School of Agriculture, Food and Ecosystem Sciences - Research Publications

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    Soil Methane Uptake Increases under Continuous Throughfall Reduction in a Temperate Evergreen, Broadleaved Eucalypt Forest
    Fest, B ; Hinko-Najera, N ; von Fischer, JC ; Livesley, SJ ; Arndt, SK (SPRINGER, 2017-03)
    Soils in temperate forests ecosystems are the greatest terrestrial CH₄ sink globally. Global and regional circulation models predict decreased average rainfall, increased extreme rainfall events and increased temperatures for many temperate ecosystems. However, most studies of soil CH₄ uptake have only considered extended periods of drought rather than an overall decrease in rainfall amount. We measured soil CH₄ uptake from March 2010 to March 2012 after installing passive rainfall reduction systems to intercept approximately 40% of throughfall in a temperate broadleaf evergreen eucalypt forest in south-eastern Australia. Throughfall reduction caused an average reduction of 15.1 ± 6.4% (SE) in soil volumetric water content, a reduction of 19.8 ± 6.9% in soil water-filled pore space (%WFPS) and a 20.1 ± 6.8% increase in soil air-filled porosity. In response to these changes, soil CH₄ uptake increased by 54.7 ± 19.3%. The increase in soil CH₄ uptake could be explained by increased diffusivity in drier soils, whilst the activity of methanotrophs remained relatively unchanged. It is likely that soil CH₄ uptake will increase if rainfall reduces in temperate broadleaf evergreen forests of Australia as a consequence of climate change.
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    Soil methane oxidation in both dry and wet temperate eucalypt forests shows a near-identical relationship with soil air-filled porosity
    Fest, BJ ; Hinko-Najera, N ; Wardlaw, T ; Griffith, DWT ; Livesley, SJ ; Arndt, SK (Copernicus Publications, 2017-01-27)
    Well-drained, aerated soils are important sinks for atmospheric methane (CH4) via the process of CH4 oxidation by methane-oxidising bacteria (MOB). This terrestrial CH4 sink may contribute towards climate change mitigation, but the impact of changing soil moisture and temperature regimes on CH4 uptake is not well understood in all ecosystems. Soils in temperate forest ecosystems are the greatest terrestrial CH4 sink globally. Under predicted climate change scenarios, temperate eucalypt forests in south-eastern Australia are predicted to experience rapid and extreme changes in rainfall patterns, temperatures and wild fires. To investigate the influence of environmental drivers on seasonal and inter-annual variation of soil–atmosphere CH4 exchange, we measured soil–atmosphere CH4 exchange at high-temporal resolution (<  2 h) in a dry temperate eucalypt forest in Victoria (Wombat State Forest, precipitation 870 mm yr−1) and in a wet temperature eucalypt forest in Tasmania (Warra Long-Term Ecological Research site, 1700 mm yr−1). Both forest soil systems were continuous CH4 sinks of −1.79 kg CH4 ha−1 yr−1 in Victoria and −3.83 kg CH4 ha−1 yr−1 in Tasmania. Soil CH4 uptake showed substantial temporal variation and was strongly controlled by soil moisture at both forest sites. Soil CH4 uptake increased when soil moisture decreased and this relationship explained up to 90 % of the temporal variability. Furthermore, the relationship between soil moisture and soil CH4 flux was near-identical at both forest sites when soil moisture was expressed as soil air-filled porosity (AFP). Soil temperature only had a minor influence on soil CH4 uptake. Soil nitrogen concentrations were generally low and fluctuations in nitrogen availability did not influence soil CH4 uptake at either forest site. Our data suggest that soil MOB activity in the two forests was similar and that differences in soil CH4 exchange between the two forests were related to differences in soil moisture and thereby soil gas diffusivity. The differences between forest sites and the variation in soil CH4 exchange over time could be explained by soil AFP as an indicator of soil moisture status.
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    Reduced throughfall decreases autotrophic respiration, but not heterotrophic respiration in a dry temperate broadleaved evergreen forest
    Hinko-Najera, N ; Fest, B ; Livesley, SJ ; Arndt, SK (ELSEVIER, 2015-01-15)
    Climate change may have major implications on soil respiration dynamics and the carbon sink strength of forest soils. To assess the effect of climate change on soil respiration (RS), it is crucial to understand individual responses of autotrophic (RA) and heterotrophic (RH) components. We investigated the effect of continuously (20 months) reduced throughfall (TFR, −40%) and the influence of seasonal changes in soil temperature and moisture on RS, RA and RH, partitioned by root exclusion, in a dry temperate broadleaved evergreen eucalypt forest in south-eastern Australia. TFR decreased mean RS from 4.7±0.1 (Control) to 3.8±0.1 (TFR) μmolCO2m−2s−1 (−19%). TFR indicated a strong decrease in RA from 2.5±0.1 (Control) to 1.5±0.1 (TFR) μmolCO2m−2s−1 (−40%), but had no effect on RH. The mean relative contribution of RH to RS was 47% in the Control and increased to 61% under TFR. RS was the result of distinct seasonal patterns and dependencies of RH and RA on environmental variables. Soil temperature was a good predictor of RH (Control: R2=0.72, TFR: R2=0.75), but not of RA. In contrast, RH was not limited by soil moisture, while RA was partly influenced by soil moisture (Control: R2=0.29, TFR: R2=0.56). The lack of response of RH to changes in soil moisture (seasonal and under TFR) was likely influenced by the high rainfall conditions such that soil moisture did not decrease to a point where it limited soil microbial decomposition processes. Our results show that TFR implied the strongest effect on RA and that changes in soil temperature and moisture alone do not sufficiently explain seasonal changes in RA and RS. This indicates that biotic factors, such as plant internal carbon allocation, may exert a stronger influence on RA and hence, RS. In short-term a reduction in rainfall will lead to a decrease of soil respiration in dry temperate broadleaved evergreen eucalypt forests. The magnitude of this decrease and its persistence under extended drought will be greatly influenced by seasonal and inter-annual climate variability and potential changes in plant carbon allocation.