ALBERT

Description: To study the effects of ocean acidification on the physiology of phytoplankton requires that the key chemical parameters of the growth medium, pCO2, pH and Ω (the saturation state of calcium carbonate) be carefully controlled. This is made difficult by the interdependence of these parameters. Moreover, in growing batch cultures of phytoplankton, the fixation of CO2, the uptake of nutrients and, for coccolithophores, the precipitation of calcite all change the inorganic carbon and acid-base chemistry of the medium. For example, absent pH-buffering or CO2 bubbling, a sizeable decrease in pCO2 occurs at a biomass concentration as low as 50 μM C in non-calcifying cultures. Even in cultures where pCO2 or pH is maintained constant, other chemical parameters change substantially at high cell densities. The quantification of these changes is facilitated by the use of buffer capacities. Experimentally we observe that all methods of adjustment of pCO2/pH can be used, the choice of one or the other depending on the specifics of the experiments. The mechanical effect of bubbling of cultures seems to induce more variable results than other methods of pCO2/pH control. While highly convenient, the addition of pH buffers to the medium induces changes in trace metal availability and cannot be used under trace metal-limiting conditions.

Description: Effective use of ocean colour and other bio-optical observations is dependent upon an ability to understand and characterise the angular scattering properties of phytoplankton populations. The two-layered sphere appears to offer the simplest heterogeneous geometry capable of simulating the observed angular scattering of phytoplankton cells. A study is made of the twolayered spherical model for the simulation of the inherent optical properties of algal populations, with a particular focus on backscattering as causal to ocean colour. Homogenous and two-layered volume-equivalent single particle models are used to examine the effects of varying cellular geometry, chloroplast volume, and complex refractive index on optical efficiency factors. A morphology with a chloroplast layer surrounding the cytoplasm is shown to be optimal for algal cell simulation. Appropriate chloroplast volume and refractive index ranges, and means of determining complex refractive indices for cellular chloroplast and cytoplasm material, are discussed with regard to available literature. The approach is expanded to polydispersed populations using equivalent size distribution models: to demonstrate variability in simulated inherent optical properties for phytoplankton assemblages of changing dominant cell size and functional type. Finally, a preliminary validation is conducted of inherent optical properties determined for natural phytoplankton populations with the two-layered model, using the reflectance approximation. The study demonstrates the validity of the two-layered geometry and refractive index structure, and indicates that the combined use of equivalent size distributions with the heterogeneous geometry can be used to establish a quantitative formulation between single particle optics, size and assemblage-specific inherent optical properties, and ocean colour.

Description: The formation of nitrate (nitrification) in soils is an important process that influences the form of N available for plant uptake and the potential off-site N losses. Gross nitrification is one of the main sources of nitrous oxide (N2O) and nitric oxide (NO) from soils. A field experiment was designed to verify the idea that gross nitrification rates in soils can be readily predicted by a model approach where seasonal variability is described only by soil moisture and soil temperature and the magnitude of gross nitrification is controlled by the soil organic matter (SOM). Gross nitrification rates were measured by a Barometric Process Separation (BaPS), first described by Ingwersen et al. (1999). The BaPS measurements were validated with the commonly used 15N pool dilution technique measurements at six times. In general, the rates determined from both measurement approaches were in the same order of magnitude and showed a good correlation. The effects of three different fertilisations (mineral fertiliser, manure and the control) over more than 100 years on gross nitrification rates were investigated. During 2004 soil probes from the long-term "static fertilisation experiment" at Bad Lauchstädt were sampled weekly and were measured in the laboratory under field conditions and subsequently under standardised conditions (16°C soil temperature and −30 kPa matrix potential) with the Barometric Process Separation system (BaPS). Gross nitrification rates determined by the BaPS-method under field conditions showed a high temporal variability and ranged from 5 to 77 μg N h−1 kg−1 dry mass, 2 to 74 μg N h−1 kg−1 dry mass and 0 to 49 μg N h−1 kg−1 dry mass with respect to manure, mineral fertiliser and control. The annual average was 0.32, 0.26 and 0.18 g N a−1 kg−1 dry mass for the manure site, mineral fertiliser site and control site, respectively. On all sites gross nitrification revealed a strong seasonal dynamic. Three different methods (a temperature and soil moisture dependency model from Recous et al., 1998, a multiple linear regression and the method proposed in this paper) were applied for reproducing the measured results. On the manure site 78% to 80%, on the mineral fertiliser site 66% to 72% and on the control site 39% to 56% of the observed variations could be explained by the tested models. Gross nitrification rates determined under standardised conditions did not show any seasonal trends but did also however reveal high temporal variability.

Description: A cyclonic eddy was intensively investigated during four cruises carried out in the Sargasso Sea between late June and early August 2004. In this study we compare in vitro incubation estimates of net community production (NCP) with in situ estimates derived from oxygen profiles and a 1-D model. The in vitro NCP rates measured at the center of the eddy showed a shift from slight net autotrophy (7±3 mmol O2 m−2 d−1) to net heterotrophy (−25±5 mmol O2 m−2 d−1) from late June to early August. The model-derived NCP rates also showed a temporal decline (21 to −1 to 13 mmol O2 m−2 d−1), but reported net autotrophy or balance for the sampling period. These results point to methodological artefacts or temporal and submesoscale variability as the mechanisms responsible for the disagreement between the in vitro and the in situ NCP estimates.

Description: Short statured managed ecosystems, such as agricultural grasslands, exhibit high temporal changes in carbon dioxide assimilation and respiration fluxes for which measurements of the net CO2 flux, e.g. by using the eddy covariance (EC) method, give only limited insight. We have therefore adopted a recently proposed concept for conditional EC flux analysis of forest to grasslands, in order to identify and quantify daytime sub-canopy respiration fluxes. To validate the concept, high frequency (≈5 Hz) stable carbon isotope analyis of CO2 was used. We made eddy covariance measurements of CO2 and its isotopologues during four days in August 2007, using a novel quantum cascade laser absorption spectrometer, capable of high time resolution stable isotope analysis. The effects of a grass cut during the measurement period could be detected and resulted in a sub-canopy source conditional flux classification, for which the isotope composition of the CO2 could be confirmed to be of a respiration source. However, the conditional flux method did not work for an undisturbed grassland canopy. We attribute this to the flux measurement height that was chosen well above the roughness sublayer, where the natural isotopic tracer (δ13C) of respiration was too well mixed with background air.

Description: Oceanic uptake of anthropogenic CO2 results in a reduction in pH termed "Ocean Acidification" (OA). Comparatively little attention has been given to the effect of OA on the early life history stages of marine animals. Consequently, we investigated the effect of culture in CO2-acidified sea water (approx. 1200 ppm, i.e. average values predicted using IPCC 2007 A1F1 emissions scenarios for year 2100) on early larval stages of an economically important crustacean, the European lobster Homarus gammarus. Culture in CO2-acidified sea water did not significantly affect carapace length or development of H. gammarus. However, there was a reduction in carapace mass during the final stage of larval development in CO2-acidified sea water. This co-occurred with a reduction in exoskeletal mineral (calcium and magnesium) content of the carapace. As the control and high CO2 treatments were not undersaturated with respect to any of the calcium carbonate polymorphs measured, the physiological alterations we record are most likely the result of acidosis or hypercapnia interfering with normal homeostatic function, and not a direct impact on the carbonate supply-side of calcification per se. Thus despite there being no observed effect on survival, carapace length, or zoeal progression, OA related (indirect) disruption of calcification and carapace mass might still adversely affect the competitive fitness and recruitment success of larval lobsters with serious consequences for population dynamics and marine ecosystem function.

Description: CO2 fluxes were measured continuously for twelve months (2003) using eddy covariance technique at canopy layer in a dominant subtropical forest in South China. Our results showed that daytime maximum CO2 fluxes of the whole ecosystem varied from −15 to −20 μmol m−2 s−1. The peaks of CO2 fluxes appeared earlier than the peaks of solar radiation. Contribution of CO2 fluxes in a subtropical forest in the dry season was 53% of the annual total from the whole forest ecosystem. Daytime CO2 fluxes were very large in October, November and December, which was therefore an important stage for uptake of CO2 by the forest ecosystem from the atmosphere. Using the estimates of biomass, soil carbon and parameters of leaf photosynthesis from other studies at the same forest, we ran a process-based model, CBM (stands for CSIRO Biosphere Model) for this site, and compared the predicted fluxes of CO2 with measurements. We obtained reasonable agreement. The mean difference between the simulated and measured daytime CO2 fluxes from the year-round (8249 records) was −0.2 μmol m−2 s−1 and implied well within measurement accuracy. Based on estimates of forest ecosystem respiration, NEE was calculated −242 and −276 gCm−2 year−1 for measured and modelled, respectively. In previous study, NPP for this forest stand was 694 gCm−2 year−1 during 2003/04 and litterfall was 424 gCm−2 year−1. We therefore calculated NEE as −270 gCm−2 year−1 and very similar to the values obtained by measured and modelled CO2 fluxes in this study.

Description: Eddy fluxes were measured over different ecosystems, winter and summer crops, a maritime pine forest at different stages of development and grassland, from 17 May to 26 June 2005 in the southwestern region of France. During the experiment, summer crops started growing whereas winter crops and grassland achieved their senescence. Comparatively, the other ecosystems had a much slower growth emphasized by soil water deficit at forest sites. The ten ecosystems showed different partitioning of available energy. Net radiation was the highest above the maritime pine forest, followed, in decreasing order, by the crops, the vineyard and the grassland. Over the whole campaign period, the Bowen ratio (β=H/LE) was larger above the forest sites than for the other sites. The various vegetation types also showed contrasting net ecosystem exchange (NEE) dynamics following their growth status and respective behaviour in response to drought. Both the clearcut and summer crops before irrigation and plant growth behaved as sources of CO2, whereas the vineyard, the mature forest and winter crops acted as sinks. However the maize crops became substantial sinks of CO2 after the start of irrigation and canopy growth, with fluxes twice as large as for the mature pine forest. Finally, throughout the experiment, forest, grassland and crops sequestrated from about 50 gC m−2 to 230 gC m−2, while the cleacut and the beans crop rejected about 30 gC m−2. These results support the idea that converting a mature forest to a clearcut or bare soil available to agricultural use enhances the sensible heat flux and shifts the ecosystem from a sink to a source of carbon.

Description: We tested the recently proposed, strong positive relationship between dimethylsulphide (DMS) concentrations and the solar radiation dose (SRD) received into the surface ocean. We utilised in situ daily data sampled concurrently with DMS concentrations from the Atlantic Meridional Transect (AMT) programme for the component variables of the SRD; mixed layer depth (MLD), surface insolation (I0) and a light attenuation coefficient (k), to calculate SRDin situ. We find a significant correlation (ρ=0.53) but the slope of the relationship is approximately half that previously proposed. The correlation is improved (ρ=0.76) by replacing the in situ data with an estimated I0 (which assumes a constant 50% removal of the top of atmosphere value; 0.5×TOA), a MLD climatology and a fixed value for k following a previously described methodology. Equally significant, but non-linear relationships are also found between DMS and both in situ MLD (ρ=0.73) and the estimated I0 (ρ=0.76) alone. The DMS data shows an interesting relationship to an approximated UV attenuation depth profile. Using a cloud adjusted, satellite climatology of surface UVA irradiance to calculate a UV radiation dose (UVRD) provides an equivalent correlation (ρ=0.73) to DMS. With this data, MLD appears the dominant control upon DMS concentrations and remains a useful shorthand to prediction without fully resolving the biological processes involved. However, the implied relationship between incident solar/ultraviolet radiation dose and sea surface DMS concentrations (modulated by MLD) is critical for closing a climate feedback loop.

Description: A subtropical old-growth forest was analyzed over a twelve year period to investigate temporal and spatial fluctuations of biomass and stem fluxes under disturbances. Vegetations were categorized into three types caused by biotic factors and abiotic factors, including Castanopsis chinensis population, insect direct-influenced population, and insect indirect-influenced population according to disturbance scenarios. The biomass fluxes (including biomass growth and mortality) and stem fluxes (including stem recruitment and mortality) were used to quantify the fluctuation of population. The results showed that annual average biomass growth rate was stable throughout the three periods, 1992–1994, 1994–1999, and 1999–2004, while annual biomass mortality and stem fluxes kept increasing through the three periods. Castanopsis chinensis population contributed the most in biomass fluxes of the community. Biomass and stem mortalities of insect direct-influenced population increased significantly during the whole study period (1992–2004). Dynamics of indirect-influenced population were compared by dominate species, diameter classes, and spatial patterns of subplots, respectively. Results of indirect-influenced population showed that (1) the increase of biomass of the dominant species was well correlated between different intervals. Similar relationships were found in stem fluxes; (2) higher stem mortality was observed when DBH ranged from 1 to 10 cm as compared with individuals in other DBH classes; (3) stem fluxes in the canopy gaps were remarkably higher than those in closed canopy. The biomass growth rate in gaps increased remarkably after the formation of the gaps.

