USGS scientists created outdoor testing plots where large squares of biocrusts were exposed to different warming and precipitation factors over time.
Biological Soil Crust ("Biocrust") Science
Biological soil crusts (biocrusts) are commonly found on the soil surface in arid and semi-arid ecosystems (collectively called drylands). Biocrusts can consist of mosses, cyanobacteria, lichens, algae, and microfungi, and they strongly interact with the soil. These organisms or consortium of disparate organisms, depending on the specific biocrust, are important to the functioning of ecosystems and to the organization of plant and soil communities.
Fact Sheet: Biological Soil Crusts—Webs of Life in the Desert
Mapping and Monitoring Biological Soil Crusts with Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS)
Interview with Dr. Sasha Reed on biocrusts and restoration
USGS b-roll video: "Mapping biocrust with UAS technology in Moab, Utah"
Biological Soil Crust Research in Western US Drylands
Biocrusts are consortia of bacteria, cyanobacteria, fungi, lichens, and mosses that occupy the interface between soil and atmosphere in most drylands, providing critical ecosystem functions such as stabilizing soils and increasing fertility. Because drylands are our planet’s largest terrestrial biome, ecosystem health in drylands is globally important. Biocrust communities have been lost or degraded across the U.S. Southwest and Intermountain West due to land use practices such as grazing and energy development.
The loss of biocrusts drives reduced carbon uptake and soil fertility in the ecosystem, and decreased soil stability and water infiltration. A reduction in soil stability is especially troublesome, as destabilized soils can result in increases in dust production — a critical problem in the Southwest. These impacts magnify the effect of warming and drying on Colorado Plateau ecosystems in the absence of active adaptation measures to restore biocrusts in degraded areas. The biggest challenge is how to restore ecosystem function associated with biocrust in a way that will be successful now and, in the future.
![Biocrusts with mosses, Utah](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/side_image/public/media/images/Biocrust_mosses_SBSC_Utah_20170506-1.jpg?itok=yff2sehE)
Biocrust Restoration
Biological soil crust restoration aims to re-establish ecosystem function and build climate change resilience across ecologically disturbed drylands through cultivating and restoring biological soil crust (biocrust) communities. Biocrust organisms are essential for dryland ecosystems. They form the dominant land cover in many drylands and are crucial for increasing soil stability and reducing erosion in ecosystems that would otherwise rapidly lose their topsoil layer as wind-blown dust. They also increase soil fertility by increasing soil organic matter and nutrient content which are essential for plant growth and health. When we think about restoration in drylands we think of biocrusts first; they are essential for reclaiming a disturbed area to a functioning ecosystem.
![Biocrust survey, Utah](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/half_width/public/media/images/Biocrust_survey_Utah_SBSC_20180523.jpg?itok=TedBewOK)
The world’s first-ever Biocrust Farm is located at the Mayberry Native Plant Propagation Center in Castle Valley, Utah. Here scientists and volunteers work together to grow biocrust communities until they are healthy and strong enough to be transplanted to restoration sites.
We began to develop a new method of biocrust restoration, using a liquid cyanobacterial slurry to disperse inoculum for biocrusts on a larger scale. We hope the development of this method can be used for reclaiming large disturbed sites that are too large to restore with dry inoculum, such as those affected by oil and gas development throughout the Southwest.
The biocrust we propagate are salvaged from hotter deserts to the south and west, such that the organisms are adapted to hotter and drier conditions that are likely in a climate changing world. Because of their high visibility, and intersection with lands managed by a wide cross-section of public and private landholders, the restoration sites provide a strong platform for engagement and outreach regarding climate adaptive biocrust restoration. We monitor both the growth of biocrust and the associated ecosystem functions (soil stability, water infiltration, and soil fertility) over time to help evaluate project success. In addition, we measure soil stability and infiltration, as well as collect surface soil samples to measure the total carbon and nitrogen content, and plant available nitrogen content.
The goal of biocrust restoration is to increase the presence of these biocrust microbial communities in the soil to increase the stability, health, and fertility of desert soil ecosystems. As you can see from these photos, the earliest successional communities of cyanobacteria are fundamental for establishing a healthy biocrust community. They are the first soil colonizers and hold soil particles together with their filamentous biomass.
