Articles | Volume 11, issue 7
Biogeosciences, 11, 2003–2016, 2014
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-11-2003-2014
© Author(s) 2014. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
Biogeosciences, 11, 2003–2016, 2014
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-11-2003-2014
© Author(s) 2014. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
Research article
09 Apr 2014
Research article
| 09 Apr 2014
Field-based observations of regional-scale, temporal variation in net primary production in Tibetan alpine grasslands
Y. Shi et al.
Related authors
Chen Yang, Wenjuan Sun, Jiangling Zhu, Chengjun Ji, Yuhao Feng, Suhui Ma, Yue Shi, Zhaodi Guo, and Jingyun Fang
Biogeosciences Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2022-18, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2022-18, 2022
Revised manuscript under review for BG
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Quantifying China's forest biomass carbon (C) pool is important in understanding C cycling in forests. However, most of studies on forest biomass C pool were limited to the period of 2004–2008. Here, we used biomass expansion factor method to estimate C pool from 1977 to 2018. The results suggest that afforestation practices, forest growth, and environmental changes were main drivers of increased C sink. Thus, this study provided an essential basis for achieving China's C neutrality target.
Chen Yang, Wenjuan Sun, Jiangling Zhu, Chengjun Ji, Yuhao Feng, Suhui Ma, Yue Shi, Zhaodi Guo, and Jingyun Fang
Biogeosciences Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2022-18, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2022-18, 2022
Revised manuscript under review for BG
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Quantifying China's forest biomass carbon (C) pool is important in understanding C cycling in forests. However, most of studies on forest biomass C pool were limited to the period of 2004–2008. Here, we used biomass expansion factor method to estimate C pool from 1977 to 2018. The results suggest that afforestation practices, forest growth, and environmental changes were main drivers of increased C sink. Thus, this study provided an essential basis for achieving China's C neutrality target.
Yi-Wei Zhang, Yanpei Guo, Zhiyao Tang, Yuhao Feng, Xinrong Zhu, Wenting Xu, Yongfei Bai, Guoyi Zhou, Zongqiang Xie, and Jingyun Fang
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 13, 5337–5351, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-13-5337-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-13-5337-2021, 2021
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Nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) are limiting nutrients for ecosystem productivity. For the first time, we mapped N and P densities of living plants, litter, and soil in forest, shrubland, and grassland ecosystems across China using random forest models based on a dataset of 4868 field sites. Our results depicted the spatial distribution pattern, the total pool, and the allocation among ecosystem components of N and P, which could benefit a more precise prediction of the carbon cycle.
Jianxiao Zhu, Chuankuan Wang, Zhang Zhou, Guoyi Zhou, Xueyang Hu, Lai Jiang, Yide Li, Guohua Liu, Chengjun Ji, Shuqing Zhao, Peng Li, Jiangling Zhu, Zhiyao Tang, Chengyang Zheng, Richard A. Birdsey, Yude Pan, and Jingyun Fang
Biogeosciences, 17, 715–726, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-715-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-715-2020, 2020
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Soil is the largest carbon pool in forests. Whether forest soils function as a sink or source of atmospheric carbon remains controversial. Here, we investigated the 20-year changes in the soil organic carbon pool at eight permanent forest plots in China. Our results revealed that the soils sequestered 3.6–16.3 % of the annual net primary production across the investigated sites, demonstrating that these forest soils have functioned as an important C sink during the past 2 decades.
Xia Zhao, Yuanhe Yang, Haihua Shen, Xiaoqing Geng, and Jingyun Fang
Biogeosciences, 16, 2857–2871, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-2857-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-2857-2019, 2019
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Surface soils interact strongly with both climate and biota and provide fundamental ecosystem services. However, the quantitative linkages between soil, climate, and biota remain unclear at a global scale. By compiling a large global soil database, we mapped eight major soil properties based on machine learning algorithms and developed a global soil–climate–biome diagram. Our results suggest shifts in soil properties under global climate and land cover change.
Suhui Ma, Anwar Eziz, Di Tian, Zhengbing Yan, Qiong Cai, Mingwei Jiang, Chengjun Ji, and Jingyun Fang
Biogeosciences Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2019-87, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2019-87, 2019
Preprint withdrawn
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Stem carbon (C) content is one of the important tree traits and widely used to present tree C content to estimate forest C stocks. Based on a 576 age-specific tree organ C content dataset, our results showed that C content of tree varied significantly among organs. Stem C content increased with the increasing tree size and age. Using stem C content as tree C content could produce an error of −2.49 %–5.87 %. This suggests considering tree organ C content of stand in estimating forest C stock.
Qiong Cai, Chengjun Ji, Xuli Zhou, Wenjing Fang, Tianli Zheng, Jiangling Zhu, Lei Shi, Haibo Li, Jianxiao Zhu, and Jingyun Fang
Biogeosciences Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2018-242, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2018-242, 2018
Preprint withdrawn
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Quantifying different carbon (C) pools in forest ecosystems is important in understanding C cycling in forests. However, the C pools of Chinese beech (Fagus) forests have seldom been studied. Here, the altitudinal patterns of four C pools in beech forests in Southwest China were investigated, and the stand age was proved to be a key factor shaping such patterns. Thus, this study provides data for understanding Chinese beech forests and stresses the importance of stand age in C accumulation.
Suhui Ma, Feng He, Di Tian, Dongting Zou, Zhengbing Yan, Yulong Yang, Tiancheng Zhou, Kaiyue Huang, Haihua Shen, and Jingyun Fang
Biogeosciences, 15, 693–702, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-693-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-693-2018, 2018
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Plant carbon (C) content is critical to the assessment of the global C cycle. Our results showed that the global average C contents in organs were significantly lower than a canonical value of 50 %. Plant C content tended to decrease with increasing latitude, and life form explained more variation than climate. Our findings suggest that specific C content values of different organs and life forms should be incorporated into the estimations of regional and global vegetation biomass C stocks.