Description: The carbon dioxide sink is in a complex way related to weather and climate. In order to better understand the relationship and feedbacks, we present a methodology to simulate observed carbon dioxide flux data with a simple vegetation model (5PM) with weekly varying model parameters. The model parameters explain the interaction between vegetation and seasonal climate more general than the flux data. Two parameters (Rref and E0) are related to ecosystem respiration and three parameters (Jm, α and λ) to photosynthesis and transpiration. We quantified the weekly variability of ecosystem parameters as a function of vegetation type and climate region. After statistical quality checks 121 FLUXNET sites were available for analysis of the weekly varying model parameters. The simulations of these sites have high correlation coefficients (r2=0.6 to 0.8) between the observed and simulated carbon and water fluxes. With weekly parameters we determined average seasonal cycles for the different combinations of vegetation type and climate regions (PFTs). The variation between PFTs is large, which provides an excellent dataset to study the differences in ecosystem characteristics. In general we observed that needleleaf forests and grasslands in warmer climates have relatively constant parameter values during the year. Broadleaf forests in all climate regions have large seasonal variation for each of the five parameters. In boreal regions parameter values are always lower than in temperate regions. A large seasonality of the model parameters indicates a strong relation between vegetation and climate. This suggests that climate change will have the largest impact on the terrestrial carbon fluxes in boreal regions and for deciduous forests, and less for grasslands and evergreen forests.

Description: A simulation model based on satellite observations of monthly vegetation cover from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) was used to estimate monthly carbon fluxes in terrestrial ecosystems of Brazilian Amazon and Cerrado regions over the period 2000–2002. The NASA-CASA (Carnegie Ames Stanford Approach) model estimates of annual forest production were used as the basis to generate a prediction for the standing pool of carbon in above-ground biomass (AGB; g C m−2) for forested areas of the Brazilian Amazon region. Plot-level measurements of the residence time of carbon in wood in Amazon forest from Malhi et al. (2006) were interpolated by inverse distance weighting algorithms and used with CASA to generate a new regional map of AGB. Data from the Brazilian PRODES (Estimativa do Desflorestamento da Amazônia) project were used to map deforested areas. Results show that net primary production (NPP) sinks for carbon are highest across the eastern and northern Amazon areas, whereas deforestation sources of CO2 flux from decomposition of residual woody debris are more rapid and less seasonal in the central Amazon than in the eastern and southern areas. Increased woody debris from past deforestation events was predicted to alter the net ecosystem carbon balance of the Amazon region to generate annual CO2 source fluxes at least two times higher than previously predicted by CASA modeling studies. Variations in climate, land cover, and forest burning were predicted to release carbon at rates of 0.5 to 1 Pg C yr−1 from the Brazilian Amazon. When direct carbon emissions from forest burning of between 0.2 and 0.6−1 in the Legal Amazon are overlooked in regional budgets, the year-to-year variations in this net biome flux may appear to be large, whereas our model results implies net biome fluxes had actually been relatively consistent from year to year during the period 2000–2002.

Description: There is a growing consensus that land surface models (LSMs) that simulate terrestrial biosphere exchanges of matter and energy must be better constrained with data to quantify and address their uncertainties. FLUXNET, an international network of sites that measure the land surface exchanges of carbon, water and energy using the eddy covariance technique, is a prime source of data for model improvement. Here we outline a multi-stage process for fusing LSMs with FLUXNET data to generate better models with quantifiable uncertainty. First, we describe FLUXNET data availability, and its random and systematic biases. We then introduce methods for assessing LSM model runs against FLUXNET observations in temporal and spatial domains. These assessments are a prelude to more formal model-data fusion (MDF). MDF links model to data, based on error weightings. In theory, MDF produces optimal analyses of the modelled system, but there are practical problems. We first discuss how to set model errors and initial conditions. In both cases incorrect assumptions will affect the outcome of the MDF. We then review the problem of equifinality, whereby multiple combinations of parameters can produce similar model output. Fusing multiple independent data provides a means to limit equifinality. We then show how parameter probability density functions (PDFs) from MDF can be used to interpret model process validity, and to propagate errors into model outputs. Posterior parameter distributions are a useful way to assess the success of MDF, combined with a determination of whether model residuals are Gaussian. If the MDF scheme provides evidence for temporal variation in parameters, then that is indicative of a critical missing dynamic process. A comparison of parameter PDFs generated with the same model from multiple FLUXNET sites can provide insights into the concept and validity of plant functional types (PFT) – we would expect similar parameter estimates among sites sharing a single PFT. We conclude by identifying five major model-data fusion challenges for the FLUXNET and LSM communities: 1) to determine appropriate use of current data and to explore the information gained in using longer time series; 2) to avoid confounding effects of missing process representation on parameter estimation; 3) to assimilate more data types, including those from earth observation; 4) to fully quantify uncertainties arising from data bias, model structure, and initial conditions problems; and 5) to carefully test current model concepts (e.g. PFTs) and guide development of new concepts.

Description: During the last few decades, many studies have been performed to determine water and carbon budgets of broadleaf and deciduous forests, crops and grasslands. However, since most measurements have been made in different regions and at different periods, it is difficult to compare the results directly. In order to evaluate accurately the respective contribution of various agroecosystems to global water and carbon exchanges, it is necessary to compare data obtained in similar climatic and weather conditions. To address this question, we present the results from simultaneous measurements carried out from 31 March 2007 to 3 March 2008 over three typical agroecosystems of the Les Landes region in South-West France: an agricultural field with maize from 29 May to 18 October, a young (5 year-old) pine forest and a mature (37 year-old) pine forest. All measurements were collected as part of the Regional Experiment component of the CarboEurope-IP project. During most of the year, the agricultural field without vegetation is a source of CO2, but from late June to early September the maize crop becomes a stronger carbon sink than the forests. Over the whole measurement period the three agroecosystems behave as CO2 sinks with carbon storage of about 500, 330 and 230 gC m−2 for the young forest, the mature forest and the agricultural field, respectively. Daily Water Use Efficiencies (WUE) of the three ecosystems were evaluated and expressed as functions of the mean daily vapour pressure deficit (VPD). Similar trends were observed for the two forests, which suggests that for a given species WUE is independent of stand age. The WUE of the maize crop at maturity was also found to depend upon VPD, but it is about twice as large as for the forests, owing to the physiological advantages of C4 species.

Description: Wetland biogeochemistry is strongly influenced by water and temperature dynamics, and these interactions are currently poorly represented in ecosystem and climate models. A decline in water table of approximately 6 cm/year was observed at a wetland in northern Wisconsin, USA over a period from 2001–2007. Eddy covariance measurements of carbon dioxide exchange in conjunction with the declining water table revealed an increase in ecosystem respiration of over 20% as water table depth fell through a range between 5 and 35 cm below the surface. Ecosystem respiration was not correlated with water table outside of this range. The limits of the range were dependent on temperature, with the effect of water table penetrating deeper at higher temperatures. Yearly average ecosystem production was approximately 20% higher in years with low water table than in years with high water table. As the water table declined, evapotranspiration decreased and ecosystem water use efficiency increased. Wetland net ecosystem exchange was not correlated with water table, but in 2007, a year with an exceptionally dry growing season, the wetland site was a net carbon source. These results suggest that changes in hydrology may not have a large impact on wetland carbon flux over inter-annual time scales due to opposing responses in both ecosystem respiration and productivity. However, this balance appears to be sensitive to changes in the seasonal distribution of precipitation.

Description: Marine organisms that produce calcium carbonate structures are predicted to be most vulnerable to a decline in oceanic pH (ocean acidification) based on the understanding that calcification rates will decrease as a result of changes in the seawater carbonate chemistry thereby reducing carbonate ion concentration (and associated saturation states). Coastal seas are critical components of the global carbon cycle yet little research has been conducted on acidification impacts on coastal benthic organisms. Here, a critical appraisal of calcification in six benthic species showed, contrary to popular predictions, calcification can increase, and not decrease, in acidified seawater. Measuring the changes in calcium in isolated calcium carbonate structure as well as structures from live animals exposed to acidified seawater allowed a comparison between a species' ability to calcify and the dissolution affects across decreasing levels of pH. Calcium carbonate production is dependant on the ability to increase calcification thus counteracting an increase in dissolution. Comparison with paleoecological studies of past high carbon dioxide (CO2) events presents a similar picture. This conclusion implies that calcification may not be the critical process impacted by ocean acidification; particularly as all species investigated displayed physiological trade offs including reduced metabolism, health, and behavioural responses, in association with this calcification upregulation, which possess as great a threat to survival as an inability to calcify.

Description: Arctic glacier surfaces harbor abundant microbial communities consisting mainly of heterotrophic and photoautotrophic bacteria. The microbes must cope with very low concentrations of nutrients and with the fact that both the dissolved and debris-bound nutrient pools are dominated by organic phases. Here we provide evidence that phosphorus (P) is deficient and limiting in the supraglacial environment on a Svalbard glacier, we show how the microbial community responds to the P stress and we quantify the contribution of the microbes to the cycling of the dominant organic P in the supraglacial environment. Incubation of cryoconite debris revealed significant phosphatase activity in the samples (19–67 nmol MUP g−1 h−1), which was controlled by the concentration of inorganic P during incubations and had its optimum at around 30°C. The phosphatase activity rates measured at near-in situ temperature and substrate concentration imply that the available dissolved organic P can be turned over by microbes within ~3–11 h on the glacier surface. By contrast, the amount of potentially bioavailable debris-bound organic P is sufficient for a whole ablation season. However, it is apparent that some of this potentially bioavailable debris-bound P is not accessible to the microbes.

Description: Under certain conditions, sediment cores from coastal settings subject to hypoxia can yield records of environmental changes over time scales ranging from decades to millennia, sometimes with a resolution of as little as a few years. A variety of biological and geochemical proxies derived from such cores have been used to reconstruct the development of eutrophication and hypoxic conditions over time. Proxies based on 1) the preserved remains of benthic organisms (mainly foraminiferans and ostracods), 2) sedimentary features (e.g. laminations) and 3) sediment chemistry and mineralogy (e.g. presence of sulphides and redox-sensitive trace elements) reflect conditions at or close to the seafloor. Those based on 4) the preserved remains of planktonic organisms (mainly diatoms and dinoflagellates), 5) pigments and lipid biomarkers derived from prokaryotes and eukaryotes and 6) organic C, N and their isotope values reflect conditions in the water column. However, the interpretation of these proxies is not straightforward. A central difficulty concerns the fact that hypoxia is strongly correlated with, and often induced by, organic enrichment (eutrophication), making it difficult to separate the effects of these phenomena in sediment records. The problem is compounded by the enhanced preservation in anoxic and hypoxic sediments of organic microfossils and biomarkers indicating eutrophication. The use of hypoxia-specific indicators, such as the trace metals molybdenum and rhenium and the bacterial biomarker isorenieratene, which have not been used often in historical studies, may provide a way forward. All proxies of bottom-water hypoxia are basically qualitative; their quantification presents a major challenge to which there is currently no satisfactory solution. Finally, it is important to separate the effects of natural ecosystem variability from anthropogenic effects. Despite these problems, in the absence of historical data for dissolved oxygen concentrations, the analysis of sediment cores can provide plausible reconstructions of the temporal development of human-induced hypoxia, and associated eutrophication, in vulnerable coastal environments.

Description: Since the seminal paper of Redfield (1934), constant stoichiometric elemental ratios linking biotic carbon and nutrient fluxes are often assumed in marine biogeochemistry, and especially in coupled biogeochemical circulation models to link the global oxygen, carbon and nutrient cycles. However, when looking in more detail, some deviations from the classical Redfield stoichiometry have been reported, in particular with respect to remineralization of organic matter changing with depth or with ambient oxygen levels. We here compare the assumptions about the stoichiometry of organic matter and its remineralization that are used explicitly and implicitly in common biogeochemical ocean models. We find that the implicit assumptions made about the hydrogen content of organic matter can lead to inconsistencies in the modeled remineralization and denitrification stoichiometries. It is suggested that models explicitly state the chemical composition assumed for the organic matter, including its oxygen and hydrogen content.

