SpringerLink
Log in

Patterns in the Chemical Fractionation of Organic Nitrogen in Rocky Mountain Streams

  • Published:
Ecosystems Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The intraannual dynamics of particulate organic nitrogen (PON) and two fractions of dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) were investigated in two Rocky Mountain streams draining watersheds with low rates of N deposition. Organic nitrogen accounted for over 60% of the total annual nitrogen export and consisted mostly of DON. Nitrate peaked during winter months and declined considerably during the growing season (less than 10 µg/L) suggesting the importance of biotic uptake. Concentrations of PON, total DON, and two DON fractions (humic and non-humic) peaked during spring runoff and were positively related to discharge, indicating hydrologic influence. Total DON and its two fractions showed significant inverse relationships to nitrate, indicating that DON and nitrate followed different intraannual patterns. Despite its seasonal fluctuations in concentration, PON showed a consistent carbon–nitrogen (C:N) ratio suggesting that it was relatively uniform in composition. Fractionation studies indicated that DON was primarily of non-humic origin, whereas dissolved organic carbon (DOC) was mainly derived from humic sources. The two DON fractions differed from each other in seasonal patterns of concentration and C:N ratio. The proportion of humic DON increased during snowmelt, and there were diverging seasonal patterns in the C:N ratio of the two fractions implying variations in bioavailability. Although organic nitrogen is commonly treated as a single pool in ecological studies, our results indicated that DON consists of fractions that undergo large intraannual changes in proportions and chemical composition. Treatment of DON as a single pool may be misleading from the viewpoint of understanding ecosystem processes directly related to changes in its sources and biological reactivity.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
EUR 32.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or Ebook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Price includes VAT (Germany)

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
Figure 4
Figure 5
Figure 6

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. J Aber W McDowell K Nadelhoffer A Magill G Berntson M Kamakea S McNulty W Currie L Rustad I Fernandez (1998) ArticleTitleNitrogen saturation in temperate forest ecosystems. BioScience 48 921–34

    Google Scholar 

  2. GR Aiken DM McKnight KA Thorn EM Thurman (1992) ArticleTitleIsolation of hydrophilic organic-acids from water using nonionic macroporous resins. Organic Geochemistry 18 567–573 Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DyaK38XlvFyjtb4%3D

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. AK Aufdenkampe JI Hedges JE Richey AV Krusche CA Llerena (2001) ArticleTitleSorptive fractionation of dissolved organic nitrogen and amino acids onto fine sediments within the Amazon Basin. Limnol Oceanogr 46 1921–35 Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DC%2BD38Xht12mtw%3D%3D

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. MA Baker HM Valett CN Dahm (2000) ArticleTitleOrganic carbon supply and metabolism in a shallow groundwater ecosystem. Ecology 81 3133–48

    Google Scholar 

  5. JS Baron DH Campbell (1997) ArticleTitleNitrogen fluxes in a high-elevation Colorado Rocky Mountain Basin. Hydrol Process 11 783–99

    Google Scholar 

  6. EW Boyer GM Hornberger KE Bencala DM McKnight (1997) ArticleTitleResponse characteristics of DOC flushing in an alpine catchment. Hydrol Process 11 1635–47

    Google Scholar 

  7. DA Bronk PM Glibert BB Ward (1994) ArticleTitleNitrogen uptake, dissolved organic nitrogen release, and new production. Science 265 1843–6 Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DyaK2cXmtFags7g%3D

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. PD Brooks MW Williams SK Schmidt (1998) ArticleTitleInorganic nitrogen and microbial biomass dynamics before and during spring snowmelt. Biogeochemistry 43 1–15 Occurrence Handle10.1023/A:1005947511910

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. PD Brooks DH Campbell KA Tonnessen K Heuer (1999) ArticleTitleNatural variability in N export from headwater catchments: snow cover controls on ecosystem N retention. Hydrol Process 13 2191–201

    Google Scholar 

  10. PD Brooks DM McKnight KE Bencala (1999) ArticleTitleThe relationship between soil heterotrophic activity, soil dissolved organic carbon (DOC) leachete, and catchment-scale DOC export in headwater catchments. Water Resources Res 35 1895–1902 Occurrence Handle10.1029/1998WR900125 Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DyaK1MXjvVKnsr8%3D