Di Tian, Peng Li, Wenjing Fang, Jun Xu, Yongkai Luo, Zhengbing Yan, Biao Zhu, Jingjing Wang, Xiaoniu Xu, and Jingyun Fang
Biogeosciences, 14, 3461–3469, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-14-3461-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-14-3461-2017, 2017
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Previous studies have mainly focused on the effects of N deposition on tree growth in temperate and tropical forests, however, the responses of different trees and understory plants in subtropical forests to N deposition remain unknown. We conducted a 3.4-year experimentally simulated N enrichment and found that small trees were hindered while medium and large trees were not significantly affected by N fertilization. Additionally, the growth of understories was suppressed by N fertilization.
Shangshi Liu, Yuanhe Yang, Haihua Shen, Huifeng Hu, Xia Zhao, He Li, Taoyu Liu, and Jingyun Fang
Biogeosciences Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2016-473, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2016-473, 2017
Preprint retracted
Xian Yang, Xiulian Chi, Chengjun Ji, Hongyan Liu, Wenhong Ma, Anwar Mohhammat, Zhaoyong Shi, Xiangping Wang, Shunli Yu, Ming Yue, and Zhiyao Tang
Biogeosciences, 13, 4429–4438, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-4429-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-4429-2016, 2016
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Leaf chemical concentrations are key traits in ecosystem functioning. Previous studies were biased for trees and grasses. Here, we explored the patterns of leaf N and P concentrations in relation to climate, soil, and evolutionary history in northern China. We found that climate influenced the community chemical traits through the shift in species composition, whereas soil directly influenced the community chemical traits.
P. Li, J. Zhu, H. Hu, Z. Guo, Y. Pan, R. Birdsey, and J. Fang
Biogeosciences, 13, 375–388, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-375-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-375-2016, 2016
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Our findings suggest that the mechanisms underlying the carbon sinks for natural and planted forests of China differ markedly with various effects from areal expansion and increase in carbon density. The increasing trend in the relative contribution of forest growth to carbon sinks for planted forests highlights that afforestation will continue to increase the carbon sink of China's forests in the future, subject to persistently increasing forest growth after the establishment of plantations.
S. Ding, Y. Xu, Y. Wang, Y. He, J. Hou, L. Chen, and J.-S. He
Biogeosciences, 12, 3141–3151, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-12-3141-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-12-3141-2015, 2015
D. H. Mao, Z. M. Wang, L. Li, Z. H. Miao, W. H. Ma, C. C. Song, C. Y. Ren, and M. M. Jia
Biogeosciences, 12, 1635–1645, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-12-1635-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-12-1635-2015, 2015
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The Sanjiang Plain of China, an important grain production base, is typical of ecosystems. In this study, 419 soil samples and a geostatistical method were used to estimate total SOC storage and to determine its pattern-controlling factors. The results from this study provide the most up-to-date knowledge on the storage and pattern of SOC in this plain, and the analysis conducted here could contribute to the determination of ecosystem carbon budgets and our understanding of ecosystem services.
Z. D. Guo, H. F. Hu, Y. D. Pan, R. A. Birdsey, and J. Y. Fang
Biogeosciences, 11, 4115–4122, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-11-4115-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-11-4115-2014, 2014
Related subject area
Biodiversity and Ecosystem Function: Terrestrial
Phosphorus stress strongly reduced plant physiological activity, but only temporarily, in a mesocosm experiment with Zea mays colonized by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi
Main drivers of plant diversity patterns of rubber plantations in the Greater Mekong Subregion
Importance of the forest state in estimating biomass losses from tropical forests: combining dynamic forest models and remote sensing
Examining the role of environmental memory in the predictability of carbon and water fluxes across Australian ecosystems
Water uptake patterns of pea and barley responded to drought but not to cropping systems
Geodiversity and biodiversity on a volcanic island: the role of scattered phonolites for plant diversity and performance
The role of cover crops for cropland soil carbon, nitrogen leaching, and agricultural yields – a global simulation study with LPJmL (V. 5.0-tillage-cc)
The biogeographic pattern of microbial communities inhabiting terrestrial mud volcanoes across the Eurasian continent
Thirty-eight years of CO2 fertilization has outpaced growing aridity to drive greening of Australian woody ecosystems
Net soil carbon balance in afforested peatlands and separating autotrophic and heterotrophic soil CO2 effluxes
Bioaerosols and atmospheric ice nuclei in a Mediterranean dryland: community changes related to rainfall
Strong temporal variation in treefall and branchfall rates in a tropical forest is related to extreme rainfall: results from 5 years of monthly drone data for a 50 ha plot
Nitrogen restricts future sub-arctic treeline advance in an individual-based dynamic vegetation model
Fire in lichen-rich subarctic tundra changes carbon and nitrogen cycling between ecosystem compartments but has minor effects on stocks
Estimating dry biomass and plant nitrogen concentration in pre-Alpine grasslands with low-cost UAS-borne multispectral data – a comparison of sensors, algorithms, and predictor sets
Spatial patterns of aboveground phytogenic Si stocks in a grass-dominated catchment – results from UAS-based high-resolution remote sensing
Patterns in recent and Holocene pollen accumulation rates across Europe – the Pollen Monitoring Programme Database as a tool for vegetation reconstruction
Capturing functional strategies and compositional dynamics in vegetation demographic models
Drought effects on leaf fall, leaf flushing and stem growth in the Amazon forest: reconciling remote sensing data and field observations
Variable tree rooting strategies are key for modelling the distribution, productivity and evapotranspiration of tropical evergreen forests
The motion of trees in the wind: a data synthesis
Mass concentrations of autumn bioaerosol in a mature temperate woodland Free Air Carbon Dioxide Enrichment (FACE) experiment: investigating the role of meteorology and carbon dioxide levels
The importance of antecedent vegetation and drought conditions as global drivers of burnt area
Evaluating the potential for Haloarchaea to serve as ice nucleating particles
A survey of proximal methods for monitoring leaf phenology in temperate deciduous forests
Recent above-ground biomass changes in central Chukotka (Russian Far East) using field sampling and Landsat satellite data
Climate change and elevated CO2 favor forest over savanna under different future scenarios in South Asia