Description: Grassland management may lead to strong modification of the canopy structure and hence fluxes of carbon and nitrogen in the soil-plant-atmosphere system. Mowing or grazing removes green leaves, which are often a sink for ammonia. Consequently, the ratio between actively growing leaves and senescing/dead parts of the plants is strongly changed in favour of the latter, which may constitute a large source of ammonia. Moreover, fertilisers are a known source of ammonia through direct volatilisation. The effects of grassland management, e.g. growing, cutting and fertilisation, on ammonia emission were investigated using a dynamic chamber. This technique made it possible to monitor ammonia emissions in the field at the plant level. With ammonia-free air at the inlet, the ammonia emissions from mature sward did not exceed 4 ng NH3 m−2 s−1. They were approximately 20 times larger above a sward re-growing after cutting and 200 times larger after fertilisation, where 0.5–1.0% of the applied inorganic nitrogen fertiliser was lost by volatilisation. Cutting implied three main changes in ammonia sources and sinks within the canopy: (i) physiological changes with nitrogen remobilisation to the growing leaves and increase in senescence, (ii) changes in compartment proportions with only 5% of green leaves remaining after cutting as opposed to equal proportions of dead leaves as green leaves before cutting, (iii) microclimate changes within the canopy especially for litter with higher turbulence, temperature, and alternation of dry (day) and wet (night) conditions after cutting. These changes promoted ammonia volatilisation from the litter, which could account for the increased ammonia loss following cutting. Another potential source was the wounded surfaces of the stubble which may have emitted ammonia during bleeding and evaporation of sap containing significant levels of ammonium. These results showed that the contribution of litter and drying cut sward on the ammonia balance of grassland is very significant, as well as their interaction with microclimatic conditions. This could apply to most natural and managed ecosystems and could be especially significant in the former. Consequently, further studies on ammonia fluxes should have a 0focus on this part of the canopy.

Description: Ozone, water and energy fluxes were measured over a Mediterranean maquis ecosystem from 5 May until 31 July by means of the eddy covariance technique. Additional measurements of NOx fluxes were performed by the aerodynamic gradient technique. Stomatal ozone fluxes were obtained from water fluxes by a Dry Deposition Inferential Method based on a big leaf concept. The maquis ecosystem acted as a net sink for ozone. The different water availability between late spring and summer was the major cause of the changes observed in stomatal fluxes, which decreased, together with evapotranspiration, when the season became drier. NOx concentrations were significantly dependent on the local meteorology. NOx fluxes resulted less intense than the ozone fluxes. However an average upward flux of both NO and NO2 was measured. The non-stomatal pathways of ozone deposition were investigated. A correlation of non-stomatal deposition with air humidity and, in a minor way, with NO2 fluxes was found. Ozone risk assessment was performed by comparing the exposure and the dose metrics: AOT40 (Accumulated dose over a threshold of 40 ppb) and AFst1.6 (Accumulated stomatal flux of ozone over a threshold of 1.6 nmol m−2 s−1). AOT40, both at the measurement height and at canopy height was greater than the Critical Level (5000 ppb·h) adopted by UN-ECE. Also the AFst1.6 value (12.6 mmol m−2 PLA, Projected Leaf Area) was higher than the provisional critical dose of 4 mmol m−2 PLA. The cumulated dose grew more regularly than the exposure but it showed two different growth rates in the spring and in the summer periods.

Description: Croplands are man-made ecosystems that have high net primary productivity during the growing season of crops, thus impacting carbon and other exchanges with the atmosphere. These exchanges play a~major role in nutrient cycling and climate change related issues. An accurate representation of crop phenology and physiology is important in land-atmosphere carbon models being used to predict these exchanges. To better estimate time-varying exchanges of carbon, water, and energy of croplands using the Simple Biosphere (SiB) model, we developed crop-specific phenology models and coupled them to SiB. The coupled SiB-phenology model (SiBcrop) replaces remotely-sensed NDVI information, on which SiB originally relied for deriving Leaf Area Index (LAI) and the fraction of Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fPAR) for estimating carbon dynamics. The use of the new phenology scheme within SiB substantially improved the prediction of LAI and carbon fluxes for maize, soybean, and wheat crops, as compared with the observed data at several AmeriFlux eddy covariance flux tower sites in the US mid continent region. SiBcrop better predicted the onset and end of the growing season, harvest, interannual variability associated with crop rotation, day time carbon uptake (especially for maize) and day to day variability in carbon exchange. Biomass predicted by SiBcrop had good agreement with the observed biomass at field sites. In the future, we will predict fine resolution regional scale carbon and other exchanges by coupling SiBcrop with RAMS (the Regional Atmospheric Modeling System).

Description: Physical injury is common in terrestrial plants as a result of grazing, trampling, and extreme weather events. Previous studies demonstrated enhanced emission of non-microbial CH4 under aerobic conditions from plant tissues when they were exposed to increasing UV radiation and temperature. Since physical injury is also a form of environmental stress, we sought to determine whether it would also affect CH4 emissions from plants. Physical injury (cutting) stimulated CH4 emission from fresh twigs of Artemisiaspecies under aerobic conditions. More cutting resulted in more CH4 emissions. Hypoxia also enhanced CH4 emission from both uncut and cut Artemisia frigida twigs. Physical injury typically results in cell wall degradation, which may either stimulate formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) or decrease scavenging of them. Increased ROS activity might explain increased CH4 emission in response to physical injury and other forms of stress. There were significant differences in CH4 emissions among 10 species of Artemisia, with some species emitting no detectable CH4 under any circumstances. Consequently, CH4 emissions may be species-dependent and therefore difficult to estimate in nature based on total plant biomass. Our results and those of previous studies suggest that a variety environmental stresses stimulate CH4 emission from a wide variety of plant species. Global change processes, including climate change, depletion of stratospheric ozone, increasing ground-level ozone, spread of plant pests, and land-use changes, could cause more stress in plants on a global scale, potentially stimulating more CH4 emission globally.

Description: Estimating carbon exchange at regional scales is paramount to understanding feedbacks between climate and the carbon cycle, but also to verifying climate change mitigation such as emission reductions and strategies compensating for emissions such as carbon sequestration. This paper discusses evidence for a number of important shortcomings of current generation modelling frameworks designed to provide regional scale budgets. Current top-down and bottom-up approaches targeted at deriving consistent regional scale carbon exchange estimates for biospheric and anthropogenic sources and sinks are hampered by a number of issues: We show that top-down constraints using point measurements made from tall towers, although sensitive to larger spatial scales, are however influenced by local areas much stronger than previously thought. On the other hand, classical bottom-up approaches using process information collected at the local scale, such as from eddy covariance data, need up-scaling and validation on larger scales. We therefore argue for a combination of both approaches, implicitly providing the important local scale information for the top-down constraint, and providing the atmospheric constraint for up-scaling of flux measurements. Combining these data streams necessitates quantifying their respective representation errors, which are discussed. The impact of these findings on future network design is highlighted, and some recommendations are given.

Description: The cold-water coral Lophelia pertusa is one of the few species able to build reef-like structures and a 3-dimensional coral framework in the deep oceans. Furthermore, deep cold-water coral bioherms are likely among the first marine ecosystems to be affected by ocean acidification. Colonies of L. pertusa were collected during a cruise in 2006 to cold-water coral bioherms of the Mingulay reef complex (Hebrides, North Atlantic). Calcium-45 labelling was conducted shortly after sample collection onboard. After this method proved to deliver reliable data, the same experimental approach was used to assess calcification rates and the effect of lowered pH during a~cruise to the Skagerrak (North Sea) in 2007. The highest calcification rates were found in youngest polyps with up to 1% d−1 new skeletal growth and average values of 0.11±0.02% d−1(±S.E.). Lowering the pH by 0.15 and 0.3 units relative to ambient pH resulted in a strong decrease in calcification by 30 and 56%, respectively. The effect of changes in pH on calcification was stronger for fast growing, young polyps (59% reduction) than for older polyps (40% reduction) which implies that skeletal growth of young and fast calcifying corallites will be influenced more negatively by ocean acidification. Nevertheless, L. pertusa revealed a positive net calcification (as indicated by 45Ca incorporation) at an aragonite saturation state (Ωa) below 1, which may indicate some adaptation to an environment that is already relatively low in Ωa compared to tropical or temperate coral bioherms.

Description: About one third of the anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2) released into the atmosphere in the past two centuries has been taken up by the ocean. As CO2 invades the surface ocean, carbonate ion concentrations and pH are lowered. Laboratory studies indicate that this reduces the calcification rates of marine calcifying organisms, including planktic foraminifera. Such a reduction in calcification resulting from anthropogenic CO2 emissions has not been observed, or quantified in the field yet. Here we present the findings of a study in the Western Arabian Sea that uses shells of the surface water dwelling planktic foraminifer Globigerinoides ruber in order to test the hypothesis that anthropogenically induced acidification has reduced shell calcification of this species. We found that light, thin-walled shells from the surface sediment are younger (based on 14C and δ13C measurements) than the heavier, thicker-walled shells. Shells in the upper, bioturbated, sediment layer were significantly lighter compared to shells found below this layer. These observations are consistent with a scenario where anthropogenically induced ocean acidification reduced the rate at which foraminifera calcify, resulting in lighter shells. On the other hand, we show that seasonal upwelling in the area also influences their calcification and the stable isotope (δ13C and δ18O) signatures recorded by the foraminifera shells. Plankton tow and sediment trap data show that lighter shells were produced during upwelling and heavier ones during non-upwelling periods. Seasonality alone, however, cannot explain the 14C results, or the increase in shell weight below the bioturbated sediment layer. We therefore must conclude that probably both the processes of acidification and seasonal upwelling are responsible for the presence of light shells in the top of the sediment and the age difference between thick and thin specimens.

Description: Drifting sediment trap experiments were carried out at high temporal frequency in the northwestern Mediterranean in the course of the DYNAPROC2 campaign, every 6 h at 200 m depth. Molecular biomarkers were analyzed in selected subsets of consecutive samples. Fluxes of n-alkanes, long-chain alkenones, sterols and steroid ketones show high variability between consecutive 6-h' samples, comparable in range to seasonnal variability. n-Alkane export ranges from 1.4 to 29.7 μg m−2 d−1, fluxes of C37 alkenones varies from 0 to 14.2 μg m−2 d−1. Fluxes of sterols, steroid ketones and C30 alkane diol, respectively range from 31 to 377, 2.2 to 46 and 0.3 to 9.3 μg m−2 d−1. The Biomarker composition is consistent with reworked algal and zooplanktonic organic matter with a remarkable refractory character. After a rain event ensuing the intrusion of coastal water at the study site, the relative signature of higher plant increases and corresponds to higher export fluxes of long-chain odd n-alkanes. Most phytoplanktonic biomarkers show concurrent variability in fluxes. Linear correlations between fluxes of distinct biomarkers and between fluxes of biomarkers and flux of total carbon suggest that the short term temporal variability of export fluxes depends primarily on physical constrains exerted by carrier particle dynamics. Linear correlation of their carbon-normalized concentrations explained a lower part of the variance, indicating that short-term variability in particle composition is a secondary driver of flux timing. At the end of summer stratification, export fluxes account for ca. 1% of the primary productivity. In this studied situation, biomarkers have a long residence time in the water column before they are exported at 200 m. Biomarkers exported at 200 m may thus record processes averaged over a larger period than the sampling frequency. For instance, phytoplanktonic biomarker composition of sinking particles fails to reflect the community changes occurring over the 4 weeks of study. At higher time resolution, the diel variability in primary productivity is not recorded by biomarker fluxes either. The coupling between primary productivity and biomarker export shows significant changes on time scales of days and even of 6 h.

Description: Small-scale heterogeneity of biogenic carbonate elemental composition can be a significant source of error in the accurate use of element/Ca ratios as geochemical proxies. In this study ion microprobe (SIMS) profiles showed significant small-scale variability of Mg/Ca, Sr/Ca and Mn/Ca ratios in new shell calcite of the marine bivalves P. maximus and Mytilus edulis that was precipitated during a constant-temperature culturing experiment. Elevated Mg/Ca, Sr/Ca and Mn/Ca ratios were found to be associated with the deposition of elaborate shell features, i.e. a shell surface stria in P. maximus and surface shell disturbance marks in both species, the latter a common occurrence in bivalve shells. In both species the observed small-scale elemental heterogeneity most likely was not controlled by variable transport of ions to the extra-pallial fluid, but by factors such as shell Mg content influencing Sr and Mn heterogeneity, the influence of shell organic content and/or conditions at the shell crystal-solution interface. Invariant Mg/Ca ratios observed in the mid and innermost regions of the P. maximus shell suggests a potential application as a palaeotemperature proxy.