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. JL Campbell JW Hornbeck WH McDowell DC Buso JB Shanley GE Likens (2000) ArticleTitleDissolved organic nitrogen budgets for upland forested ecosystems in New England. Biogeochemistry 49 123–42 Occurrence Handle10.1023/A:1006383731753 Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DC%2BD3c**s1yjt7g%3D

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. DH Campbell JS Baron KA Tonnessen PD Brooks PF Schuster (2000) ArticleTitleControls on nitrogen flux in alpine/subalpine watersheds of Colorado. Water Resources Res 36 37–47 Occurrence Handle10.1029/1999WR900283 Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DC%2BD3cXhs12mt7w%3D

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. DW Clow JK Sueker (2000) ArticleTitleRelations between basin characteristics and stream water chemistry in alpine/subalpine basins in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado. Water Resources Res 36 49–61 Occurrence Handle10.1029/1999WR900294 Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DC%2BD3cXhs12mt70%3D

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. IF Creed LE Band (1998) ArticleTitleExport of nitrogen from catchments within a temperate forest: Evidence for a unifying mechanism regulated by variable source area dynamics. Water Resources Res 34 315–20

    Google Scholar 

  15. ML Davi S Bignami C Milan M Liboni MG Malfatto (1993) ArticleTitleDetermination of nitrate in surface waters by ion-exchange chromatography after oxidation of total organic nitrogen to nitrate. J Chromatogr 644 345–8 Occurrence Handle10.1016/0021-9673(93)80718-N Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DyaK3sXlsVKhs78%3D

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. KB Easthouse J Mulder N Christophersen HM Seip (1992) ArticleTitleDissolved organic carbon fractions in soil and stream water during variable hydrological conditions at Birkenes, southern Norway. Water Resources Res 28 1585–96 Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DyaK38XlsFCrtLk%3D

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. S Findlay RL Sinsabuagh (1999) ArticleTitleUnravelling the sources and bioavailability of dissolved organic matter in lotic aquatic ecosystems. Marine Freshw Res 50 781–90 Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DC%2BD3cXks1ymtA%3D%3D

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. CL Goodale JD Aber WH McDowell (2000) ArticleTitleThe long-term effects of disturbance on organic and inorganic nitrogen export in the White Mountains, New Hampshire. Ecosystems 3 433–50

    Google Scholar 

  19. K Grashoff (1976) Methods of seawater analysis. Verlag Chimie Weinheim 126–37

    Google Scholar 

  20. G Guggenberger W Zech HR Schulten (1994) ArticleTitleFormation and mobilization pathways of dissolved organic matter: evidence from chemical structural studies of organic matter fractions in acid forest floor solutions. Org Geochem 21 51–66 Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DyaK2c**tFGqtLw%3D

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  21. LO Hedin JJ Armesto AH Johnson (1995) ArticleTitlePatterns of nutrient loss from unpolluted, old-growth temperate forests: Evaluation of biogeochemical theory. Ecology 76 493–509

    Google Scholar 

  22. K Heuer PD Brooks KA Tonnessen (1999) ArticleTitleNitrogen dynamics in two high elevation catchments during spring snowmelt 1996, Rocky Mountains, Colorado. Hydrol Process 13 2203–14

    Google Scholar 

  23. K Kaiser W Zech (2000) ArticleTitleSorption of dissolved organic nitrogen by acid subsoil horizons and individual mineral phases. Eur J Soil Sci 51 403–11 Occurrence Handle10.1046/j.1365-2389.2000.00320.x Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DC%2BD3cXntFGjtrk%3D

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  24. K Kaiser G Guggenberger L Haumaier W Zech (2001) ArticleTitleSeasonal variations in the chemical composition of dissolved organic matter in organic forest floor layer leachates of old-growth Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) and European Beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) stands in northeastern Bavaria, Germany. Biogeochemistry 55 103–43 Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DC%2BD3MXmvVelsL8%3D

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  25. WM Lewis Jr MC Grant (1979) ArticleTitleRelationships between stream discharge and yield of dissolved substances from a mountain watershed. Soil Sci 128 353–63

    Google Scholar 

  26. WM Lewis Jr MC Grant (1980) ArticleTitleRelationships between snow cover and winter losses of dissolved substances from a mountain watershed. Arctic Alpine Res 12 11–17