USGS Outstanding in the Field: Biocrusts (Ep. 9)
Welcome to another episode of Outstanding in the Field, the U.S. Geological Survey’s podcast series produced by the Ecosystems Mission Area. We highlight our fun and fascinating fieldwork studying ecosystems across the country. Today we’ll be discussing tiny communities that are found on the surface of the soil in the harsh environments of cold and hot deserts.
USGS scientists created outdoor testing plots where large squares of biocrusts were exposed to different warming and precipitation factors over time.
![Photo of USGS scientist Sasha Reed studying outdoor biocrust testing sites](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/thumbnails/image/SashaClimatePlot2.jpg?itok=REOPz627)
USGS scientist Sasha Reed studies sites where different climate conditions are being mimicked to determine effect on biocrusts.
USGS scientist Sasha Reed studies sites where different climate conditions are being mimicked to determine effect on biocrusts.
USGS scientists created outdoor testing plots where large squares of biocrusts were exposed to different warming and precipitation factors over time.
USGS scientists created outdoor testing plots where large squares of biocrusts were exposed to different warming and precipitation factors over time.
USGS scientists created outdoor testing plots where large squares of biocrusts were exposed to different warming and precipitation factors over time.
USGS scientists created outdoor testing plots where large squares of biocrusts were exposed to different warming and precipitation factors over time.
A single narrow trail leads to research plots monitored by scientists at Canyonlands Research Station since the 1990s. This pristine area of biological soil crusts has never been grazed.
A single narrow trail leads to research plots monitored by scientists at Canyonlands Research Station since the 1990s. This pristine area of biological soil crusts has never been grazed.
Biological technicians, Beth Ogata, Kristina Young, and Natalie Day head back to base-camp after a day of monitoring vegetation and biological soil crusts in Canyonlands NP.
Biological technicians, Beth Ogata, Kristina Young, and Natalie Day head back to base-camp after a day of monitoring vegetation and biological soil crusts in Canyonlands NP.
Hilda Smith, biological technician with Canyonlands Research Station, monitors changes in biological soil crusts in response to experimental increases in temperature and altered precipitation patterns.
Hilda Smith, biological technician with Canyonlands Research Station, monitors changes in biological soil crusts in response to experimental increases in temperature and altered precipitation patterns.
Dr. Jayne Belnap follows a narrow foot path through a diverse patch of biological soil crusts in an isolated area of Canyonlands NP that has never been exposed to grazing. Dr. Belnap has been studying biological soil crusts for more than 30 years.
Dr. Jayne Belnap follows a narrow foot path through a diverse patch of biological soil crusts in an isolated area of Canyonlands NP that has never been exposed to grazing. Dr. Belnap has been studying biological soil crusts for more than 30 years.
To examine the influence of biological soil crusts in ecosystems (soil food webs, soil stability, soil nutrient cycles, and plant communities), Hilda Smith, biological technician, prepares to resample paired experimental plots where biological soil crusts were removed annually since 1995 or left intact at Arches NP.
To examine the influence of biological soil crusts in ecosystems (soil food webs, soil stability, soil nutrient cycles, and plant communities), Hilda Smith, biological technician, prepares to resample paired experimental plots where biological soil crusts were removed annually since 1995 or left intact at Arches NP.
Biological soil crusts, or biocrusts, are lichens, mosses, and cyanobacteria that grow on the soil surface and are common in the spaces between native plants in arid and semi-arid systems. Biocrusts reduce soil erosion, contribute to nutrient and water cycling, and reduce evaporation and invasion by exotic plants.
Biological soil crusts, or biocrusts, are lichens, mosses, and cyanobacteria that grow on the soil surface and are common in the spaces between native plants in arid and semi-arid systems. Biocrusts reduce soil erosion, contribute to nutrient and water cycling, and reduce evaporation and invasion by exotic plants.
![Photo of USGS soil scientist Travis Nauman examines biological soil crust communities near an abandoned well pad during field wo](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/thumbnails/image/FieldTour15_jessPic.jpg?itok=kVMPVhCA)
USGS soil scientist Travis Nauman examines biological soil crust communities near an abandoned well pad during field work.
USGS soil scientist Travis Nauman examines biological soil crust communities near an abandoned well pad during field work.