Description: The Arctic Ocean is expected to be disproportionately sensitive to climatic changes, and is thought to be an area where such changes might be detected. The Arctic hydrological cycle is influenced by: runoff and precipitation, sea ice formation/melting, and the inflow of saline waters from Bering and Fram Straits and the Barents Sea Shelf. Pacific water is recognizable as intermediate salinity water, with high concentrations of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC), flowing from the Arctic Ocean to the North Atlantic via the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. We present DIC data from an east-west section through the Archipelago, as part of the Canadian International Polar Year initiatives. The fractions of Pacific and Arctic Ocean waters leaving the Archipelago and entering Baffin Bay, and subsequently the North Atlantic, are computed. The eastward transport of carbon from the Pacific, via the Arctic, to the North Atlantic is estimated. Altered mixing ratios of Pacific and freshwater in the Arctic Ocean have been recorded in recent decades. Any climatically driven alterations in the composition of waters leaving the Arctic Archipelago may have implications for anthropogenic CO2 uptake, and hence ocean acidification, in the subpolar and temperate North Atlantic.

Description: A simulation model based on satellite observations of monthly vegetation cover from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) was used to estimate monthly carbon fluxes in terrestrial ecosystems of Brazilian Amazon and Cerrado regions over the period 2000–2004. Net ecosystem production (NEP) flux for atmospheric CO2 in the region for these years was estimated. Consistently high carbon sink fluxes in terrestrial ecosystems on a yearly basis were found in the western portions of the states of Acre and Rondônia and the northern portions of the state of Pará. These areas were not significantly impacted by the 2002–2003 El Niño event in terms of net annual carbon gains. Areas of the region that show periodically high carbon source fluxes from terrestrial ecosystems to the atmosphere on yearly basis were found throughout the state of Maranhão and the southern portions of the state of Amazonas. As demonstrated though tower site comparisons, NEP modeled with monthly MODIS Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI) inputs closely resembles the measured seasonal carbon fluxes at the LBA Tapajos tower site. Modeling results suggest that the capacity for use of MODIS Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI) data to predict seasonal uptake rates of CO2 in Amazon forests and Cerrado woodlands is strong.

Description: Transport and fate of dissolved nitrous oxide (N2O) in groundwater and its significance to nitrogen dynamics within agro-ecosystems are poorly known in spite of significant potential of N2O to global warming and ozone depletion. Increasing denitrification in riparian buffers may trade a reduction in nitrate (NO3−) transport to surface waters for increased N2O emissions resulting from denitrification-produced N2O dissolved in groundwater being emitted into the air when groundwater flows into a stream or a river. This study quantifies the transport and fate of NO3− and dissolved N2O moving from crop fields through riparian buffers, assesses whether groundwater exported from crop fields and riparian buffers is a significant source of dissolved N2O emissions, and evaluates the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) methodology to estimate dissolved N2O emission. We measured concentrations of NO3−; chloride (Cl−); pH; dissolved N2O, dissolved oxygen (DO), and organic carbon (DOC) in groundwater under a multi-species riparian buffer, a cool-season grass filter, and adjacent crop fields located in the Bear Creek watershed in central Iowa, USA. In both the multi-species riparian buffer and the cool-season grass filter, concentrations of dissolved N2O in the groundwater did not change as it passed through the sites, even when the concentrations of groundwater NO3− were decreased by 50% and 59%, respectively, over the same periods. The fraction of N lost to leaching and runoff (0.05) and the modified N2O emission factor, [ratio of dissolved N2O flux to N input (0.00002)] determined for the cropped fields indicate that the current IPCC methodology overestimates dissolved N2O flux in the sites. A low ratio between dissolved N2O flux and soil N2O emission (0.0003) was estimated in the cropped fields. These results suggest that the riparian buffers established adjacent to crop fields for water quality functions (enhanced denitrification) decreased NO3− and were not a source of dissolved N2O. Also, the flux of dissolved N2O from the cropped field was negligible in comparison to soil N2O emission in the crop fields.

Description: The African continent plays a growing role in the carbon (C) cycle. However, Africa is one of the weakest links in our understanding of the global carbon cycle particularly when considering the soil compartment. Most of the soil organic carbon (SOC) estimates concern the global size of the soil C reservoir without indication on its distribution, or if given, limited to the contribution of a large ecosystems or region. The aim of the study is i) to assess the original soil C stocks (SOC) of Africa for the different countries and Ecoregions, and ii) to compare SOC estimates from different soil properties databases and digital maps. Four recent global digital soil maps and five soil properties databases were used to estimate the SOC for different soil layers in Africa. Those databases hold between 1799 and 4043 soil profiles which are considered to represent the soil units showed on a 0.5 by 0.5 degree soil maps of Africa. SOC of Africa ranged 133 420–184 116 Tg for 0–100 cm soil layer. The most recent databases estimated 166 397 Tg C which corresponded to 9% of the global SOC stock and 68% of the terrestrial C pool of Africa. Average SOC ranges 0.4–8.2 kg m−2 at national scale and 1.53–6.61 kg m−2 for ecoregions. Using different soil database or spatial data leads to up to 30% of difference. These quantities indicate a great potential to develop sink activities through soil C sequestration activities.

Description: Agricultural livestock represents the main source of ammonia (NH3) in Europe. In recent years, reduction policies have been applied to reduce NH3 emissions. In order to estimate the impacts of these policies, robust estimates of the emissions from the main sources, i.e. livestock farms are needed. In this paper, the NH3 emissions were estimated from a naturally ventilated livestock farm in Braunschweig, Germany during a joint field experiment of the GRAMINAE European project. An inference method was used with a Gaussian-3-D plume model and a local-scale dispersion and deposition model (FIDES-2-D). NH3 concentrations downwind of the source were used together with micrometeorological data to estimate the source strength over time. Mobile NH3 concentration measurements provided information on the spatial distribution of source strength. The estimated emission strength ranged between 6.0±0.17 kg NH3 d−1 (FIDES-2-D model) and 9.2±0.7 kg NH3 d−1 (Gaussian model). These estimates were 94% and 63% of what was obtained using emission factors from the German national inventory (9.6 kg d−1 NH3. However, the FIDES-2-D approach was shown to be very sensitive to the source size, the roughness height and to whether deposition was taken into account downwind of the source. Accounting for deposition in FIDES-2-D gives a potential emission estimate of 11.7 kg NH3 d−1, showing that deposition can explain the observed difference. The daily pattern of the source was correlated with net radiation and with the temperature inside the animal houses. The daily pattern resulted from a combination of a temperature effect on the source concentration together with an effect of variations in free and forced convection of the building ventilation rate. Further development of the plume technique is especially relevant for naturally ventilated farms, since the variable ventilation rate makes other emission measurements difficult.

Description: In-canopy turbulence is a required input to study pollutant cycling and chemistry within plant canopies and to link concentrations and sources. Despite the importance of grasslands worldwide, most previous work has focused on forests and crops. Here, turbulence parameters in a mature agricultural grassland canopy were measured with a combination of a small ultrasonic anemometer, hotwire anemometry and a radon (Rn) tracer technique, as part of a measurement to study ammonia (NH3) exchange with grassland. The measurements are used to derive vertical profiles of basic turbulent parameters, for quadrant-hole analysis of the two-parametric frequency distributions of u'−w' and to derive in-canopy eddy diffusivities as input for models of in-canopy tracer transport. The results are in line with previous measurements on taller canopies, but shows increased decoupling between in-canopy flow and above-canopy turbulence. The comparison of sonic anemometry and Rn measurements implies that Lagrangian time-scales must decrease sharply at the ground, with important implications for estimating the magnitude of ground-level and soil emissions from concentration measurements. Atmospheric stability above and within the canopy has little influence on the standard deviation of vertical wind component inside the canopy. Use of the turbulence parameters in an analytical Lagrangian framework, which is here validated for heat transfer, suggests that measured in-canopy profiles of NH3 are consistent with a ground-level source, presumably from senescent plant parts, which is recaptured by the overlying canopy.

Description: Commonly, the micrometeorological parameters that underline the calculations of surface atmosphere exchange fluxes (e.g. friction velocity and sensible heat flux) and parameters used to model exchange fluxes with SVAT-type parameterisations (e.g. latent heat flux and canopy temperature) are measured with a single set of instrumentation and are analysed with a single methodology. This paper evaluates uncertainties in these measurements with a single instrument, by comparing the independent results from nine different institutes during the international GRAMINAE integrated field experiment over agricultural grassland near Braunschweig, Lower Saxony, Germany. The paper discusses uncertainties in measuring friction velocity, sensible and latent heat fluxes, canopy temperature and investigates the energy balance closure at this site. Although individual 15-min flux calculations show a large variability between the instruments, when averaged over the campaign, fluxes agree within 2% for momentum and 11% for sensible heat. However, the spread in estimates of latent heat flux (λE) is larger, with standard deviations of averages of 18%. While the dataset averaged over the different instruments fails to close the energy budget by 30%, if the largest turbulent fluxes are considered, near perfect energy closure can be achieved, suggesting that most techniques underestimate λE in particular. The uncertainty in λE feeds results in an uncertainty in the bulk stomatal resistance, which further adds to the uncertainties in the estimation of the canopy temperature that controls the exchange. The paper demonstrated how a consensus dataset was derived, which is used by the individual investigators to calculate fluxes and drive their models.

Description: Light scattering properties of oceanic particles have been suggested as an alternative index of phytoplankton biomass than chlorophyll-a concentration (chl-a), with the benefit of being less sensitive to physiological forcings (e.g., light and nutrients) that alter the intracellular pigment concentrations. The drawback of particulate scattering is that it is not unique to phytoplankton. Nevertheless, field studies have demonstrated that, to first order, the particulate beam-attenuation coefficient (cp) can track phytoplankton abundance. The relationship between cp and the particulate backscattering coefficient (bbp), a property retrievable from space, has not been fully evaluated, largely due to a lack of open-ocean field observations. Here, we present extensive data on inherent optical properties from the Equatorial Pacific surface waters and demonstrate a remarkable coherence in bbp and cp. Coincident measurements of particle size distributions (PSDs) and optical properties of size-fractionated samples indicate that this covariance is due to both the conserved nature of the PSD and a greater contribution of phytoplankton-sized particles to bbp than theoretically predicted. These findings suggest that satellite-derived bbp could provide similar information on phytoplankton biomass in the open ocean as cp.

Description: The paper describes a numerical interpretation of the April 2007 CarboEurope Regional Experiment Strategy (CERES) campaign, devotedto the study of CO2 cycle at the regional scale. The four consecutive clear sky days with intensive observations of CO2 concentration, fluxes at the the surface and in the boundary layer have been simulated with the Meso-NH mesoscale model. Aircraft observations of CO2 have been used to identify surface modelling errors and to calibrate the CO2 components of the surface model. After this calibration, the paper describes a systematic comparison of the model outputs with all the data collected during CERES, in April 2007. As a conclusion, an example of CO2 budgeting from the mesoscale model is given.

Description: This work explored the spatial variation of C3/C4 distribution in the Inner Mongolia, China, steppe by geostatistical analysis of carbon isotope data of vegetation and sheep wool. Standing community biomass (n=118) and sheep wool (n=146) were sampled in a ~0.2 Mio km2 area. Samples from ten consecutive years (1998–2007) were obtained. Community biomass samples represented the carbon isotopic composition of standing vegetation on about 1000 m2 ("community-scale"), whereas the spatio-temporal scale of wool reflected the isotope composition of the entire area grazed by the herd during a 1-yr period (~5–10 km2, "farm-scale"). Pair wise sampling of wool and vegetation revealed a 13C-enrichment of 2.7‰ in wool relative to vegetation, but this shift exhibited no apparent relationships with environmental parameters or stocking rate. The proportion of C4 plants in above-ground biomass (PC4, %) was estimated with a two-member mixing model of C3 and C4 13C discrimination (13Δ3 and 13Δ4, respectively), in accounting for the effects of changing 13C in atmospheric CO2 on sample isotope composition, and of altitude and aridity on 13Δ3. PC4 averaged 19%, but the variation was enormous: full-scale (0% to 100%) at community-scale, and 0% to 85% at farm-scale. The farm-scale variation of PC4 exhibited a clear regional pattern over a range of ~250 km. Importantly PC4 was significantly higher above and lower below the 22°C isotherm of the warmest month, which was averaged from high-resolution maps of the sample years. This is consistent with predictions from C3/C4 crossover temperature of quantum yield in C3 and C4 plants. Still, temperature gradients accounted for only 10% of the farm-scale variation of PC4, indicating that additional factors control PC4 on this scale.