Functional convergence of biosphere–atmosphere interactions in response to meteorological conditions
Multi-scale assessment of a grassland productivity model
Improving the monitoring of deciduous broadleaf phenology using the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) 16 and 17
Factors controlling the productivity of tropical Andean forests: climate and soil are more important than tree diversity
Drought years in peatland rewetting: rapid vegetation succession can maintain the net CO2 sink function
Shift of seed mass and fruit type spectra along longitudinal gradient: high water availability and growth allometry
Retrieval and validation of forest background reflectivity from daily Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) bidirectional reflectance distribution function (BRDF) data across European forests
Unraveling the physical and physiological basis for the solar- induced chlorophyll fluorescence and photosynthesis relationship using continuous leaf and canopy measurements of a corn crop
Machine learning estimates of eddy covariance carbon flux in a scrub in the Mexican highland
Variability of the surface energy balance in permafrost-underlain boreal forest
Vegetation modulates the impact of climate extremes on gross primary production
Landsat near-infrared (NIR) band and ELM-FATES sensitivity to forest disturbances and regrowth in the Central Amazon
Microclimatic conditions and water content fluctuations experienced by epiphytic bryophytes in an Amazonian rain forest
Plant trait response of tundra shrubs to permafrost thaw and nutrient addition
Soils from cold and snowy temperate deciduous forests release more nitrogen and phosphorus after soil freeze–thaw cycles than soils from warmer, snow-poor conditions
Response of carbon and water fluxes to meteorological and phenological variability in two eastern North American forests of similar age but contrasting species composition – a multiyear comparison
Drought resistance increases from the individual to the ecosystem level in highly diverse Neotropical rainforest: a meta-analysis of leaf, tree and ecosystem responses to drought
An analysis of forest biomass sampling strategies across scales
Comparing stability in random forest models to map Northern Great Plains plant communities in pastures occupied by prairie dogs using Pleiades imagery
African biomes are most sensitive to changes in CO2 under recent and near-future CO2 conditions
Validation of demographic equilibrium theory against tree-size distributions and biomass density in Amazonia
Soil carbon release responses to long-term versus short-term climatic warming in an arid ecosystem
Partitioning of canopy and soil CO2 fluxes in a pine forest at the dry timberline across a 13-year observation period
Melanie S. Verlinden, Hamada AbdElgawad, Arne Ven, Lore T. Verryckt, Sebastian Wieneke, Ivan A. Janssens, and Sara Vicca
Biogeosciences, 19, 2353–2364, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-2353-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-2353-2022, 2022
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Zea mays grows in mesocosms with different soil nutrition levels. At low phosphorus (P) availability, leaf physiological activity initially decreased strongly. P stress decreased over the season. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) symbiosis increased over the season. AMF symbiosis is most likely responsible for gradual reduction in P stress.
Guoyu Lan, Bangqian Chen, Chuan Yang, Rui Sun, Zhixiang Wu, and Xicai Zhang
Biogeosciences, 19, 1995–2005, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-1995-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-1995-2022, 2022
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Little is known about the impact of rubber plantations on diversity of the Great Mekong Subregion. In this study, we uncovered latitudinal gradients of plant diversity of rubber plantations. Exotic species with high dominance result in loss of plant diversity of rubber plantations. Not all exotic species would reduce plant diversity of rubber plantations. Much more effort should be made to balance agricultural production with conservation goals in this region.
Ulrike Hiltner, Andreas Huth, and Rico Fischer
Biogeosciences, 19, 1891–1911, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-1891-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-1891-2022, 2022
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Quantifying biomass loss rates due to stem mortality is important for estimating the role of tropical forests in the global carbon cycle. We analyse the consequences of long-term elevated stem mortality for tropical forest dynamics and biomass loss. Based on simulations, we developed a statistical model to estimate biomass loss rates of forests in different successional states from forest attributes. Assuming a doubling of tree mortality, biomass loss increased from 3.2 % yr-1 to 4.5 % yr-1.
Jon Cranko Page, Martin G. De Kauwe, Gab Abramowitz, Jamie Cleverly, Nina Hinko-Najera, Mark J. Hovenden, Yao Liu, Andy J. Pitman, and Kiona Ogle
Biogeosciences, 19, 1913–1932, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-1913-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-1913-2022, 2022
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Although vegetation responds to climate at a wide range of timescales, models of the land carbon sink often ignore responses that do not occur instantly. In this study, we explore the timescales at which Australian ecosystems respond to climate. We identified that carbon and water fluxes can be modelled more accurately if we include environmental drivers from up to a year in the past. The importance of antecedent conditions is related to ecosystem aridity but is also influenced by other factors.
Qing Sun, Valentin H. Klaus, Raphaël Wittwer, Yujie Liu, Marcel G. A. van der Heijden, Anna K. Gilgen, and Nina Buchmann
Biogeosciences, 19, 1853–1869, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-1853-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-1853-2022, 2022
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Drought is one of the biggest challenges for future food production globally. During a simulated drought, pea and barley mainly relied on water from shallow soil depths, independent of different cropping systems.
David Kienle, Anna Walentowitz, Leyla Sungur, Alessandro Chiarucci, Severin D. H. Irl, Anke Jentsch, Ole R. Vetaas, Richard Field, and Carl Beierkuhnlein
Biogeosciences, 19, 1691–1703, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-1691-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-1691-2022, 2022
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Volcanic islands consist mainly of basaltic rocks. Additionally, there are often occurrences of small phonolite rocks differing in color and surface. On La Palma (Canary Islands), phonolites appear to be more suitable for plants than the omnipresent basalts. Therefore, we expected phonolites to be species-rich with larger plant individuals compared to the surrounding basaltic areas. Indeed, as expected, we found more species on phonolites and larger plant individuals in general.
