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AGU: Geophysical Research Letters

 

Index Terms

  • Atmospheric Composition and Structure: Biosphere/atmosphere interactions
  • Global Change: Biogeochemical processes
  • Global Change: Atmosphere
  • Atmospheric Composition and Structure: Instruments and techniques

Abstract

Experimentally induced root mortality increased nitrous oxide emission from tropical forest soils

Ruth K. Varner

Complex Systems Research Center, Institute for the Study of Earth Oceans and Space, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire, USA

Michael Keller

Complex Systems Research Center, Institute for the Study of Earth Oceans and Space, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire, USA

USDA Forest Service, International Institute of Tropical Forestry, Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico

Jillana R. Robertson

Complex Systems Research Center, Institute for the Study of Earth Oceans and Space, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire, USA

Jadson D. Dias

Fundacao Floresta Tropical, Santarem, Para, Brazil

Hudson Silva

Complex Systems Research Center, Institute for the Study of Earth Oceans and Space, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire, USA

Fundacao Floresta Tropical, Santarem, Para, Brazil

Patrick M. Crill

Complex Systems Research Center, Institute for the Study of Earth Oceans and Space, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire, USA

Megan McGroddy

Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, USA

Whendee L. Silver

Division of Ecosystem Sciences, Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, University of California, Berkeley, California, USA

We conducted an experiment on sand and clay tropical forest soils to test the short-term effect of root mortality on the soil-atmosphere flux of nitrous oxide, nitric oxide, methane, and carbon dioxide. We induced root mortality by isolating blocks of land to 1 m using trenching and root exclusion screening. Gas fluxes were measured weekly for ten weeks following the trenching treatment. For nitrous oxide there was a highly significant increase in soil-atmosphere flux over the ten weeks following treatment for trenched plots compared to control plots. N2O flux averaged 37.5 and 18.5 ng N cm−2 h−1 from clay trenched and control plots and 4.7 and 1.5 ng N cm−2 h−1 from sand trenched and control plots. In contrast, there was no effect for soil-atmosphere flux of nitric oxide, carbon dioxide, or methane.

Published 14 February 2003.

Citation: Varner, R. K., M. Keller, J. R. Robertson, J. D. Dias, H. Silva, P. M. Crill, M. McGroddy, and W. L. Silver (2003), Experimentally induced root mortality increased nitrous oxide emission from tropical forest soils, Geophys. Res. Lett., 30(3), 1144, doi:10.1029/2002GL016164.

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