Description: Wetlands can modify and control nutrient fluxes between terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, yet little is known of their potential as biological buffers and sinks in the biogeochemical silica cycle. We investigated the storage of amorphous silica (ASi) in a central-European riparian wetland. The variation in storage of ASi in the soil of an undisturbed wetland was significantly controlled by two factors: dominance of sedges and grasses and distance to the river (combined R2=78%). Highest ASi storage was found near the river and in sites with a dominance of grasses and sedges, plants which are well known to accumulate ASi. The management practice of mowing reduced the amount of variation attributed to both factors (R2=51%). Although ASi concentrations in soils were low (between 0.1 and 1% of soil dry weight), ASi controlled the availability of dissolved silica (DSi) in the porewater, and thus potentially the exchange of DSi with the nearby river system through both diffusive and advective fluxes. A depth gradient in ASi concentrations, with lower ASi in the deeper layers, indicates dissolution. Our results show that storage and recycling of ASi in wetland ecosystems can differ significantly on small spatial scales. Human management interferes with the natural control mechanisms. Our study demonstrates that wetlands have the potential to modify the fluxes of both DSi and ASi along the land-ocean continuum and supports the hypothesis that wetlands are important ecosystems in the biogeochemical cycling of silica.

Description: The subtropical Indian Ocean along 32° S was for the first time simultaneously sampled in 2002 for inorganic carbon and transient tracers. The vertical distribution and inventory of anthropogenic carbon (CANT) from five different methods: four data-base methods (ΔC*, TrOCA, TTD and C0IPSL and a simulation from the OCCAM model are compared and discussed along with the observed CFC-12 and CCl4 distributions. In the surface layer, where carbon-based methods are uncertain, TTD and OCCAM yield the same result (7±0.2 mol C m−2), helping to specify the surface CANT inventory. Below the mixed-layer, the comparison suggests that CANT penetrates deeper and more uniformly into the Antarctic Intermediate Water layer limit than estimated from the ΔC* method. Additionally, significant CFC-12 and CCl4 values are detected in bottom waters, associated with Antarctic Bottom Water. In this layer, except for ΔC* and OCCAM, the other methods detect significant CANT values. Consequently, the lowest inventory is calculated using the ΔC* method (24±2 mol C m−2) or OCCAM (24.4±2.8 mol C m−2) while TrOCA, TTD, and C0IPSL lead to higher inventories (28.1±2.2, 28.9±2.3 and 30.8±2.5 mol C m−2, respectively). Overall and despite the uncertainties each method is evaluated using its relationship with tracers and the knowledge about water masses in the subtropical Indian Ocean. Along 32° S our best estimate for the mean CANT specific inventory is 28±2 mol C m−2. Comparison exercises for data-based CANT methods along with time-series or repeat sections analysis should help to identify strengths and caveats in the CANT methods and to better constrain model simulations.

Description: Changes in concentration and composition of dissolved lipid classes (Iatroscan TLC/FID) were examined at daily to month scale, in relation to the hydrological and biological situation at a central site of the Ligurian sea, NW Mediterranean during the PECHE-DYNAPROC 2 experiment (14 September to 17 October). Dissolved lipid concentrations (TLd) and lipid to DOC ratios varied in the range 5.3–48.5 μ g l−1 and 0.01 to 0.08 respectively, along the 0–1000 m water column. The highest TLd concentration values were found in the 0–150 m surface layer coinciding with phytoplankton biomass. Lipid class composition provided valuable information on the origin of DOM, and the changes that occurred during the period investigated. The significant correlations (p

Description: Chambers are widely used to measure surface fluxes of nitrous oxide (N2O). Usually linear regression is used to calculate the fluxes from the chamber data. Non-linearity in the chamber data can result in an underestimation of the flux. Non-linear regression models are available for these data, but are not commonly used. In this study we compared the fit of linear and non-linear regression models to determine significant non-linearity in the chamber data. We assessed the influence of this significant non-linearity on the annual fluxes. For a two year dataset from an automatic chamber we calculated the fluxes with linear and non-linear regression methods. Based on the fit of the methods 32% of the data was defined significant non-linear. Significant non-linearity was not recognized by the goodness of fit of the linear regression alone. Using non-linear regression for these data and linear regression for the rest, increases the annual flux with 21% to 53% compared to the flux determined from linear regression alone. We suggest that differences this large are due to leakage through the soil. Macropores or a coarse textured soil can add to fast leakage from the chamber. Yet, also for chambers without leakage non-linearity in the chamber data is unavoidable, due to feedback from the increasing concentration in the chamber. To prevent a possibly small, but systematic underestimation of the flux, we recommend comparing the fit of a linear regression model with a non-linear regression model. The non-linear regression model should be used if the fit is significantly better. Open questions are how macropores affect chamber measurements and how optimization of chamber design can prevent this.

Description: A method to quantify the influence of kinetically modelled biogeochemical processes on the pH of an ecosystem with time variable acid-base dissociation constants is presented and applied to the heterotrophic, turbid Scheldt estuary (SW Netherlands, N Belgium). Nitrification is identified as the main process governing the pH profile of this estuary, while CO2 degassing and advective-dispersive transport "buffer" the effect of nitrification. CO2 degassing accounts for the largest proton turnover per year in the whole estuary. There is a clear inverse correlation between oxygen turnover and proton turnover. The main driver of long-term changes in the mean estuarine pH from 2001 to 2004 is a changing freshwater flow which influences the pH "directly" via [∑CO2] and [TA] and to a significant amount also "indirectly" via [∑NH4+] and the nitrification rates in the estuary.

Description: Deposition of atmospheric ammonia (NH3) to semi-natural ecosystems leads to serious adverse effects, such as acidification and eutrophication. A step in this quantification is the measurement of NH3 fluxes over semi-natural and agricultural land. However, measurement of NH3 fluxes over vegetation in the vicinity of strong NH3 sources is difficult, since NH3 emissions are highly heterogeneous. Indeed, under such conditions, local advection errors may alter the measured fluxes. In this study, local advection errors (Δ Fz,adv) were estimated over a 14 ha grassland field, which was successively cut and fertilised, as part of the GRAMINAE integrated Braunschweig experiment. The magnitude of Δ Fz,adv was determined up to 810 m downwind from farm buildings emitting between 6 and 12 kg NH3 day−1. The GRAMINAE experiment provided a unique opportunity to compare two methods of estimating Δ Fz,adv: (1) based on direct measurements of horizontal concentration gradients, and (2) based on inverse dispersion modelling. Two sources of local advection were clearly identified: the farm NH3 emissions leading to positive Δ Fz,adv, and field NH3 emissions, after cutting and fertilisation, which led to a negative Δ Fz,adv. The local advection flux from the farm was in the range 0 to 27 ng m−2 s−1 NH3 at 610 m from the farm, whereas Δ Fz,adv due to field emission was proportional to the local flux, and ranged between −209 and 13 ng m−2 s−1 NH3. The local advection flux Δ Fz,adv was either positive or negative depending on the magnitude of these two contributions. The modelled and measured advection errors agreed well, provided the modelled Δ Fz,adv was estimated at 2 m height. This study constitutes the first attempt to validate the inverse modelling approach to determine advection errors for NH3. The measured advection errors, relative to the vertical flux at 1 m height, were 121% on average, before the field was cut (when downwind of the farm), and less than 7% when the field was fertilised.

Description: Particle deposition velocities (11–3000 nm diameter) measured above grassland by eddy covariance during the EU GRAMINAE experiment in June 2000 averaged 0.24 and 0.03 mm s−1 to long (0.75 m) and short (0.07 m) grass, respectively. After fertilisation with 108 kg N ha−1 as calcium ammonium nitrate, sustained apparent upward fluxes of particles were observed. Analysis of concentrations and fluxes of potential precursor gases, including NH3, HNO3, HCl and selected VOCs, shows that condensation of HNO3 and NH3 on the surface of existing particles is responsible for this effect. A novel approach is developed to derive particle growth rates at the field scale, from a combination of measurements of vertical fluxes and particle size-distributions. For the first 9 days after fertilization, growth rates of 11 nm particles of 3.5 nm hr−1 and 0.89 nm hr−1 were derived for day and night-time conditions, respectively. This implies total NH4NO3 production rates of 1.1 and 0.44 μg m−3 h−1, respectively. The effect translates into a small error in measured ammonia fluxes (0.06% day, 0.56% night) and a larger error in NH4+ and NO3- aerosol fluxes of 3.6% and 10%, respectively. By converting rapidly exchanged NH3 and HNO3 into slowly depositing NH4NO3, the reaction modifies the total N budget, though this effect is small (

Description: A new biophysical model SURFATM-NH3, simulating the ammonia (NH3) exchange between terrestrial ecosystems and the atmosphere is presented. SURFATM-NH3 consists of two coupled models: (i) an energy budget model and (ii) a pollutant exchange model, which distinguish the soil and plant exchange processes. The model describes the exchanges in terms of adsorption to leaf cuticles and bi-directional transport through leaf stomata and soil. The results of the model are compared with the flux measurements over grassland during the GRAMINAE Integrated Experiment at Braunschweig, Germany. The dataset of GRAMINAE allows the model to be tested in various climatic and agronomic conditions: prior to cutting, after cutting and then after the application of mineral fertilizer. The whole comparison shows close agreement between model and measurements for energy budget and ammonia fluxes. The major controls on the soil and plant emission potential are the physicochemical parameters for liquid-gas exchanges which are integrated in the compensation points for live leaves, litter and the soil surface. Modelled fluxes are highly sensitive to soil and plant surface temperatures, highlighting the importance of accurate estimates of these terms. The model suggests that the net flux depends not only on the foliar (stomatal) compensation point but also that of leaf litter. SURFATM-NH3 represents a comprehensive approach to studying pollutant exchanges and its link with plant and soil functioning. It also provides a simplified generalised approach (SVAT model) applicable for atmospheric transport models.

Description: Artificially enhanced vertical mixing has been suggested as a means by which to fertilize the biological pump with subsurface nutrients and thus increase the oceanic CO2 sink. We use an ocean general circulation and biogeochemistry model (OGCBM) to examine the impact of artificially enhanced vertical mixing on biological productivity and atmospheric CO2, as well as the climatically significant gases nitrous oxide (N2O) and dimethyl sulphide (DMS) during simulations between 2000 and 2020. Overall, we find a large increase in the amount of organic carbon exported from surface waters, but an overall increase in atmospheric CO2 concentrations by 2020. We quantified the individual effect of changes in dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC), alkalinity and biological production on the change in pCO2 at characteristic sites and found the increased vertical supply of carbon rich subsurface water to be primarily responsible for the enhanced CO2 outgassing, although increased alkalinity and, to a lesser degree, biological production can compensate in some regions. While ocean-atmosphere fluxes of DMS do increase slightly, which might reduce radiative forcing, the oceanic N2O source also expands. Our study has implications for understanding how natural variability in vertical mixing in different ocean regions (such as that observed recently in the Southern Ocean) can impact the ocean CO2 sink via changes in DIC, alkalinity and carbon export.

Description: Inclusion of fundamental ecological interactions between the terrestrial carbon and nitrogen cycles in the land component of an atmosphere-ocean general circulation model (AOGCM) leads to increased carbon storage on land under radiatively-forced anthropogenic climate change, and an overall negative climate-carbon cycle feedback. The primary mechanism responsible for increased land carbon storage is shown to be fertilization of plant growth by increased mineralization of nitrogen directly associated with increased decomposition of soil organic matter under a warming climate. Results from the fully-coupled AOGCM also confirm a previously reported pattern of significantly reduced CO2-fertilization of terrestrial carbon uptake compared to simulations without an explicit nitrogen cycle. Our results show a significant growth in the airborne fraction of anthropogenic CO2 emissions over the coming century, attributable in part to a steady decline in the ocean sink fraction. Comparison to experimental studies on the fate of radio-labeled nitrogen tracers in temperate forests indicates that the model representation of competition between plants and microbes for new mineral nitrogen resources is reasonable. Our results suggest a weaker dependence of net land carbon flux on soil moisture changes in tropical regions, and a stronger positive growth response to warming in those regions, than predicted by a similar AOGCM implemented without land carbon-nitrogen interactions. We expect that the between-model uncertainty in predictions of future atmospheric CO2 concentration and associated anthropogenic climate change will be reduced as additional climate models introduce carbon-nitrogen cycle interactions in their land components.