Vera Porwollik, Susanne Rolinski, Jens Heinke, Werner von Bloh, Sibyll Schaphoff, and Christoph Müller
Biogeosciences, 19, 957–977, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-957-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-957-2022, 2022
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The study assesses impacts of grass cover crop cultivation on cropland during main-crop off-season periods applying the global vegetation model LPJmL (V.5.0-tillage-cc). Compared to simulated bare-soil fallowing practices, cover crops led to increased soil carbon content and reduced nitrogen leaching rates on the majority of global cropland. Yield responses of main crops following cover crops vary with location, duration of altered management, crop type, water regime, and tillage practice.
Tzu-Hsuan Tu, Li-Ling Chen, Yi-Ping Chiu, Li-Hung Lin, Li-Wei Wu, Francesco Italiano, J. Bruce H. Shyu, Seyed Naser Raisossadat, and Pei-Ling Wang
Biogeosciences, 19, 831–843, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-831-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-831-2022, 2022
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This investigation of microbial biogeography in terrestrial mud volcanoes (MVs) covers study sites over a geographic distance of up to 10 000 km across the Eurasian continent. It compares microbial community compositions' coupling with geochemical data across a 3D space. We demonstrate that stochastic processes operating at continental scales and environmental filtering at local scales drive the formation of patchy habitats and the pattern of diversification for microbes in terrestrial MVs.
Sami W. Rifai, Martin G. De Kauwe, Anna M. Ukkola, Lucas A. Cernusak, Patrick Meir, Belinda E. Medlyn, and Andy J. Pitman
Biogeosciences, 19, 491–515, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-491-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-491-2022, 2022
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Australia's woody ecosystems have experienced widespread greening despite a warming climate and repeated record-breaking droughts and heat waves. Increasing atmospheric CO2 increases plant water use efficiency, yet quantifying the CO2 effect is complicated due to co-occurring effects of global change. Here we harmonized a 38-year satellite record to separate the effects of climate change, land use change, and disturbance to quantify the CO2 fertilization effect on the greening phenomenon.
Renée Hermans, Rebecca McKenzie, Roxane Andersen, Yit Arn Teh, Neil Cowie, and Jens-Arne Subke
Biogeosciences, 19, 313–327, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-313-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-313-2022, 2022
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Peatlands are a significant global carbon store, which can be compromised by drainage and afforestation. We measured the peat decomposition under a 30-year-old drained forest plantation: 115 ± 16 g C m−2 yr−1, ca. 40 % of total soil respiration. Considering input of litter from trees, our results indicate that the soils in these 30-year-old drained and afforested peatlands are a net sink for C, since substantially more C enters the soil as organic matter than is decomposed heterotrophically.
Kai Tang, Beatriz Sánchez-Parra, Petya Yordanova, Jörn Wehking, Anna T. Backes, Daniel A. Pickersgill, Stefanie Maier, Jean Sciare, Ulrich Pöschl, Bettina Weber, and Janine Fröhlich-Nowoisky
Biogeosciences, 19, 71–91, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-71-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-71-2022, 2022
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Metagenomic sequencing and freezing experiments of aerosol samples collected on Cyprus revealed rain-related short-term changes of bioaerosol and ice nuclei composition. Filtration experiments showed a rain-related enhancement of biological ice nuclei > 5 µm and < 0.1 µm. The observed effects of rainfall on the composition of atmospheric bioaerosols and ice nuclei may influence the hydrological cycle as well as the health effects of air particulate matter (pathogens, allergens).
Raquel Fernandes Araujo, Samuel Grubinger, Carlos Henrique Souza Celes, Robinson I. Negrón-Juárez, Milton Garcia, Jonathan P. Dandois, and Helene C. Muller-Landau
Biogeosciences, 18, 6517–6531, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-6517-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-6517-2021, 2021
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Our study contributed to improving the understanding of temporal variation and climate correlates of canopy disturbances mainly caused by treefalls and branchfalls. We used a unique dataset of 5 years of approximately monthly drone-acquired RGB (red–green–blue) imagery for 50 ha of mature tropical forest on Barro Colorado Island, Panama. We found that canopy disturbance rates were highly temporally variable, were higher in the wet season, and were related to extreme rainfall events.
Adrian Gustafson, Paul A. Miller, Robert G. Björk, Stefan Olin, and Benjamin Smith
Biogeosciences, 18, 6329–6347, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-6329-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-6329-2021, 2021
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We performed model simulations of vegetation change for a historic period and a range of climate change scenarios at a high spatial resolution. Projected treeline advance continued at the same or increased rates compared to our historic simulation. Temperature isotherms advanced faster than treelines, revealing a lag in potential vegetation shifts that was modulated by nitrogen availability. At the year 2100 projected treelines had advanced by 45–195 elevational metres depending on the scenario.
Ramona Julia Heim, Andrey Yurtaev, Anna Bucharova, Wieland Heim, Valeriya Kutskir, Klaus-Holger Knorr, Christian Lampei, Alexandr Pechkin, Dora Schilling, Farid Sulkarnaev, and Norbert Hölzel
Biogeosciences Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2021-277, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2021-277, 2021
Revised manuscript accepted for BG
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Fires will probably increase in Arctic regions due to climate change. Yet, the long-term effects of tundra fires on carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) stocks and cycling are still unclear. We investigated the long-term fire effects on C and N stocks and cycling in soil and aboveground living biomass. We found that tundra fires did not affect total C and N stocks because a major part of the stocks was located belowground in soils, which were largely unaltered by fire.
Anne Schucknecht, Bumsuk Seo, Alexander Krämer, Sarah Asam, Clement Atzberger, and Ralf Kiese
Biogeosciences Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2021-250, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2021-250, 2021
Revised manuscript accepted for BG
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Actual maps of grassland traits could improve local farm management and support environmental assessments. We developed, assessed, and applied models to estimate dry biomass and plant N concentration in pre-Alpine grasslands with drone-based multispectral data and canopy height information. Our results indicate that machine learning algorithms are able to estimate both parameters, but reach a better performance for biomass.
