We have recently established a sequence of six tower sites in well-represented terrestrial biomes across an elevation gradient in NM that are the focus of our current research efforts in New Mexico . The six sites include: 2 existing sites at the Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge, in a desert grassland and desert shrubland; 2 existing sites in the Valles Caldera Nature Preserve, established by SAHRA, in a Ponderosa Pine forest and Mixed Conifer forest; and 2 new tower sites that I have received funding for through NM-EPSCoR and the USFS.
Our research objectives are to:
• Make direct measurements of surface carbon, water and energy fluxes above 6 well represented biomes in New Mexico
• Quantify and compare climate drivers, physiological and ecological controls over surface fluxes in all six biomes
• Compare variety of ecosystem processes along an elevation gradient.