An electronic micropenetrometer (EMP) for field measurements of biological soil crust stability

摘要

Despite the importance of biological soil crusts (BSC) for ecosystem functions in arid and semiarid areas, little information on their mechanical stability is available. Goal of this study was to develop a micropenetrometer (EMP) that allows to determine BSC stability at high spatial resolutions. First results show that differences in BSC stability at 39 μm resolution can be detected and that cyanobacterial BSC has an average penetration resistance of 0.75 MPa.