Marc Wehrhan, Daniel Puppe, Danuta Kaczorek, and Michael Sommer
Biogeosciences, 18, 5163–5183, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-5163-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-5163-2021, 2021
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UAS remote sensing provides a promising tool for new insights into Si biogeochemistry at catchment scale. Our study on an artificial catchment shows surprisingly high silicon stocks in the biomass of two grass species (C. epigejos, 7 g m−2; P. australis, 27 g m−2). The distribution of initial sediment properties (clay, Tiron-extractable Si, nitrogen, plant-available potassium) controlled the spatial distribution of C. epigejos. Soil wetness determined the occurrence of P. australis.
Vojtěch Abraham, Sheila Hicks, Helena Svobodová-Svitavská, Elissaveta Bozilova, Sampson Panajiotidis, Mariana Filipova-Marinova, Christin Eldegard Jensen, Spassimir Tonkov, Irena Agnieszka Pidek, Joanna Święta-Musznicka, Marcelina Zimny, Eliso Kvavadze, Anna Filbrandt-Czaja, Martina Hättestrand, Nurgül Karlıoğlu Kılıç, Jana Kosenko, Maria Nosova, Elena Severova, Olga Volkova, Margrét Hallsdóttir, Laimdota Kalniņa, Agnieszka M. Noryśkiewicz, Bożena Noryśkiewicz, Heather Pardoe, Areti Christodoulou, Tiiu Koff, Sonia L. Fontana, Teija Alenius, Elisabeth Isaksson, Heikki Seppä, Siim Veski, Anna Pędziszewska, Martin Weiser, and Thomas Giesecke
Biogeosciences, 18, 4511–4534, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-4511-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-4511-2021, 2021
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We present a continental dataset of pollen accumulation rates (PARs) collected by pollen traps. This absolute measure of pollen rain (grains cm−2 yr−1) has a positive relationship to current vegetation and latitude. Trap and fossil PARs have similar values within one region, so it opens up possibilities for using fossil PARs to reconstruct past changes in plant biomass and primary productivity. The dataset is available in the Neotoma Paleoecology Database.
Polly C. Buotte, Charles D. Koven, Chonggang Xu, Jacquelyn K. Shuman, Michael L. Goulden, Samuel Levis, Jessica Katz, Junyan Ding, Wu Ma, Zachary Robbins, and Lara M. Kueppers
Biogeosciences, 18, 4473–4490, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-4473-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-4473-2021, 2021
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We present an approach for ensuring the definitions of plant types in dynamic vegetation models are connected to the underlying ecological processes controlling community composition. Our approach can be applied regionally or globally. Robust resolution of community composition will allow us to use these models to address important questions related to future climate and management effects on plant community composition, structure, carbon storage, and feedbacks within the Earth system.
Thomas Janssen, Ype van der Velde, Florian Hofhansl, Sebastiaan Luyssaert, Kim Naudts, Bart Driessen, Katrin Fleischer, and Han Dolman
Biogeosciences, 18, 4445–4472, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-4445-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-4445-2021, 2021
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Satellite images show that the Amazon forest has greened up during past droughts. Measurements of tree stem growth and leaf litterfall upscaled using machine-learning algorithms show that leaf flushing at the onset of a drought results in canopy rejuvenation and green-up during drought while simultaneously trees excessively shed older leaves and tree stem growth declines. Canopy green-up during drought therefore does not necessarily point to enhanced tree growth and improved forest health.
Boris Sakschewski, Werner von Bloh, Markus Drüke, Anna Amelia Sörensson, Romina Ruscica, Fanny Langerwisch, Maik Billing, Sarah Bereswill, Marina Hirota, Rafael Silva Oliveira, Jens Heinke, and Kirsten Thonicke
Biogeosciences, 18, 4091–4116, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-4091-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-4091-2021, 2021
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This study shows how local adaptations of tree roots across tropical and sub-tropical South America explain patterns of biome distribution, productivity and evapotranspiration on this continent. By allowing for high diversity of tree rooting strategies in a dynamic global vegetation model (DGVM), we are able to mechanistically explain patterns of mean rooting depth and the effects on ecosystem functions. The approach can advance DGVMs and Earth system models.
Toby D. Jackson, Sarab Sethi, Ebba Dellwik, Nikolas Angelou, Amanda Bunce, Tim van Emmerik, Marine Duperat, Jean-Claude Ruel, Axel Wellpott, Skip Van Bloem, Alexis Achim, Brian Kane, Dominick M. Ciruzzi, Steven P. Loheide II, Ken James, Daniel Burcham, John Moore, Dirk Schindler, Sven Kolbe, Kilian Wiegmann, Mark Rudnicki, Victor J. Lieffers, John Selker, Andrew V. Gougherty, Tim Newson, Andrew Koeser, Jason Miesbauer, Roger Samelson, Jim Wagner, Anthony R. Ambrose, Andreas Detter, Steffen Rust, David Coomes, and Barry Gardiner
Biogeosciences, 18, 4059–4072, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-4059-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-4059-2021, 2021
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We have all seen trees swaying in the wind, but did you know that this motion can teach us about ecology? We summarized tree motion data from many different studies and looked for similarities between trees. We found that the motion of trees in conifer forests is quite similar to each other, whereas open-grown trees and broadleaf forests show more variation. It has been suggested that additional damping or amplification of tree motion occurs at high wind speeds, but we found no evidence of this.
Aileen B. Baird, Edward J. Bannister, A. Robert MacKenzie, and Francis D. Pope
Biogeosciences Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2021-162, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2021-162, 2021
Revised manuscript accepted for BG
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Forest environments contain a wide variety of airborne biological particles (bioaerosols) that are important for plant and animal health, and biosphere/atmosphere interactions. Using low-cost sensors and a FACE experiment, we monitor the impact of enhanced CO2 on airborne particles. No effect of the enhanced CO2 treatment on total particle concentrations was observed, but a potential suppression of high concentration bioaerosol events was detected under enhanced CO2.
