Provide physical protection
• Establish vegetation, mulches, rocks, Christmas
  trees
• Create Microtopography
• Nutrients
• Inoculation
• Patent pending technology being developed
• (cooperative between CSR, Inc. and National
  Science Foundation).

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Inoculation

• Collect native sourced materials
• Propagate
• Application to disturbed soils

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Preliminary Lab Trials
Soil aggregate stability (Herrick et al. 2001)
was analyzed 17 days after spray application of
cultured Microcoleus sp.
Mean soil stability of soil inoculated with 0, 1,
3, 5, 40, and 100 of naturally occurring BSC.
Error bars represent 1 SEM for soil samples
measured for aggregate stability.
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The Future

• Field trials begin fall 2010
• Scale up field trials 2011
• Interest in working with CSR, Inc. on this
  project please contact

Conservation Seeding Restoration, Inc. Steven
Paulsen steven_at_csr-inc.com [phone]
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References

• Belnap, J. 1994. Potential role of cryptobiotic
  soil crust in semiarid rangelands. In Monsen,
  S.B., and S.G. Kitchen, eds. ProceedingEcology
  and Management of Annual Rangelands. General
  Technical Report INT-GTR-313. USDA Forest
  Service, Intermountain Research, Ogden, UT. pp
  179-185.
• Belnap, J., J. H. Kaltenecker, R. Rosentreter, J.
  Williams, S. Leonard, and D. Eldridge. 2001.
  Biological Soil Crusts Ecology and Management.
  Technical Reference 1730-2. United States
  Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land
  Management, Denver, Colorado.
• Belnap, J., and D.J., Eldridge. 2003.
  Disturbance and recovery of biological soil
  crusts. In Belnap J. and O.L. Lange, eds.
  Biological soil crusts structure, function, and
  management. Springer, Berlin Heidelberg New York,
  pp 363-383.
• Belnap J., R. Prasse, and K.T. Harper. 2003.
  Influence of biological soil crusts on soil
  environments and vascular plants. In Belnap J.,
  and O.L. Lange, eds. Biological soil crusts
  structure, function, and management. Springer,
  Berlin Heidelberg New York, pp 281300.
• Deines, L., R. Rosentreter, D.L. Eldrige, and
  M.D. Serpe. 2007. Germination and seeding
  establishment of two annual grasses on
  lichen-dominated biological soil crusts. Plant
  and Soil. 29523-35.
• Herrick, J.E., W.G. Whitford, A.G. de Soyza, J.W.
  Van Zee, K.M. Havstad, C.A. Seybold, and M.
  Walton. 2001. Field soil aggregate stability kit
  for soil quality and rangeland health
  evaluations. Catena 44, 27-35.
• Kaltenecker, J.H., M. Wicklow-Howard, and M.
  Pellant. 1999. Biological soil crusts natural
  barriers to Bromus tectorum L. establishment in
  the northern Great Basin, USA. In Eldridge, D.,
  and D. Freudenberger, eds. Proceedings of the VI
  International Rangeland Congress, Aitkenvale,
  Queensland, Australia. pp 109-111.
• Warren, S.D. 2003. Synopsis Influence of
  biological soil crusts on arid land hydrology and
  soil stability. In Belnap J., and O.L. Lange,
  eds. Biological soil crusts structure, function,
  and management. Springer, Berlin Heidelberg New
  York, pp 349-360.
• West, N.E. 1990. Structure and function of soil
  microphytic crusts in wildland ecosystem of arid
  and semi-arid regions. Adv Ecol Res. 20179-223.