Mature biocrusts with lichen. Photo taken by the SBSC in Utah during surveys, courtesy of Erika Geiger, 2013.
Mature biocrusts with lichen. Photo taken by the SBSC in Utah during surveys, courtesy of Erika Geiger, 2013.
Photo of biocrust taken at Fort Hill Air Force Base near Salt Lake City, Utah.
Photo of biocrust taken at Fort Hill Air Force Base near Salt Lake City, Utah.
Photo of biocrust taken at Birds of Prey NRCA near Biose, Idaho.
Photo of biocrust taken at Birds of Prey NRCA near Biose, Idaho.
![Cattle walking across biological soil crusts in southeastern Utah.](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/thumbnails/image/67-IMG_1940%20%281%29_1.jpg?itok=vj4BMdNx)
Cattle walking across biological soil crusts in southeastern Utah.
Cattle walking across biological soil crusts in southeastern Utah.
Intact biological soil crusts (biocrusts) in Canyonlands National Park. Photo taken by Jayne Belnap, USGS, 2004.
Intact biological soil crusts (biocrusts) in Canyonlands National Park. Photo taken by Jayne Belnap, USGS, 2004.
The pervasive and multifaceted influence of biocrusts on water in the world’s drylands
What could explain δ13C signatures in biocrust cyanobacteria of drylands?
Biological soil crusts in ecological restoration: Emerging research and perspectives
Practices of biological soil crust rehabilitation in China: Experiences and challenges
The burning of biocrusts facilitates the emergence of a bare soil community of poorly-connected chemoheterotrophic bacteria with depressed ecosystem services
Inoculation and habitat amelioration efforts in biological soil crust recovery vary by desert and soil texture
Grazing-induced changes to biological soil crust cover mediate hillslope erosion in a long-term exclosure experiment
Microsite enhancements for soil stabilization and rapid biocrust colonization in degraded drylands
Addressing barriers to improve biocrust colonization and establishment in dryland restoration
Induced biological soil crust controls on wind erodibility and dust (PM10) emissions
Passive restoration of vegetation and biological soil crusts following 80 years of exclusion from grazing across the Great Basin
Biocrust science and global change
Below are partners associated with this project.
Biological soil crusts (biocrusts) are commonly found on the soil surface in arid and semi-arid ecosystems (collectively called drylands). Biocrusts can consist of mosses, cyanobacteria, lichens, algae, and microfungi, and they strongly interact with the soil. These organisms or consortium of disparate organisms, depending on the specific biocrust, are important to the functioning of ecosystems and to the organization of plant and soil communities.
Fact Sheet: Biological Soil Crusts—Webs of Life in the Desert
Mapping and Monitoring Biological Soil Crusts with Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS)
Interview with Dr. Sasha Reed on biocrusts and restoration
USGS b-roll video: "Mapping biocrust with UAS technology in Moab, Utah"
Biological Soil Crust Research in Western US Drylands
Biocrusts are consortia of bacteria, cyanobacteria, fungi, lichens, and mosses that occupy the interface between soil and atmosphere in most drylands, providing critical ecosystem functions such as stabilizing soils and increasing fertility. Because drylands are our planet’s largest terrestrial biome, ecosystem health in drylands is globally important. Biocrust communities have been lost or degraded across the U.S. Southwest and Intermountain West due to land use practices such as grazing and energy development.
The loss of biocrusts drives reduced carbon uptake and soil fertility in the ecosystem, and decreased soil stability and water infiltration. A reduction in soil stability is especially troublesome, as destabilized soils can result in increases in dust production — a critical problem in the Southwest. These impacts magnify the effect of warming and drying on Colorado Plateau ecosystems in the absence of active adaptation measures to restore biocrusts in degraded areas. The biggest challenge is how to restore ecosystem function associated with biocrust in a way that will be successful now and, in the future.
![Biocrusts with mosses, Utah](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/side_image/public/media/images/Biocrust_mosses_SBSC_Utah_20170506-1.jpg?itok=yff2sehE)
Biocrust Restoration
Biological soil crust restoration aims to re-establish ecosystem function and build climate change resilience across ecologically disturbed drylands through cultivating and restoring biological soil crust (biocrust) communities. Biocrust organisms are essential for dryland ecosystems. They form the dominant land cover in many drylands and are crucial for increasing soil stability and reducing erosion in ecosystems that would otherwise rapidly lose their topsoil layer as wind-blown dust. They also increase soil fertility by increasing soil organic matter and nutrient content which are essential for plant growth and health. When we think about restoration in drylands we think of biocrusts first; they are essential for reclaiming a disturbed area to a functioning ecosystem.