Alexander Kuhn-Régnier, Apostolos Voulgarakis, Peer Nowack, Matthias Forkel, I. Colin Prentice, and Sandy P. Harrison
Biogeosciences, 18, 3861–3879, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-3861-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-3861-2021, 2021
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Along with current climate, vegetation, and human influences, long-term accumulation of biomass affects fires. Here, we find that including the influence of antecedent vegetation and moisture improves our ability to predict global burnt area. Additionally, the length of the preceding period which needs to be considered for accurate predictions varies across regions.
Jessie M. Creamean, Julio E. Ceniceros, Lilyanna Newman, Allyson D. Pace, Thomas C. J. Hill, Paul J. DeMott, and Matthew E. Rhodes
Biogeosciences, 18, 3751–3762, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-3751-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-3751-2021, 2021
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Microorganisms have the unique ability to form ice in clouds at relatively warm temperatures, especially specific types of plant bacteria. However, to date, members of the domain Archaea have not been evaluated for their cloud-forming capabilities. Here, we show the first results of Haloarchaea that have the ability to form cloud ice at moderate supercooled temperatures that are found in hypersaline environments on Earth.
Kamel Soudani, Nicolas Delpierre, Daniel Berveiller, Gabriel Hmimina, Jean-Yves Pontailler, Lou Seureau, Gaëlle Vincent, and Éric Dufrêne
Biogeosciences, 18, 3391–3408, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-3391-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-3391-2021, 2021
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We present an exhaustive comparative survey of eight proximal methods to estimate forest phenology. We focused on methodological aspects and thoroughly assessed deviations between predicted and observed phenological dates and pointed out their main causes. We show that proximal methods provide robust phenological metrics. They can be used to retrieve long-term phenological series at flux measurement sites and help interpret the interannual variability and trends of mass and energy exchanges.
Iuliia Shevtsova, Ulrike Herzschuh, Birgit Heim, Luise Schulte, Simone Stünzi, Luidmila A. Pestryakova, Evgeniy S. Zakharov, and Stefan Kruse
Biogeosciences, 18, 3343–3366, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-3343-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-3343-2021, 2021
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In the light of climate changes in subarctic regions, notable general increase in above-ground biomass for the past 15 years (2000 to 2017) was estimated along a tundra–taiga gradient of central Chukotka (Russian Far East). The greatest increase occurred in the northern taiga in the areas of larch closed-canopy forest expansion with Cajander larch as a main contributor. For the estimations, we used field data (taxa-separated plant biomass, 2018) and upscaled it based on Landsat satellite data.
Dushyant Kumar, Mirjam Pfeiffer, Camille Gaillard, Liam Langan, and Simon Scheiter
Biogeosciences, 18, 2957–2979, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-2957-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-2957-2021, 2021
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In this paper, we investigated the impact of climate change and rising CO2 on biomes using a vegetation model in South Asia, an often neglected region in global modeling studies. Understanding these impacts guides ecosystem management and biodiversity conservation. Our results indicate that savanna regions are at high risk of woody encroachment and transitioning into the forest, and the bioclimatic envelopes of biomes need adjustments to account for shifts caused by climate change and CO2.
Christopher Krich, Mirco Migliavacca, Diego G. Miralles, Guido Kraemer, Tarek S. El-Madany, Markus Reichstein, Jakob Runge, and Miguel D. Mahecha
Biogeosciences, 18, 2379–2404, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-2379-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-2379-2021, 2021
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Ecosystems and the atmosphere interact with each other. These interactions determine e.g. the water and carbon fluxes and thus are crucial to understand climate change effects. We analysed the interactions for many ecosystems across the globe, showing that very different ecosystems can have similar interactions with the atmosphere. Meteorological conditions seem to be the strongest interaction-shaping factor. This means that common principles can be identified to describe ecosystem behaviour.
Shawn D. Taylor and Dawn M. Browning
Biogeosciences, 18, 2213–2220, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-2213-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-2213-2021, 2021
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Grasslands in North America provide multiple ecosystem services and drive the production of a lot of grain, beef, and other staples. We evaluated a grassland productivity model using nearly 500 years of grassland camera data and found the areas where the model worked well and locations where it did not. Long-term productivity projections for the suitable locations can be made immediately with the current model, while other areas, such as the southwest, will need further model development.
Kathryn I. Wheeler and Michael C. Dietze
Biogeosciences, 18, 1971–1985, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-1971-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-1971-2021, 2021
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Monitoring leaf phenology (i.e., seasonality) allows for tracking the progression of climate change and seasonal variations in a variety of organismal and ecosystem processes. Recent versions of the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites allow for the monitoring of a phenological-sensitive index at a high temporal frequency (5–10 min) throughout most of the western hemisphere. Here we show the high potential of these new data to measure the phenology of deciduous forests.
Jürgen Homeier and Christoph Leuschner
Biogeosciences, 18, 1525–1541, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-1525-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-1525-2021, 2021
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We studied aboveground productivity in humid tropical montane old-growth forests in two highly diverse Andean regions with large geological and topographic heterogeneity and related productivity to tree diversity and climatic, edaphic and stand structural factors. From our results we conclude that the productivity of highly diverse Neotropical montane forests is primarily controlled by thermal and edaphic factors and stand structural properties, while tree diversity is of minor importance.
Florian Beyer, Florian Jansen, Gerald Jurasinski, Marian Koch, Birgit Schröder, and Franziska Koebsch
Biogeosciences, 18, 917–935, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-917-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-917-2021, 2021
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Increasing drought frequency can jeopardize the restoration of the CO2 sink function in degraded peatlands. We explored the effect of the summer drought in 2018 on vegetation development and CO2 exchange in a rewetted fen. Drought triggered a rapid spread of new vegetation whose CO2 assimilation could partially outweigh the drought-related rise in respiratory CO2 loss. Our study shows important regulatory mechanisms of a rewetted fen to maintain its net CO2 sink function even in a very dry year.
