We would like to thank Heidi Guenther,Matt Ross,and Conor Morrison,who all helped conduct the laboratory experiment.In addition,we would like to thank Will Wieder and the Townsend Lab at the University of Colorado for assistance analyzing gas samples and Dr.William Adams for providing use of laboratory equipment.Finally,we would like to acknowledge the two anonymous reviewers and Dr.Bettina Weber for reviewing the manuscript.
Introduction:Nitrogen fixation by microorganisms within biological soil crust(“biocrust”)communities provides an important pathway for N inputs in cool desert environments where soil nutrients are low and symbiotic ...