![Biocrust survey, Utah](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/half_width/public/media/images/Biocrust_survey_Utah_SBSC_20180523.jpg?itok=TedBewOK)
The world’s first-ever Biocrust Farm is located at the Mayberry Native Plant Propagation Center in Castle Valley, Utah. Here scientists and volunteers work together to grow biocrust communities until they are healthy and strong enough to be transplanted to restoration sites.
We began to develop a new method of biocrust restoration, using a liquid cyanobacterial slurry to disperse inoculum for biocrusts on a larger scale. We hope the development of this method can be used for reclaiming large disturbed sites that are too large to restore with dry inoculum, such as those affected by oil and gas development throughout the Southwest.
The biocrust we propagate are salvaged from hotter deserts to the south and west, such that the organisms are adapted to hotter and drier conditions that are likely in a climate changing world. Because of their high visibility, and intersection with lands managed by a wide cross-section of public and private landholders, the restoration sites provide a strong platform for engagement and outreach regarding climate adaptive biocrust restoration. We monitor both the growth of biocrust and the associated ecosystem functions (soil stability, water infiltration, and soil fertility) over time to help evaluate project success. In addition, we measure soil stability and infiltration, as well as collect surface soil samples to measure the total carbon and nitrogen content, and plant available nitrogen content.
The goal of biocrust restoration is to increase the presence of these biocrust microbial communities in the soil to increase the stability, health, and fertility of desert soil ecosystems. As you can see from these photos, the earliest successional communities of cyanobacteria are fundamental for establishing a healthy biocrust community. They are the first soil colonizers and hold soil particles together with their filamentous biomass.
USGS Outstanding in the Field: Biocrusts (Ep. 9)
Welcome to another episode of Outstanding in the Field, the U.S. Geological Survey’s podcast series produced by the Ecosystems Mission Area. We highlight our fun and fascinating fieldwork studying ecosystems across the country. Today we’ll be discussing tiny communities that are found on the surface of the soil in the harsh environments of cold and hot deserts.
USGS scientists created outdoor testing plots where large squares of biocrusts were exposed to different warming and precipitation factors over time.
USGS scientists created outdoor testing plots where large squares of biocrusts were exposed to different warming and precipitation factors over time.
![Photo of USGS scientist Sasha Reed studying outdoor biocrust testing sites](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/thumbnails/image/SashaClimatePlot2.jpg?itok=REOPz627)
USGS scientist Sasha Reed studies sites where different climate conditions are being mimicked to determine effect on biocrusts.
USGS scientist Sasha Reed studies sites where different climate conditions are being mimicked to determine effect on biocrusts.
USGS scientists created outdoor testing plots where large squares of biocrusts were exposed to different warming and precipitation factors over time.
USGS scientists created outdoor testing plots where large squares of biocrusts were exposed to different warming and precipitation factors over time.
USGS scientists created outdoor testing plots where large squares of biocrusts were exposed to different warming and precipitation factors over time.
USGS scientists created outdoor testing plots where large squares of biocrusts were exposed to different warming and precipitation factors over time.
A single narrow trail leads to research plots monitored by scientists at Canyonlands Research Station since the 1990s. This pristine area of biological soil crusts has never been grazed.
A single narrow trail leads to research plots monitored by scientists at Canyonlands Research Station since the 1990s. This pristine area of biological soil crusts has never been grazed.
Biological technicians, Beth Ogata, Kristina Young, and Natalie Day head back to base-camp after a day of monitoring vegetation and biological soil crusts in Canyonlands NP.
Biological technicians, Beth Ogata, Kristina Young, and Natalie Day head back to base-camp after a day of monitoring vegetation and biological soil crusts in Canyonlands NP.
Hilda Smith, biological technician with Canyonlands Research Station, monitors changes in biological soil crusts in response to experimental increases in temperature and altered precipitation patterns.