    Google Scholar 

  27. WM Lewis Jr MC Grant JF Saunders III (1984a) ArticleTitleChemical patterns of atmospheric deposition in the state of Colorado. Water Resources Res 10 161–174

    Google Scholar 

  28. WM Lewis Jr JF Saunders III DW Crumpacker SR C Brendecke (1984b) Eutrophication and Land Use: Lake Dillon, Colorado. Springer-Verlag New York 202

    Google Scholar 

  29. WM Lewis Jr JM Melack WH McDowell M McClain JE Richey (1999) ArticleTitleNitrogen yields from undisturbed watersheds in the Americas. Biogeochemistry 46 149–62 Occurrence Handle10.1023/A:1006108315578

    Article  Google Scholar 

  30. GM Lovett KC Weathers WV Sobczak (1998) ArticleTitleNitrogen saturation and retention in forested watershed of the Catskill Mountains, NY. Ecol Appl 10 73–84 Occurrence Handle10.1016/S0929-1393(98)00039-0

    Article  Google Scholar 

  31. WH McDowell CE Asbury (1994) ArticleTitleExport of carbon, nitrogen, and major ions from three tropical montane watersheds. Limnol Oceanogr 39 111–25 Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DyaK2cXltFKqt78%3D

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  32. DM McKnight KE Bencala GW Zellweger GR Aiken GL Feder KA Thorn (1992) ArticleTitleSorption of dissolved organic carbon by hydrous aluminum and iron oxides occuring at the confluence of Deer Creek with the Snake River, Summit Country, Colorado. Environ Sci Technol 26 1388–96 Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DyaK38XktFeqt7c%3D

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  33. DM McKnight R Harnish RL Wershaw JS Baron S Schiff (1997) ArticleTitleChemical characteristics of particulate, colloidal, and dissolved organic material in Loch Vale Watershed, Rocky Mountain. Biogeochemistry 36 99–124 Occurrence Handle10.1023/A:1005783812730 Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DyaK2sXhvVejur0%3D

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  34. DM McKnight GM Hornberger KE Bencala EW Boyer (2002) ArticleTitleIn-stream sorption of fulvic acid in an acidic stream: A stream scale transport experiment. Water Resources Res 38 1–12

    Google Scholar 

  35. B Michalzik E Matzner (1999) ArticleTitleDynamics of dissolved organic nitrogen and carbon in a central European Norway spruce ecosystem. Eur J Soil Sci 50 579–90 Occurrence Handle10.1046/j.1365-2389.1999.00267.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  36. SS Perakis LO Hedin (2001) ArticleTitleFluxes and fates of nitrogen in soil of an unpolluted old- growth temperate forest, southern Chile. Ecology 82 2245–60

    Google Scholar 

  37. SS Perakis LO Hedin (2002) ArticleTitleNitrogen losses from unpolluted South American forests mainly via dissolved organic compounds. Nature 415 416–19 Occurrence Handle10.1038/415416a Occurrence Handle11807551

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  38. RG Qualls BL Haines (1991) ArticleTitleGeochemistry of dissolved organic nutrients in water percolating through a forest ecosystem. Soil Sci Soc Am J 55 1112–23

    Google Scholar 

  39. RG Qualls BL Haines (1992) ArticleTitleBiodegradability of dissolved organic matter in forest throughfall, soil solution, and stream water. Soil Sci Soc Am 56 578–86 Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DyaK38XktFequro%3D

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  40. RG Qualls BL Haines WT Swank (1991) ArticleTitleFluxes of dissolved organic nutrients and humic substances in a deciduous forest. Ecology 72 254–66

    Google Scholar 

  41. HM Rueth JS Baron (2002) ArticleTitleDifferences in Englemann spruce forest biogeochemistry east and west of the continental divide in Colorado, USA. Ecosystems 5 45–57

    Google Scholar 

  42. SP Seitzinger RW Sanders (1997) ArticleTitleContribution of dissolved organic nitrogen from rivers to estuarine eutrophication. Marine Ecol Progr Ser 159 1–12

    Google Scholar 

  43. JO Sickman A Leydecker JM Melack (2001) ArticleTitleNitrogen mass balances and abiotic controls on N retention and yield in high-elevation catchments of the Sierra Nevada, California, United States. Water Resources Res 37 1445–61 Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DC%2BD3MXlsl2jtbk%3D

