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Supplementary Material

Appendix 1. Parameters of the Linear Relationships (y = a + bx) Fitted between Soil Temperature using Protected Diodes and Either Air or Soil Temperature Measured Continuously, and between Soil Moisture Measured with TDR Probes and Continuous Soil Moisture Measurements

Continuous sensor used / Microsite / a / b / P / R2
Air temperature / Stipa tenacissima / 1.0121 / -1.3803 / < 0.001 / 0.90
Retama sphaerocarpa / 1.0680 / -2.2253 / < 0.001 / 0.90
Soil temperature / Bare soil / 0.9439 / 2.2576 / < 0.001 / 0.88
High biological soil crust (BSC) cover / 1.0787 / -1.5683 / < 0.001 / 0.85
Soil moisture / Stipa tenacissima / 0.8626 / 2.1675 / < 0.001 / 0.82
Retama sphaerocarpa / 1.1722 / 0.7798 / < 0.001 / 0.85
Bare soil / 1.0271 / -1.1287 / < 0.001 / 0.88
High BSC cover / 0.0267 / -0.3035 / < 0.001 / 0.86

Appendix 2. Volumetric soil moisture (0-5 cm depth) in different microsites (upper panel) and precipitation (lower panel) registered at the study area during the study period. Precipitation data are registered since April 2007, when the weather station was set up. Data from soil moisture represent the average of three sensors (the SE of these measures is omitted for clarity). ST = Stipa tenacissima tussocks; BS = bare soil; BSC = high cover of biological soil crusts.

Appendix 3. Measured and modeled soil respiration between November 2006 and June 2010 in the main four microsites of the study area.