Description: Modern grassland management seeks to provide many ecosystem services and experimental studies in resource-poor grasslands have shown a positive relationship between plant species richness and a variety of ecosystem functions. Thus, increasing species richness might help to enhance multifunctionality in managed grasslands if the relationship between species richness and ecosystem functioning is equally valid in high-input grassland systems. We tested the relative effects of low-input to high-input management intensities and low to high plant species richness. Using a combination of mowing frequencies (1, 2 or 4 cuts per season) and fertilization levels (0, 100 and 200 kg N ha−1 a−1), we studied the productivity of 78 experimental grassland communities of increasing plant species richness (1, 2, 4, 8 or 16 species with 1 to 4 functional groups) in two successive years. Our results showed that in both years higher diversity was more effective in increasing productivity than higher management intensity: the 16-species mixtures had a surplus of 452 g m−2 y−1 in 2006 and 504 g m−2 y−1 in 2007 over the monoculture yields whereas the high-input management resulted in only 315 g m−2 y−1 higher productivity in 2006 and 440 g m−2 y−1 in 2007 than the low-input management. In addition, high-diversity low-input grassland communities had similar productivity as low-diversity high-input communities. The slopes of the biodiversity – productivity relationships significantly increased with increasing levels of management intensity in both years. We conclude that the biological mechanisms leading to enhanced biomass production in diverse grassland communities are as effective for productivity as a combination of several agricultural measures. Our results demonstrate that high-diversity low-input grassland communities provide not only a high diversity of plants and other organisms, but also ensure high forage yields, thus granting the basis for multifunctional managed grasslands.

Description: Emission rates and concentrations of biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOCs) were measured at a Mediterranean coastal site at Castelporziano, approximately 25 km south-west of Rome, between 7 May and 3 June 2007, as part of the ACCENT-VOCBAS field campaign on biosphere-atmosphere interactions. Concentrations and emission rates were measured using the disjunct eddy covariance method utilizing three different proton transfer reaction mass spectrometers (PTR-MS) for BVOC mixing ratio measurements and sonic anemometers for three-dimensional high-frequency wind measurements. Depending on the measurement period and the instrument, the median volume mixing ratios were 1.6–3.5 ppbv for methanol, 0.4–1.5 ppbv for acetaldehyde, 1.0–2.5 ppbv for acetone, 0.10–0.17 ppbv for isoprene, and 0.18–0.30 ppbv for monoterpenes. A diurnal cycle in mixing ratios was apparent with daytime maxima for methanol, acetaldehyde, acetone, and isoprene. The median fluxes were 370–440 μg m−2 h−1 for methanol, 180–360 μg m−2 h−1 for acetaldehyde, 180–450 μg m−2 h−1 for acetone, 71–290 μg m−2 h−1 for isoprene, and 240–860 μg m−2 h−1 for monoterpenes.

Description: Here we present monthly, basin-wide maps of the partial pressure of carbon dioxide (pCO2) for the North Atlantic on a 1° latitude by 1° longitude grid for years 2004 through 2006 inclusive, constructed using a neural network technique which reconstructs the non-linear relationships between 3 biogeochemical parameters and marine pCO2. A self organizing map (SOM) neural network has been trained using the SeaWiFS-MODIS chlorophyll a concentration, the NCEP/NCAR reanalysis sea surface temperature, and the FOAM mixed layer depth. 389 000 such triplets were used. The trained SOM was labelled with 137 000 underway pCO2 measurements collected in situ during 2004, 2005 and 2006 in the North Atlantic, which span the range of 208 and 437 μatm. The root mean square (RMS) deviation of the neural network fits from the data is 11.55 μatm, which equals to just above 3 per cent of an average pCO2 value in the in situ dataset. The seasonal pCO2 cycle as well as the interannual variability estimates in the major biogeochemical provinces is presented and spatial and temporal variability of the estimated fields is discussed. High resolution combined with basin-wide cover makes the maps a useful tool for several applications such as monitoring of basin-wide air-sea CO2 fluxes or improvement of seasonal and interannual marine CO2 cycles in future model predictions. The method itself is a valuable alternative to traditional statistical modelling techniques used in geosciences.

Description: Biosphere-atmosphere interactions were investigated on a sandy dune Mediterranean ecosystem in a field campaign held in 2007 within the frame of the European Projects ACCENT and VOCBAS. The campaign was carried out in the Presidential estate of Castelporziano, a peri-urban park close to Rome where several investigations on the emission of biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOC) in Mediterranean area were performed in the past 15 y. While specific aspects of the campaign will be discussed in companion papers, the general climatic and physiological aspects will be presented here together with information regarding BVOC emission from the most common plants present in this ecosystem. During the campaign regular air movements were observed, dominated by moderate nocturnal land breeze and diurnal sea breeze. A regular daily increase of ozone concentration in the air was also observed, but daily peaks of ozone were much lower than those measured downwind of the Rome conurbation. The site was ideal as a natural photochemical reactor to observe reaction, transport and deposition processes occurring in the Mediterranean basin, where a sea-land breeze circulation system allows a strong mixing between biogenic and anthropogenic emissions and secondary pollutants. The campaign investigated emissions from a poorly studied and largely biodiverse ecosystem, often subjected to a combination of environmental stresses and to anthropogenic pollution. Measurements were run in May, when plant physiological conditions were still optimal, in absence of severe drought and heat stress. Foliar rates of photosynthesis and transpiration were as high as generally recorded in unstressed Mediterranean sclerophyllous plants. Most of the plant species emitted high level of monoterpenes, despite measurements being made in a period in which emissions of volatile isoprenoids could be restrained by developmental and environmental factors, such as leaf age and relatively low air temperature. No high isoprene emitting plants were found in the ecosystem. It is speculated that environmental stresses limit the emission during summer, differently than in other Mediterranean ecosystems. Accounting for the high spring emission of the dune ecosystem may be important to correct current algorithms at regional, ecosystem levels, and to interpret measurements of fluxes of volatile isoprenoids and pollutants.

Description: During the GRAMINAE intensive field campaign between 20 May and 15 June 2000, ozone flux was measured and modelled above grassland in northern Germany, Braunschweig. Results of flux measurement and model calculations are presented in this study. Effects of agricultural activities (cut and fertilization) on ozone fluxes have also been analysed. A detailed deposition model for ozone is used to parameterise and to calculate the deposition velocity and flux of the ozone. Model calculations also provide an evaluation of the ratio of stomatal and non-stomatal fluxes. Measured and modelled flux and deposition velocity values have been compared for each period (before cut of grass, after cut, and after fertilization). Results show that agricultural activities hardly have any influence on total O3 fluxes, although both cutting and fertilization have complex impacts on different deposition pathways. Reduced vegetation decreased the stomatal exchange, while at the same time for this short canopy, the role of both soil emission of NO (promoting ozone loss close to the surface) and deposition of ozone to soil surface have increased. These effects demonstrate the importance of canopy structure and non-stomatal pathways on O3 fluxes.

Description: We contrast regional and continental-scale comparisons of the floristic composition of terra firme forest in South Amazonia, using 55 plots across Amazonia and a subset of 30 plots from northern Peru and Ecuador. Firstly, we examine the floristic patterns using both genus- or species-level data and find that the species-level analysis more clearly distinguishes different plot clusters. Secondly, we compare the patterns and causes of floristic differences at regional and continental scales. At a continental scale, ordination analysis shows that species of Lecythidaceae and Sapotaceae are gradually replaced by species of Arecaceae and Myristicaceae from eastern to western Amazonia. These floristic gradients are correlated with gradients in soil fertility and to dry season length, similar to previous studies. At a regional scale, similar patterns are found within north-western Amazonia, where differences in soil fertility distinguish plots where species of Lecythidaceae, characteristic of poor soils, are gradually replaced by species of Myristicaceae on richer soils. The main coordinate of this regional-scale ordination correlates mainly with concentrations of available calcium and magnesium. Thirdly, we ask at a regional scale within north-western Amazonia, whether soil fertility or other distance dependent processes are more important for determining variation in floristic composition. A Mantel test indicates that both soils and geographical distance have a similar and significant role in determining floristic similarity across this region. Overall, these results suggest that regional-scale variation in floristic composition can rival continental scale differences within Amazonian terra firme forests, and that variation in floristic composition at both scales is dependent on a range of processes that include both habitat specialisation related to edaphic conditions and other distance-dependent processes. To fully account for regional scale variation in continental studies of floristic composition, future floristic studies should focus on forest types poorly represented at regional scales in current datasets such as terra firme forests with high soil fertility from north-western Amazonia.

Description: This study presents data on Hg concentrations, stochiometric relations to carbon (C) and nitrogen (N), and Hg pool sizes in four Sierra Nevada forest sites of similar exposure and precipitation regimes, and hence similar atmospheric deposition, to evaluate how ecosystem parameters control Hg retention in ecosystems. In all four sites, the largest amounts of Hg reside in soils which account for 94–98% of ecosystem pools. Hg concentrations and Hg/C ratios increase in the following order: Green Needles/Leaves 〈 Dry Needles/Leaves 〈 Oi litter 〈 Oe litter 〈 Oa litter. Stochiometric relations show negative correlations between Hg and C (r2=0.58) and N and C (r2=0.64) in decomposing litter, but a positive correlation between litter Hg and N (r2=0.70). These inverse relations may reflect preferential retention of N and Hg over C during decomposition, or may be due to older age of decomposed litter layers which are exposed to longer-term atmospheric Hg deposition in the field. The results indicate that litter Hg levels depend on decomposition stage and may not follow generally observed positive relationships between Hg and organic C. Mineral soil layers show strong positive correlations of Hg to C across all sites and soil horizons (r2=0.83), but Hg concentrations are even more closely related to N with a similar slope to that observed in litter (r2=92%). Soil N levels alone explain over 90% of Hg pool sizes across the four Sierra Nevada forest sites. This suggest that soil organic N and C groups provide sorption sites for Hg to retain atmospheric deposition. However, the patterns could be due indirect relationships where high soil N and C levels reflect high ecosystem productivity which leads to corresponding high atmospheric Hg deposition inputs via leaf litterfall and plant senescence. Our results also show that two of the sites previously affected by prescribed burning and wildfires show significant depletion of above-ground Hg pools but that belowground Hg pools remain unaffected. We conclude that sequestration of Hg in remote Sierra Nevada forest sites is strongly co-determined by ecosystem parameters with C and N pools being excellent determinants for the pool sizes of Hg.

Description: The exchange of both anthropogenic and natural inorganic carbon between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea through Strait of Gibraltar was studied for a period of two years under the frame of the CARBOOCEAN project. A comprehensive sampling program was conducted, which was design to collect samples at eight fixed stations located in the Strait in successive cruises periodically distributed through the year in order to ensure a good spatial and temporal coverage. As a result of this monitoring, a time series namely GIFT (GIbraltar Fixed Time series) has been established, allowing the generation of an extensive data set of the carbon system parameters in the area. Data acquired during the development of nine campaigns were analyzed in this work. Total inorganic carbon concentration (CT) was calculated from alkalinity-pHT pairs and appropriate thermodynamic relationships, with the concentration of anthropogenic carbon (CANT) being also computed. Applying a two-layer model of water mass exchange through the Strait and using the transport of the outflowing Mediterranean water recorded in situ during the considered period, a net export of inorganic carbon from the Mediterranean Sea to the Atlantic was obtained, which amounted to 0.025 Pg C yr−1. In contrast, the Atlantic water was found to contain a higher concentration of anthropogenic carbon than the Mediterranean water, resulting in a net flux of CANT towards the Mediterranean basin of 4.2 Tg C yr−1. A carbon balance through the Strait was assessed and fluxes are discussed in relation to the highly diverse estimates available in the literature for the area. This work unequivocally confirms the relevant role of the Strait of Gibraltar as a controlling point for the biogeochemical exchanges occurring between the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean and emphasizes the influence of the Mediterranean basin in the carbon inventories of the North Atlantic.