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  44. JO Sickman JM Melack JL Stoddard (2002) ArticleTitleRegional analysis of inorganic nitrogen yield and retention in high-elevation ecosystems of the Sierra Nevada and Rocky Mountains. Biogeochemistry 41 341–74 Occurrence Handle10.1023/A:1016564816701

    Article  Google Scholar 

  45. R Stepanauskas H Laudon NOG Jorgenson (2000) ArticleTitleHigh DON bioavailibility in boreal streams during a spring flood. Limnol Oceanogr 45 1298–307 Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DC%2BD3cXntFCitb8%3D

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  46. R Stottlemeyer CA Troendle D Markowitz (1997) ArticleTitleChange in snowpack, soil water, and streamwater chemistry with elevation during 1990, Fraser Experimental Forest, Colorado. J Hydrol 195 114–36 Occurrence Handle10.1016/S0022-1694(96)03241-6

    Article  Google Scholar 

  47. EM Thurman RL Malcolm (1981) ArticleTitlePreparative isolation of aquatic humic substances. Environ Sci Technol 15 463–6

    Google Scholar 

  48. JC Valderrama (1981) ArticleTitleThe simultaneous analysis of total nitrogen and phosphorus in natural waters. Marine Chem 10 109–22 Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DyaL3MXktlSjtbY%3D

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  49. KL Vanderbilt K Lajtha FJ Swanson (2003) ArticleTitleBiogeochemistry of unpolluted forested watersheds in the Oregon Cascades: temporal patterns of precipitation and stream nitrogen fluxes. Biogeochemistry 62 87–117 Occurrence Handle10.1023/A:1021171016945 Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DC%2BD38XovVGjtr8%3D

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  50. MW Williams JS Baron N Caine R Sommerfeld R Sanford (1996) ArticleTitleNitrogen saturation in the Rocky Mountains. Environ Sci Technol 30 640–6 Occurrence Handle10.1021/es950383e Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DyaK28XhtFWnsw%3D%3D

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  51. MW Williams E Hood N Caine (2001) ArticleTitleRole of organic nitrogen in the nitrogen cycle of a high-elevation catchment, Colorado Front Range. Water Resources Res 37 2569–81 Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DC%2BD3MXotVWmtL4%3D

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  52. MW Williams KA Tonnessen (2000) ArticleTitleCritical load for inorganic nitrogen deposition in the Colorado Front Range, USA. Ecol Appl 10 1648–65

    Google Scholar 

  53. WM Wollheim BJ Peterson LA Deegan JE Hobbie B Hooker WB Bowden KJ Edwardson DB Arscott AE Hershey J Finlay (2001) ArticleTitleInfluence of stream size on ammonium and suspended particulate nitrogen processing. Limnol Oceanogr 46 1–13 Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DC%2BD3MXhtFKjtro%3D

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  54. Z Yu Q Zhang TEC Kraus RA Dahlgren C Anastasio RJ Zaososki (2001) ArticleTitleContribution of amino compounds to dissolved organic nitrogen in forest soils. Biogeochemistry 61 173–198 Occurrence Handle10.1023/A:1020221528515

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

This work was primarily supported by grant NA17RJ1229 from NOAA. Additional funding was provided by the Summit County Water Quality Committee, the Department of Environmental Population and Organismic Biology, the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, and the Graduate School at the University of Colorado. Andrew Martin assisted with field work and laboratory analyses. Jon Carrasco assisted with development of methodology, and Jim Saunders provided logistical support. The work benefited from helpful discussions with Jerry Qualls and Heather Reed. Diane McKnight and two anonymous reviewers provided comments that improved the manuscript.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Limnology, Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309-0216, USA

    Sujay S. Kaushal & William M. Lewis Jr.

  2. Department of Environmental, Population, and Organismic Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309-0334, USA

    Sujay S. Kaushal

Authors
  1. Sujay S. Kaushal
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. William M. Lewis Jr.
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Sujay S. Kaushal.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Kaushal, S., Lewis, W. Patterns in the Chemical Fractionation of Organic Nitrogen in Rocky Mountain Streams . Ecosystems 6, 483–492 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10021-003-0175-3

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10021-003-0175-3

Keywords

Search

Navigation