Shunli Yu, Guoxun Wang, Ofir Katz, Danfeng Li, Qibing Wang, Ming Yue, and Canran Liu
Biogeosciences, 18, 655–667, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-655-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-655-2021, 2021
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As key traits of plants, the mechanisms of diversity of fruit sizes and seed sizes have not been solved completely until now. Therefore, the research related to them will continue to be done in the future. Our research, combined with future works, will provide a profound basis for solving the origin of fleshy-fruited species and seed size diversity.
Jan Pisek, Angela Erb, Lauri Korhonen, Tobias Biermann, Arnaud Carrara, Edoardo Cremonese, Matthias Cuntz, Silvano Fares, Giacomo Gerosa, Thomas Grünwald, Niklas Hase, Michal Heliasz, Andreas Ibrom, Alexander Knohl, Johannes Kobler, Bart Kruijt, Holger Lange, Leena Leppänen, Jean-Marc Limousin, Francisco Ramon Lopez Serrano, Denis Loustau, Petr Lukeš, Lars Lundin, Riccardo Marzuoli, Meelis Mölder, Leonardo Montagnani, Johan Neirynck, Matthias Peichl, Corinna Rebmann, Eva Rubio, Margarida Santos-Reis, Crystal Schaaf, Marius Schmidt, Guillaume Simioni, Kamel Soudani, and Caroline Vincke
Biogeosciences, 18, 621–635, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-621-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-621-2021, 2021
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Understory vegetation is the most diverse, least understood component of forests worldwide. Understory communities are important drivers of overstory succession and nutrient cycling. Multi-angle remote sensing enables us to describe surface properties by means that are not possible when using mono-angle data. Evaluated over an extensive set of forest ecosystem experimental sites in Europe, our reported method can deliver good retrievals, especially over different forest types with open canopies.
Peiqi Yang, Christiaan van der Tol, Petya K. E. Campbell, and Elizabeth M. Middleton
Biogeosciences, 18, 441–465, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-441-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-441-2021, 2021
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Solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence (SIF) has the potential to facilitate the monitoring of photosynthesis from space. This study presents a systematic analysis of the physical and physiological meaning of the relationship between fluorescence and photosynthesis at both leaf and canopy levels. We unravel the individual effects of incoming light, vegetation structure and leaf physiology and highlight their joint effects on the relationship between canopy fluorescence and photosynthesis.
Aurelio Guevara-Escobar, Enrique González-Sosa, Mónica Cervantes-Jiménez, Humberto Suzán-Azpiri, Mónica Elisa Queijeiro-Bolaños, Israel Carrillo-Ángeles, and Víctor Hugo Cambrón-Sandoval
Biogeosciences, 18, 367–392, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-367-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-367-2021, 2021
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All vegetation types can sequester carbon dioxide. We compared ground measurements (eddy covariance) with remotely sensed data (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer, MODIS) and machine learning ensembles of primary production in a semiarid scrub in Mexico. The annual carbon sink for this vegetation type was −283.5 g C m−2 y−1; MODIS underestimated the primary productivity, and the machine learning modeling was better locally.
Simone Maria Stuenzi, Julia Boike, William Cable, Ulrike Herzschuh, Stefan Kruse, Luidmila A. Pestryakova, Thomas Schneider von Deimling, Sebastian Westermann, Evgenii S. Zakharov, and Moritz Langer
Biogeosciences, 18, 343–365, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-343-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-343-2021, 2021
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Boreal forests in eastern Siberia are an essential component of global climate patterns. We use a physically based model and field measurements to study the interactions between forests, permanently frozen ground and the atmosphere. We find that forests exert a strong control on the thermal state of permafrost through changing snow cover dynamics and altering the surface energy balance, through absorbing most of the incoming solar radiation and suppressing below-canopy turbulent fluxes.
Milan Flach, Alexander Brenning, Fabian Gans, Markus Reichstein, Sebastian Sippel, and Miguel D. Mahecha
Biogeosciences, 18, 39–53, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-39-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-39-2021, 2021
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Drought and heat events affect the uptake and sequestration of carbon in terrestrial ecosystems. We study the impact of droughts and heatwaves on the uptake of CO2 of different vegetation types at the global scale. We find that agricultural areas are generally strongly affected. Forests instead are not particularly sensitive to the events under scrutiny. This implies different water management strategies of forests but also a lack of sensitivity to remote-sensing-derived vegetation activity.
Robinson I. Negrón-Juárez, Jennifer A. Holm, Boris Faybishenko, Daniel Magnabosco-Marra, Rosie A. Fisher, Jacquelyn K. Shuman, Alessandro C. de Araujo, William J. Riley, and Jeffrey Q. Chambers
Biogeosciences, 17, 6185–6205, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-6185-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-6185-2020, 2020
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The temporal variability in the Landsat satellite near-infrared (NIR) band captured the dynamics of forest regrowth after disturbances in Central Amazon. This variability was represented by the dynamics of forest regrowth after disturbances were properly represented by the ELM-FATES model (Functionally Assembled Terrestrial Ecosystem Simulator (FATES) in the Energy Exascale Earth System Model (E3SM) Land Model (ELM)).
Nina Löbs, David Walter, Cybelli G. G. Barbosa, Sebastian Brill, Rodrigo P. Alves, Gabriela R. Cerqueira, Marta de Oliveira Sá, Alessandro C. de Araújo, Leonardo R. de Oliveira, Florian Ditas, Daniel Moran-Zuloaga, Ana Paula Pires Florentino, Stefan Wolff, Ricardo H. M. Godoi, Jürgen Kesselmeier, Sylvia Mota de Oliveira, Meinrat O. Andreae, Christopher Pöhlker, and Bettina Weber
Biogeosciences, 17, 5399–5416, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-5399-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-5399-2020, 2020
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Cryptogamic organisms, such as bryophytes, lichens, and algae, cover major parts of vegetation in the Amazonian rain forest, but their relevance in biosphere–atmosphere exchange, climate processes, and nutrient cycling is largely unknown.