Description: Improved data on biosphere-atmosphere exchange are fundamental to understanding the production and fate of ammonia (NH3) in the atmosphere. The GRAMINAE Integrated Experiment combined novel measurement and modelling approaches to provide the most comprehensive analysis of the interactions to date. Major inter-comparisons of micrometeorological parameters and NH3 flux measurements using the aerodynamic gradient method and relaxed eddy accumulation (REA) were conducted. These showed close agreement, though the REA systems proved insufficiently precise to investigate vertical flux divergence. Grassland management had a large effect on fluxes: Emissions increased after grass cutting (−50 to 700 ng m−2 s−1 NH3) and after N-fertilization (0 to 3800 ng m−2 s

Description: Continental shelf seas are known to support a large fraction of the global primary production. Yet, continental shelf areas are mostly ignored or neglected in global biogeochemical models. A number of processes that control the transfer of dissolved nutrients from river to the open ocean remain poorly understood. This applies in particular to dissolved silica which drives the growth of diatoms that form a large part of the phytoplankton biomass and are thus an important contributor to export production of carbon. Here, the representation of the biogeochemical state along continents is improved by coupling a high resolution database of riverine fluxes of nutrients to the global biogeochemical ocean general circulation model MPI-OM/HAMOCC5. Focusing on silicon (Si), but including the whole suite of nutrients – carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) in various forms – inputs are implemented in the model at coastal coupling points using the COSCAT global database of 156 mega-river-ensemble catchments from Meybeck et al. (2006). The catchments connect to the ocean through coastal segments according to three sets of criteria: natural limits, continental shelf topography, and geophysical dynamics. According to the model the largest effects on nutrient concentrations occur in hot spots such as the Amazon plume, the Arctic – with high nutrient inputs in relation to its total volume, and areas that encounter the largest increase in human activity, e.g., Southern Asia.

Description: Leaves in tropical forests come in an enormous variety of sizes and shapes, each of which can be ultimately viewed as an adaptation to the complex problem of optimising the capture of light for photosynthesis. However, the fact that many different shape "strategies" coexist within a habitat demonstrate that there are many other intrinsic and extrinsic factors involved, such as the differential investment in support tissues required for different leaf lamina shapes. Here, we take a macrogeographic approach to understanding the function of different lamina shape categories. Specifically, we use 106 permanent plots spread across the Amazon rainforest basin to: (1) describe the geographic distribution of some simple metrics of lamina shape in plots from across Amazonia, and; (2) identify and quantify relationships between key environmental parameters and lamina shape in tropical forests. Because the plots are not randomly distributed across the study area, achieving this latter objective requires the use of statistics that can account for spatial auto-correlation. We found that between 60–70% of the 2791 species and 83 908 individual trees in the dataset could be classified as elliptic (=the widest part of a leaf is on an axis in the middle fifth of the long axis of the leaf). Furthermore, the average Amazonian tree leaf is 2.5 times longer than it is wide and has an entire margin. Contrary to theoretical expectations we found little support for the hypothesis that narrow leaves are an adaptation to dry conditions and low nutrient soils. However, we did find strong regional patterns in leaf lamina length-width ratios and several significant correlations with precipitation variables suggesting that water availability may be exerting an as yet unrecognised selective pressure on leaf shape of rainforest trees. Furthermore, we found a strong correlation between the proportion of trees with non-entire laminas (dissected, toothed, etc.) and mean annual temperature once again supporting the well documented association that provides a basis for reconstructing past temperature regimes.

Description: Silica, SiO2, in dissolved (DSi) and particulate (PSi) form, is both a major product of continental weathering as well as an essential nutrient in terrestrial and aquatic systems. Here we present estimates of the spatial distribution of riverine silica fluxes under natural conditions, i.e. without human influence, to ~140 segments of the global coastal zone. Focussing on the construction of the DSi budget, natural DSi concentration is multiplied with discharge of rivers for each segment for documented basins and segments. Segments with no documentation available are estimated using clustered information based mainly on considerations of local lithology, climate, and lake retention. We approximate fluxes of particulate silica in various forms (PSi) from fluxes of suspended matter, calculated from existing models. Results have been established for silica fluxes, concentrations and yields for drainage basins of the different continents, oceans basins as well as coastal segment basins. For the continental surfaces actually draining into the oceans (exorheic regions, representing 114.7 M km2), 371 M t y−1 of DSi and 8835 M t y−1 of PSi are transported, corresponding to a mean concentration of 9.5 mg l−1 and 226 mg l−1, and to a mean yield of 3.3 t km−2 y−1 and 77 t km−2 y−1, respectively. DSi yields exceeding 6.6 t km−2 y−1, i.e. 〉2× the global average, represent 17.4% of the global continental ice-free exorheic area but correspond to 56.0% of DSi fluxes. Pacific catchments hold most of the hyper-active areas (〉5× global average), suggesting a close connection between tectonic activity and DSi fluxes resulting from silicate weathering. The macro-filters of regional and marginal seas intercept 33% and 46% of the total dissolved and particulate silica fluxes.

Description: The cruise project was designed to study temporal variations of the ecosystem during the summer-autumn transition and focused on the part played by zooplankton as top-down controllers, and the relative importance of top-down versus bottom-up controls. Zooplankton should play a key role both in the vertical transfer of particulate organic matter and in the mineralisation of organic matter. Although the importance of species diversity is well recognized, the impact of diversity on carbon fluxes is rarely considered. Trophic roles of zooplankton range from strict herbivory to strict carnivory, with all possible combinations (i.e. omnivory) between these two extremes. Feeding strategies are also very diverse, for example, active predators, passive filter feeders or suspension feeders co-exist (Bamstedt at al., 2000). As the metabolic cost of these different trophic roles and ways of feeding should be different, a physiological diversity must be considered in any assessment of the role of zooplankton in the flux of organic matter (e.g. Longhurts and Harrison, 1989). At a minimum,, species and functional diversities contribute to the diversity of exported organic matter (Steinberg et al., 2000; Madin et al., 2001). Fecal pellets, the organic matter egested by zooplankton, differ in form, size and weight, and hence in their sedimentation and degradation rates (Turner, 2002). The downward flux of organic matter thus depends on not only on physical and chemical processes but also on biological variables. The area sampled, located in the central part of the Ligurian Sea is next to the DYFAMED site, a time-series station monthly monitored for several years now. The zone is considered to be oligotrophic and protected from strong advective processes (Andersen and Prieur, 2000). The two cruises DYNAmic of the rapid PROCess (DYNAPROC 1 in May 1995 and DYNAPROC 2, the present study) were devoted to factors controlling the vertical flux of matter on short time scales. The aim of the work presented here was to estimate, at a fixed station in the Ligurian Sea (NW Mediterranean Sea),the impact of zooplankton on organic matter fluxes. We determined the species composition and then for the dominant species of the community, we estimated rates of, oxygen consumption, carbon dioxide production and ammonium excretion. Our sampling period, the summer-autumn transition featuring strong wind events, offered contrasting situations for primary and export production (Marty et al., 2008). We thus have the opportunity to estimate how the zooplankton, from a species-specific point of view, react to these changes.

Description: The effects of water limitations on the emission of biogenic volatile organic compounds are not well understood. Experimental approaches studying drought effects in natural conditions are still missing. To address this question, a throughfall displacement experiment was set up in a natural forest of Quercus ilex, an evergreen Mediterranean oak emitting monoterpenes. Mature trees were exposed in 2005 and 2006 either to an additional drought, to irrigation or to natural drought (untreated control). In both years, absolute monoterpene emission rates as well as the respective standard factors of the trees exposed to normal and additional drought strongly declined during the drought periods. Monoterpene emissions were lower in year 2006 than in year 2005 (factor 2) due to a more pronounced summer drought period in this respective year. We observed a significant difference between the irrigation and additional drought or control treatment: irrigated trees emitted 82% more monoterpenes during the drought period 2006 than the trees of the other treatments. However, no significant effect on monoterpene emission was observed between normal and additional drought treatments, despite a significant effect on leaf water potential and photochemical efficiency. During the development of drought, monoterpene emissions responded exponentially rather than linearly to decreasing leaf water potential. Emissions rapidly declined when the water potential dropped below −2 MPa and photosynthesis was persistently inhibited. Monoterpene synthase activities measured in vitro showed no clear reduction during the same period. From our results we conclude that drought significantly reduces monoterpene fluxes of Mediterranean evergreen forest into the atmosphere due to a sustained inhibition of photosynthetic carbon assimilation.

Description: We examined the vertical and temporal dynamics of nutrients, ectoenzymatic activities under late summer-fall transition period (September–October 2004) in NW Mediterranean Sea in relation to temporal change in factors limiting bacterial production. The depth of the mixed layer (12.8±5.3 m) was extremely stable until the onset of the destratification period after 11 October, creating a zone where diffusion of nutrient from the much deeper phosphacline (69±12 m) and nitracline (50±8 m) was probably strongly limited. However during the second half of the cruise, a shallowing of nutriclines occured, particularly marked for nitracline. Hence, the nitrate to phosphate ratio within the mixed layer, although submitted to a high short term variability, shifted the last week of the cruise from 1.1±1.2 to 4.6±3.8, and nitrate increased by a factor 2 (0.092±0.049 μM). A corresponding switch from more than one limitation (PN) to P-only limitation of bacterial production was observed during the month as detected by enrichment bioassays. Differences in the identity of the limiting nutrient in surface (5 m: N and P at the beginning, strictly P at the end of the study) versus 80 m (labile carbon) influence greatly bacterial community structure shift between these two layers. The two communities (5 and 80 m) reacted rapidly (24 h) to changes in nutrient concentrations by drastic modification of total and active population assemblages resulting in changes in activity. For bacterial production values less than 10 ng C l−1h−1 (associated to deeper layers), aminopeptidase and lipase exhibited higher activity relative to production whereas phosphatase varied in the same proportions than BP on the range of activities tested. Our results illustrate the effect of bottom-up control on bacterial community structure and activities in the epipelagic NW Mediterranean Sea.

Description: Short-term changes in the flux of particulate matter were determined in the central north western Mediterranean Sea (near DYFAMED site) using drifting sediment traps at 200 m depth in the course of the DYNAPROC 2 cruise (14 September–17 October, 2004). In this period of marked water column stratification, POC fluxes varied by an order of magnitude, in the range of 0.03–0.29 mg C m−2 h−1 over the month and showed very rapid and high variations. Particulate carbon export represented less than 5% of integrated primary production, suggesting that phytoplankton production was essentially sustained by internal recycling of organic matter and retained within the photic zone. While PON and POP fluxes paralleled one another, the elemental ratios POC/PON and POC/POP, varied widely over short-term periods. Values were always higher than the conventional Redfield ratio indicating that the settling material was in part degraded. This was confirmed by the very low chlorophyll-a flux recorded in the traps (mean 0.017 μg m−2 h−1), the high phaeopigment and free lipid concentrations of the settling material, which all together indicated that the organic matter reaching 200 m depth was reworked (by grazing, fecal pellets production, degradation, . . .) and that algal sinking made a small contribution to the downward flux. Over time, the relative abundance of individual lipid classes in organic matter (OM) changed from glycolipids-dominated to neutral (wax esters, triglycerides) and phospholipids-dominated, suggesting ecosystem maturation as well as rapid and continual exchanges between dissolved, suspended and sinking pools. Our most striking result was documenting the rapid change in fluxes of the various measured parameters. In the situation encountered here, with dominant regenerated production, the effect of wind events was a decrease of fluxes (probably through reduction of grazing). But fluxes increased as soon as calm conditions settle.

Description: To date, little is known about the pH-stimulated mineralization of organic matter in aquatic environments. In this study, we investigated biodegradation processes in alkaline waters. Study site is a large shallow soda lake in Central Europe (Neusiedler See/Ferto). The decomposition rate of plant litter was measured as a function of pH by incubating air-saturated lake-water samples in contact with Phragmites litter (leaves) from the littoral vegetation. All samples showed high decomposition rates (up to 32% mass loss within 35 days) and a characteristic two-step degradation mechanism. During the degradation process, the solid plant litter was dissolved forming humic colloids. Subsequently, the humic colloids were mineralized to CO2 in the water column. The decomposition rate was linearly related to pH. Increasing pH values accelerated significantly the leaching of humic colloids as well as the final degradation process. The observed two-step mechanism controls the wetland/lake/air carbon fluxes, since large quantities of humic colloids are currently produced in the reed belt, exported through wind-driven circulations and incorporated into the open lake foodweb. At present, the lake is rapidly shrinking due to peat deposition in the littoral zone, whereas it has been resistant to silting-up processes for thousands of years. In order to investigate the cause of this abrupt change, the chemical composition of the lake-water was measured during 1995–2007. A thorough analysis of these data revealed that major lake-water discharges through the lake's artificial outlet channel led to a decline in salinity and alkalinity. According to our estimates, the lake's original salinity and alkalinity was 70–90% higher compared to the present conditions, with the consequence of substantially lower pH values in the present lake. The observed pH dependence of reed litter biodegradation rates points to a causal connection between low pH values and accumulation of peat in the lake basin. Our results suggest that the pH stimulated remineralisation of organic matter plays a major role in maintaining the long-term integrity of saline lake/wetland systems.