Hilda Smith, biological technician with Canyonlands Research Station, monitors changes in biological soil crusts in response to experimental increases in temperature and altered precipitation patterns.
Dr. Jayne Belnap follows a narrow foot path through a diverse patch of biological soil crusts in an isolated area of Canyonlands NP that has never been exposed to grazing. Dr. Belnap has been studying biological soil crusts for more than 30 years.
Dr. Jayne Belnap follows a narrow foot path through a diverse patch of biological soil crusts in an isolated area of Canyonlands NP that has never been exposed to grazing. Dr. Belnap has been studying biological soil crusts for more than 30 years.
To examine the influence of biological soil crusts in ecosystems (soil food webs, soil stability, soil nutrient cycles, and plant communities), Hilda Smith, biological technician, prepares to resample paired experimental plots where biological soil crusts were removed annually since 1995 or left intact at Arches NP.
To examine the influence of biological soil crusts in ecosystems (soil food webs, soil stability, soil nutrient cycles, and plant communities), Hilda Smith, biological technician, prepares to resample paired experimental plots where biological soil crusts were removed annually since 1995 or left intact at Arches NP.
Biological soil crusts, or biocrusts, are lichens, mosses, and cyanobacteria that grow on the soil surface and are common in the spaces between native plants in arid and semi-arid systems. Biocrusts reduce soil erosion, contribute to nutrient and water cycling, and reduce evaporation and invasion by exotic plants.
Biological soil crusts, or biocrusts, are lichens, mosses, and cyanobacteria that grow on the soil surface and are common in the spaces between native plants in arid and semi-arid systems. Biocrusts reduce soil erosion, contribute to nutrient and water cycling, and reduce evaporation and invasion by exotic plants.
![Photo of USGS soil scientist Travis Nauman examines biological soil crust communities near an abandoned well pad during field wo](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/thumbnails/image/FieldTour15_jessPic.jpg?itok=kVMPVhCA)
USGS soil scientist Travis Nauman examines biological soil crust communities near an abandoned well pad during field work.
USGS soil scientist Travis Nauman examines biological soil crust communities near an abandoned well pad during field work.
Mature biocrusts with lichen. Photo taken by the SBSC in Utah during surveys, courtesy of Erika Geiger, 2013.
Mature biocrusts with lichen. Photo taken by the SBSC in Utah during surveys, courtesy of Erika Geiger, 2013.
Photo of biocrust taken at Fort Hill Air Force Base near Salt Lake City, Utah.
Photo of biocrust taken at Fort Hill Air Force Base near Salt Lake City, Utah.
Photo of biocrust taken at Birds of Prey NRCA near Biose, Idaho.
Photo of biocrust taken at Birds of Prey NRCA near Biose, Idaho.
![Cattle walking across biological soil crusts in southeastern Utah.](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/thumbnails/image/67-IMG_1940%20%281%29_1.jpg?itok=vj4BMdNx)
Cattle walking across biological soil crusts in southeastern Utah.
Cattle walking across biological soil crusts in southeastern Utah.
Intact biological soil crusts (biocrusts) in Canyonlands National Park. Photo taken by Jayne Belnap, USGS, 2004.
Intact biological soil crusts (biocrusts) in Canyonlands National Park. Photo taken by Jayne Belnap, USGS, 2004.
The pervasive and multifaceted influence of biocrusts on water in the world’s drylands
What could explain δ13C signatures in biocrust cyanobacteria of drylands?
Biological soil crusts in ecological restoration: Emerging research and perspectives
Practices of biological soil crust rehabilitation in China: Experiences and challenges
The burning of biocrusts facilitates the emergence of a bare soil community of poorly-connected chemoheterotrophic bacteria with depressed ecosystem services
Inoculation and habitat amelioration efforts in biological soil crust recovery vary by desert and soil texture
Grazing-induced changes to biological soil crust cover mediate hillslope erosion in a long-term exclosure experiment
Microsite enhancements for soil stabilization and rapid biocrust colonization in degraded drylands
Addressing barriers to improve biocrust colonization and establishment in dryland restoration
Induced biological soil crust controls on wind erodibility and dust (PM10) emissions
Passive restoration of vegetation and biological soil crusts following 80 years of exclusion from grazing across the Great Basin
Biocrust science and global change
Below are partners associated with this project.