A detailed assessment of ecosystem carbon dynamics along an elevation transect in the Andes
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Edinburgh
Department Name: Sch of Geosciences
Abstract
Tropical montane forests are amongst the most fascinating yet least studied of terrestrial ecosystems. In terms of ecosystem science, they combine some of the attributes of temperate forests (low mean annual temperature) with those of lowland tropical forests (lack of temperature seasonality), and thereby provide an important test of our understanding of climatic controls on ecosystem carbon and nutrient cycling. In addition to holding large stocks of carbon in their soils, they host a large fraction of global biodiversity. Hence changes in tropical montane forest ecosystems could have a profound effect on global biodiversity and the global carbon cycle. As one climbs an elevation gradient in the wet tropics, two trends in ecosystem properties stand out: an apparent decline in above-ground productivity (the production of wood and leaves), and an increase in soil and dead biomass organic stocks at the expense of live biomass. However, although these trends are well-documented, there is still considerable debate as to the causes of these trends. We will focus on three aspects of the debate: - does below-ground root productivity decline in parallel with above-ground productivity, or does it actually increase (as indicated by a recent study), resulting in little trend in total productivity with elevation ? - do lowland tropical forests lose more carbon through respiration than tropical montane or temperate forests, and is the magnitude of this proportional loss related to ambient temperature ? - is the decline in decay rates with increasing elevation entirely explained by temperature, or is litter quality and important factor ? In this proposal we will explore the causes of both these trends, by conducting detailed measurements of plant, litter and soil carbon dynamics at four sites along an altitudinal transect in the Andes. This will build upon and complement similar measurements that we are currently conducting in the lowland Peruvian Amazon. We established the field study site in 2003 We will: (i) Conduct detailed observation of above- and below-ground productivity, measuring the production of wood, leaves and roots. (ii) Quantify respiratory CO2 emissions from leaves, wood and roots, and from decaying organic matter in litter and soils. (iii) Quantify the stocks and flows of C, N and, P in litter and soil pools. (iv) Quantify the the effects of temperature, litter quality and rainfall on the decay rates of leaf litter, woody debris, humic material and soil organic matter, by conducting a translocation experiment, where samples of litter, dead wood and soil with be swapped between different elevations along the transect, and the decay rates of material monitored over time.
Organisations
Publications
Zimmermann M
(2009)
Climate dependence of heterotrophic soil respiration from a soil-translocation experiment along a 3000 m tropical forest altitudinal gradient
in European Journal of Soil Science
Zimmermann M
(2009)
No Differences in Soil Carbon Stocks Across the Tree Line in the Peruvian Andes
in Ecosystems
Zimmermann M
(2010)
Can composition and physical protection of soil organic matter explain soil respiration temperature sensitivity?
in Biogeochemistry
Zimmermann M
(2009)
Litter contribution to diurnal and annual soil respiration in a tropical montane cloud forest
in Soil Biology and Biochemistry
Wurster CM
(2019)
Savanna in equatorial Borneo during the late Pleistocene.
in Scientific reports
Wu M
(2017)
Altitude effect on leaf wax carbon isotopic composition in humid tropical forests
in Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta
Rowland L
(2014)
The sensitivity of wood production to seasonal and interannual variations in climate in a lowland Amazonian rainforest.
in Oecologia
ROBERTSON A
(2010)
Stem respiration in tropical forests along an elevation gradient in the Amazon and Andes
in Global Change Biology
Oliveras I
(2018)
Fire effects and ecological recovery pathways of tropical montane cloud forests along a time chronosequence.
in Global change biology
Oliveras I
(2013)
Changes in forest structure and composition after fire in tropical montane cloud forests near the Andean treeline
in Plant Ecology & Diversity
Oliveras I
(2014)
Andean grasslands are as productive as tropical cloud forests
in Environmental Research Letters
Oliver V
(2017)
The effects of burning and grazing on soil carbon dynamics in managed Peruvian tropical montane grasslands
in Biogeosciences
Nottingham A
(2021)
Annual to decadal temperature adaptation of the soil bacterial community after translocation across an elevation gradient in the Andes
in Soil Biology and Biochemistry
Neyret M
(2016)
Examining variation in the leaf mass per area of dominant species across two contrasting tropical gradients in light of community assembly.
in Ecology and evolution
McCarthy R
(2022)
Tropical environmental change in North Sumatra at the Last Glacial Maximum: Evidence from the stable isotope composition of cave guano
in Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology
Malhi Y
(2013)
The productivity, metabolism and carbon cycle of two lowland tropical forest plots in south-western Amazonia, Peru
in Plant Ecology & Diversity
Malhi Y
(2017)
The variation of productivity and its allocation along a tropical elevation gradient: a whole carbon budget perspective.
in The New phytologist
Malhi Y
(2015)
The linkages between photosynthesis, productivity, growth and biomass in lowland Amazonian forests.
in Global change biology
Malhi Y
(2009)
Amazonia and Global Change
Huasco W
(2013)
Seasonal production, allocation and cycling of carbon in two mid-elevation tropical montane forest plots in the Peruvian Andes
in Plant Ecology & Diversity
Goldsmith GR
(2017)
Variation in leaf wettability traits along a tropical montane elevation gradient.
in The New phytologist
Girardin C
(2013)
Productivity and carbon allocation in a tropical montane cloud forest in the Peruvian Andes
in Plant Ecology & Diversity
Girardin C
(2016)
Seasonal trends of Amazonian rainforest phenology, net primary productivity, and carbon allocation
in Global Biogeochemical Cycles
Description | We found the sensitivity of soil carbon release to temperature was much greater than usual represented in biosphere models. The sensitivity of vegetation growth to temperature was less than expected. |
Exploitation Route | This can improve representation of carbon dynamics in global biosphere models, and the representation of tropical vegetation. |
Sectors | Environment |
URL | http://www.andesconservation.org |
Description | Our work on high carbon stocks in the Andes has been presented to the Peruvian Ministry of the Environment, and influences their thinking on plans for REDD+ |
First Year Of Impact | 2014 |
Sector | Environment |
Impact Types | Policy & public services |
Description | GEM-TRAITS ERC Advanced Investigator Award |
Amount | € 2,500,000 (EUR) |
Organisation | European Research Council (ERC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | Belgium |
Start | 04/2013 |
End | 04/2018 |