Responses of soil respiration to experimental warming in an alpine steppe on the Tibetan Plateau
Abstract High-latitude and high-altitude ecosystems store large amounts of carbon (C) and play a vital role in the global C cycle. Soil respiration ( R S ) in these ecosystems is believed to be extremely sensitive to climate warming and could potentially trigger positive C-climate feedback. However,...
Published in: | Environmental Research Letters |
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Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , |
Other Authors: | |
Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | unknown |
Published: |
IOP Publishing
2019
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Subjects: | |
Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/ab3bbc https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/ab3bbc https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/ab3bbc/pdf |
Summary: | Abstract High-latitude and high-altitude ecosystems store large amounts of carbon (C) and play a vital role in the global C cycle. Soil respiration ( R S ) in these ecosystems is believed to be extremely sensitive to climate warming and could potentially trigger positive C-climate feedback. However, this evidence is largely derived from wet ecosystems, with limited observations from dry ecosystems. Here, we explored the responses of R S , autotrophic ( R A ), and heterotrophic ( R H ) respiration under experimental warming in a dry ecosystem, an alpine steppe on the Tibetan Plateau. We assessed the effects of soil temperature and moisture dynamics on R S , R A, and R H and performed a meta-analysis to examine whether the warming effects observed were similar to those reported in wet ecosystems, including Tibetan alpine meadow and arctic ecosystem. Experimental warming did not alter R S , R A, and R H in this alpine steppe, likely because decreased soil moisture constrained positive warming effects. In contrast, the meta-analysis revealed that R S exhibited a significant increase under experimental warming in both the Tibetan alpine meadow and arctic wet tundra. These results demonstrate that R S exhibits different responses to climate warming between dry and wet ecosystems, suggesting potential more complex C-climate feedback in cold regions. |
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