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Climate change interactions affect soil carbon dioxide efflux and microbial functioning in a post-harvest forest.
M D McDaniel1, J P Kaye, M W Kaye
1Department of Natural Resources and the Environment, University of New Hampshire, 114 James Hall, Durham, NH, 03824, USA, marshall.mcdaniel@unh.edu.
Oecologia
|December 24, 2013
Summary
Forest harvesting increases soil CO2 efflux, but warming effects are reduced by increased precipitation. This suggests precipitation-induced changes in microbial communities and substrate availability can mitigate carbon loss in disturbed forests.
Area of Science:
- Ecology
- Environmental Science
- Soil Science
Background:
- Forest disturbances like whole-tree harvest are increasing globally.
- Post-harvest forests can release significant carbon (C) to the atmosphere due to increased soil CO2 efflux.
- Warming and wetting of soils are predicted for the northeastern US, potentially exacerbating C losses.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the combined effects of warming and increased precipitation on soil CO2 efflux in a harvested forest.
- To understand how climate manipulations influence soil microbial communities and their functions.
Main Methods:
- A climate-manipulation experiment was conducted in a harvested northeastern US forest.
- Treatments included warming (H), wetting (W), combined warming and wetting (H+W), and ambient (A) conditions.
- Soil CO2 efflux, microbial community function (respiration response to 15 C substrates), and microbial community structure (fungi-to-bacteria ratios) were measured.
Main Results:
- Warming (H) and wetting (W) individually increased cumulative soil CO2 efflux compared to ambient (A).
- The combined warming and wetting (H+W) treatment showed no increase in CO2 efflux compared to A and W, and a 24% decrease compared to H.
- Microbial function differed between warmed and non-warmed soils, and wetting altered microbial community structure.
- Microbial communities in H+W soils exhibited lower respiration on their home soils, suggesting adaptation to specific substrate availability.
Conclusions:
- Increased precipitation can attenuate the effect of warming on soil CO2 efflux in harvested forests.
- Climate change impacts on forest carbon cycling are complex and mediated by interactions between warming, precipitation, and soil microbial communities.
- Fine-tuned microbe-substrate linkages in response to precipitation may suppress soil CO2 efflux in disturbed ecosystems.
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