Over the duration of 2 years we measured their water content, temperature, and light conditions to get better insights into their physiological activity patterns and thus their potential impact on local, regional, and even global biogeochemical processes.
Maitane Iturrate-Garcia, Monique M. P. D. Heijmans, J. Hans C. Cornelissen, Fritz H. Schweingruber, Pascal A. Niklaus, and Gabriela Schaepman-Strub
Biogeosciences, 17, 4981–4998, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-4981-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-4981-2020, 2020
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Changes on plant traits associated with climate warming might alter vegetation–climate interactions. We investigated experimentally the effects of enhanced permafrost thaw and soil nutrients on a wide set of tundra shrub traits. We found a coordinated trait response to some treatments, which suggests a shift in shrub resource, growth and defence strategies. This shift might feed back into permafrost thaw – through mechanisms associated with water demand – and into carbon and energy fluxes.
Juergen Kreyling, Rhena Schumann, and Robert Weigel
Biogeosciences, 17, 4103–4117, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-4103-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-4103-2020, 2020
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Temperate forest soils (sites dominated by European beech, Fagus sylvatica) from cold and snowy sites in northern Poland release more nitrogen and phosphorus after soil freeze–thaw cycles (FTCs) than soils from warmer, snow-poor conditions in northern Germany. Our data suggest that previously cold sites, which will lose their protective snow cover during climate change, are most vulnerable to
increasing FTC frequency and magnitude, resulting in strong shifts in nitrogen leaching.
Eric R. Beamesderfer, M. Altaf Arain, Myroslava Khomik, Jason J. Brodeur, and Brandon M. Burns
Biogeosciences, 17, 3563–3587, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-3563-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-3563-2020, 2020
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Temperate forests play a major role in the global carbon and water cycles, sequestering atmospheric CO2 on annual timescales. This research examined the annual carbon and water dynamics of two similar (age, soil, climate, etc.) eastern North American temperate forests of different species composition (i.e., broadleaf vs. needleleaf). Ultimately, fluxes of the deciduous forest were found to be less sensitive to temperature and water limitations – conditions expected with future climate warming.
Thomas Janssen, Katrin Fleischer, Sebastiaan Luyssaert, Kim Naudts, and Han Dolman
Biogeosciences, 17, 2621–2645, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-2621-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-2621-2020, 2020
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The frequency and severity of droughts are expected to increase in the tropics, impacting the functioning of tropical forests. Here, we synthesized observed responses to drought in Neotropical forests. We find that, during drought, trees generally close their leaf stomata, resulting in reductions in photosynthesis, growth and transpiration. However, on the ecosystem scale, these responses are not visible. This indicates that resistance to drought increases from the leaf to ecosystem scale.
Jessica Hetzer, Andreas Huth, Thorsten Wiegand, Hans Jürgen Dobner, and Rico Fischer
Biogeosciences, 17, 1673–1683, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-1673-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-1673-2020, 2020
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Due to limited accessibility in tropical regions, only small parts of the forest landscape can be surveyed in forest plots. Since there is an ongoing debate about how representative estimations based on samples are at larger scales, this study analyzes how many plots are needed to quantify the biomass of the entire South American tropical forest. Through novel computational and statistical investigations we show that the spatial plot positioning is crucial for continent-wide biomass estimations.
Jameson R. Brennan, Patricia S. Johnson, and Niall P. Hanan
Biogeosciences, 17, 1281–1292, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-1281-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-1281-2020, 2020
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Prairie dogs have been described as a keystone species and are important for grassland conservation, yet concerns exist over the impact of prairie dogs on livestock production. The aim of this study was to classify plant communities on and off prairie dog towns in South Dakota and determine the utility of using remote sensing to identity prairie dog colony extent. The results show that remote sensing is effective at determining prairie dog colony boundaries.
Simon Scheiter, Glenn R. Moncrieff, Mirjam Pfeiffer, and Steven I. Higgins
Biogeosciences, 17, 1147–1167, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-1147-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-1147-2020, 2020
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Current rates of climate and atmospheric change are likely higher than during the last millions of years. Vegetation cannot keep pace with these changes and lags behind climate. We used a vegetation model to study how these lags are influenced by CO2 and fire in Africa. Our results indicate that vegetation is most sensitive to CO2 change under current and near-future conditions and that vegetation will be committed to further change even if CO2 emissions are reduced and the climate stabilizes.
Jonathan R. Moore, Arthur P. K. Argles, Kai Zhu, Chris Huntingford, and Peter M. Cox
Biogeosciences, 17, 1013–1032, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-1013-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-1013-2020, 2020
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The distribution of tree sizes across Amazonia can be fitted very well (for both trunk diameter and tree mass) by a simple equilibrium model assuming power law growth and size-independent mortality. We find tree growth to mirror some aspects of metabolic scaling theory and that there may be a trade-off between fast-growing, short-lived and longer-lived, slow-growing ones. Our Amazon mortality-to-growth ratio is very similar to US temperate forests, hinting at a universal property for trees.
Hongying Yu, Zhenzhu Xu, Guangsheng Zhou, and Yaohui Shi
Biogeosciences, 17, 781–792, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-781-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-781-2020, 2020
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Climate change severely impacts grassland carbon cycling, especially in arid ecosystems, such as desert steppes. The current results highlight the great dependence of soil carbon emission on warming regimes of different duration and the important role of precipitation pulse during growing season in assessing the terrestrial ecosystem carbon balance and cycle.
Rafat Qubaja, Fyodor Tatarinov, Eyal Rotenberg, and Dan Yakir
Biogeosciences, 17, 699–714, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-699-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-699-2020, 2020
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This paper presents a study of the CO2 fluxes in a pine forest plantation at the dry timberline in the Negev, combining the present time with the long-term perspective. Two key issues that limit our understanding are the need to know the sources of CO2 fluxes and the need for long-term perspectives. We provide evidence that helps explain the forest plantation productivity under stressful conditions, which can assist in predicting the response of forest to future drying climate.
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