Description: We report an investigation of the effects of increases in pCO2 on the growth and molecular physiology of the neritic amphipod Gammarus locusta, which has a cosmopolitan distribution in estuaries. Amphipods were reared from juvenile to mature adult in laboratory microcosms at three different levels of pH in nominal range 8.1–7.6. Growth rate was estimated from weekly measures of body length. At sexual maturity the amphipods were sacrificed and assayed for changes in the expression of genes coding for a heat shock protein (hsp70 gene) and the metabolic enzyme glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (gapdh gene). The data show that the growth and survival rate of this species is not significantly impacted by a decrease in sea water pH of up to 0.5 units. Quantitative real-time PCR analysis indicated that there was no significant effect of growth in acidified sea water on the expression of the hsp70 gene. However, there was a consistent and significant increase in the expression of the gapdh gene at a pH of ~7.5 which indicated a possible disruption to oxidative metabolic processes. It was concluded that future predicted changes in sea water pH may have subtle effects on the physiology and metabolism of coastal and marine species which may be overlooked in studies of whole organism response.

Description: Nutrient concentrations among the Chinese rivers and bays vary 10–75 fold depending on nutrient elements. The silicic acid levels in South China rivers are higher than those from North China rivers and the yields of dissolved silicate increased from the north to the south of China, indicating the effect of climate on weathering. The nutrient levels in Chinese rivers are higher than those from the large and less-disturbed world rivers such as Amazon and Zaire, but comparable to the values for European and North American polluted and eutrophic rivers like the Loire and Po. This may be ascribed to both of extensive leaching and influences from agricultural and domestic activities over the drainage basins of Chinese rivers. DIN:PO3−4 ratios in most of Chinese rivers and bays are higher (up to 2800) than the other rivers in the world. The atomic ratios of DIN to PO43− in the major Chinese rivers and embayment decrease in exponential trend with increase in the atomic ratios of PO43− to Si(OH)4, indicating that primary production in coastal environments changes with the nutrients transport when the urbanization develops to a certain extent, and the potential limited nutrient elements can be changed from phosphorus to nitrogen limitation, which can modify aquatic food webs and then the ocean ecosystem. A simple steady-state mass-balance box model was employed. The output shows that the estuaries and embayment behave as a sink or source of nutrients. For the major Chinese estuaries, both residual and mixing flow transport nutrients off the estuaries, and nutrient transport fluxes in summer is 3–4 fold that in winter except comparable for NH4+. These fluxes are 1.0–1.7 fold that estimated by timing riverine nutrient concentrations and freshwater discharge. For the major Chinese embayment, nutrient elements are transported to China Seas except PO43− and Si(OH)4 in Sanggou Bay and Jiaozhou Bay. Seasonally, nutrients transport fluxes off the bays in the summer are 2.2–7.0 fold that in the winter. In the embayment, the exchange flow dominated the water budgets, resulting in average system salinity approaching the China seas salinity where river discharge is limited. The major Chinese estuaries and embayment transport 1.0–3.1% of nitrogen, 0.2–0.5% of phosphorus and 3% of silicon necessary for phytoplankton growth for the China Seas. This demonstrates regenerated nutrients in water column and sediments and nutrients transport fluxes between the China Seas and open ocean play an important role for phytoplankton growth. Atmospheric deposition may be another important source of nutrients for the China Seas.

Description: Denitrification within riparian buffers may trade reduced nonpoint source pollution of surface waters for increased greenhouse gas emissions resulting from denitrification-produced nitrous oxide (N2O). However, little is known about the N2O emission within conservation buffers established for water quality improvement or of the importance of short-term N2O peak emission following rewetting dry soils and thawing frozen soils. Such estimates are important in reducing uncertainties in current Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) methodologies estimating soil N2O emission which are based on N inputs. This study contrasts N2O emission from riparian buffer systems of three perennial vegetation types and an adjacent crop field, and compares measured N2O emission with estimates based on the IPCC methodology. We measured soil properties, N inputs, weather conditions and N2O fluxes from soils in forested riparian buffers, warm-season and cool-season grass filters, and a crop field located in the Bear Creek watershed in central Iowa, USA. Cumulative N2O emissions from soils in all riparian buffers (5.8 kg N2O-N ha−1 in 2006–2007) were significantly less than those from crop field soils (24.0 kg N2O-N ha−1 in 2006–2007), with no difference among the buffer vegetation types. While N2O peak emissions (up to 70-fold increase) following the rewetting of dry soils and thawing of frozen soils comprised 46–70% of the annual N2O emissions from soils in the crop field, soils in the riparian buffers were less sensitive to such events (3 to 10-fold increase). The ratio of N2O emission to N inputs within riparian buffers (0.02) was smaller than those of crop field (0.07). These results indicate that N2O emission from soils within the riparian buffers established for water quality improvement should not be considered a major source of N2O emission compared to crop field emission. The observed large difference between measured N2O emissions and those estimated using the IPCC's recommended methodology (i.e., 87% underestimation) in the crop field suggests that the IPCC methodology may underestimate N2O emission in the regions where soil rewetting and thawing are common, and that conditions predicted by future climate-change scenarios may increase N2O emissions.

Description: Ljubljana marsh in Slovenia is a 16 000 ha area of partly drained fen, intended to be flooded to restore its ecological functions. The resultant water-logging may create anoxic conditions, eventually stimulating production and emission of methane, the most important greenhouse gas next to carbon dioxide. We examined the upper layer (~30 cm) of Ljubljana marsh soil for microbial processes that would predominate in water-saturated conditions, focusing on the potential for iron reduction, carbon mineralization (CO2 and CH4 production), and methane emission. Methane emission from water-saturated microcosms was near minimum detectable levels even after extended periods of flooding (〉5 months). Methane production in anoxic soil slurries started only after a lag period and was inversely related to iron reduction, which suggested that iron reduction out-competed methanogenesis for electron donors, such as H2 and acetate. Methane production was observed only in samples incubated at 14–38°C. At the beginning of methanogenesis, acetoclastic methanogenesis dominated. In accordance with the preferred substrate, most (91%) mcrA (encoding the methyl coenzyme-M reductase, a key gene in methanogenesis) clone sequences could be affiliated to the acetoclastic genus Methanosarcina. No methanogens were detected in the original soil. However, a diverse community of iron-reducing Geobacteraceae was found. Our results suggest that methane emission can remain transient and low if water-table fluctuations allow re-oxidation of ferrous iron, sustaining iron reduction as the most important process in terminal carbon mineralization.

Description: Leaf size influences many aspects of tree function such as rates of transpiration and photosynthesis and, consequently, often varies in a predictable way in response to environmental gradients. The recent development of pan-Amazonian databases based on permanent botanical plots (e.g. RAINFOR, ATDN) has now made it possible to assess trends in leaf size across environmental gradients in Amazonia. Previous plot-based studies have shown that the community structure of Amazonian trees breaks down into at least two major ecological gradients corresponding with variations in soil fertility (decreasing south to northeast) and length of the dry season (increasing from northwest to south and east). Here we describe the results of the geographic distribution of leaf size categories based on 121 plots distributed across eight South American countries. We find that, as predicted, the Amazon forest is predominantly populated by tree species and individuals in the mesophyll size class (20.25–182.25 cm2). The geographic distribution of species and individuals with large leaves (〉20.25 cm2) is complex but is generally characterized by a higher proportion of such trees in the north-west of the region. Spatially corrected regressions reveal weak correlations between the proportion of large-leaved species and metrics of water availability. We also find a significant negative relationship between leaf size and wood density.

Description: Long term, high quality estimates of burned area are needed for improving both prognostic and diagnostic fire emissions models and for assessing feedbacks between fire and the climate system. We developed global, monthly burned area estimates aggregated to 0.5° spatial resolution for the time period July 1996 through mid-2009 using four satellite data sets. From 2001–2009, our primary data source was 500-m burned area maps produced using Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) surface reflectance imagery; more than 90% of the global area burned during this time period was mapped in this fashion. During times when the 500-m MODIS data were not available, we used a combination of local regression and regional regression trees to develop relationships between burned area and Terra MODIS active fire data. Cross-calibration with fire observations from the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) Visible and Infrared Scanner (VIRS) and the Along-Track Scanning Radiometer (ATSR) allowed the data set to be extended prior to the MODIS era. With our data set we estimated the global annual area burned for the years 1997–2008 varied between 330 and 431 Mha, with the maximum occurring in 1998. We compared our data set to the recent GFED2, L3JRC, GLOBCARBON, and MODIS MCD45A1 global burned area products and found substantial differences in many regions. Lastly, we assessed the interannual variability and long-term trends in global burned area over the past 12 years. This burned area time series serves as the basis for the third version of the Global Fire Emissions Database (GFED3) estimates of trace gas and aerosol emissions.

Description: Soil respiration (SR) constitutes the largest flux of CO2 from terrestrial ecosystems to the atmosphere. There still exist considerable uncertainties as to its actual magnitude, as well as its spatial and interannual variability. Based on a reanalysis and synthesis of 72 site-years for 58 forests, plantations, savannas, shrublands and grasslands from boreal to tropical climates we present evidence that total annual SR is closely related to SR at mean annual soil temperature (SR MAT), irrespective of the type of ecosystem and biome. This convergence is to be theoretically expected for non water-limited ecosystems within most of the globally occurring range of annual temperature variability and sensitivity (Q10). We further show that for seasonally dry sites where annual precipitation (P) is lower than potential evapotranspiration (PET), annual SR can be predicted from wet season SR MAT corrected for a factor related to P/PET. Our finding indicates that it is sufficient to measure SR MAT for obtaining a highly constrained estimate of its annual total. This should substantially increase our capacity for assessing the spatial distribution and interannual variation of soil CO2 emissions across ecosystems, landscapes and regions, and thereby contribute to improving the spatio-temporal resolution of a major component of the global carbon cycle.

Description: The impact of ocean acidification and increased water temperature on marine ecosystems, in particular those involving calcifying organisms, has been gradually recognised. We examined the individual and combined effects of increased pCO2 (180 ppm V CO2, 380 ppm V CO2 and 750 ppm V CO2 corresponding to past, present and future CO2 conditions, respectively) and temperature (13°C and 18°C) during the calcification phase of the coccolithophore E. huxleyi using batch culture experiments. We showed that the cell abundance-normalized particulate organic carbon concentration (POC) increased from the present to the future CO2 treatments. A significant effect of pCO2 and of temperature on calcification was found, manifesting itself in a lower cell abundance-normalized particulate inorganic carbon (PIC) content as well as a lower PIC:POC ratio at future CO2 levels and at 18°C. Coccosphere-sized particles showed a size reduction trend with both increasing temperature and CO2 concentration. The influence of the different treatments on coccolith morphology was studied by categorizing SEM coccolith micrographs. The number of well-formed coccoliths decreased with increasing pCO2 while temperature did not have a significant impact on coccolith morphology. No interacting effect of pCO2 and temperature was observed on calcite production, coccolith morphology or on coccosphere size. Finally, our results suggest that ocean acidification might have a larger adverse impact on coccolithophorid calcification than surface water warming.

Description: With the accumulation of anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2), a proceeding decline in seawater pH has been induced that is referred to as ocean acidification. The ocean's capacity for CO2 storage is strongly affected by biological processes, whose feedback potential is difficult to evaluate. The main source of CO2 in the ocean is the decomposition and subsequent respiration of organic molecules by heterotrophic bacteria. However, very little is known about potential effects of ocean acidification on bacterial degradation activity. This study reveals that the degradation of polysaccharides, a major component of marine organic matter, by bacterial extracellular enzymes was significantly accelerated during experimental simulation of ocean acidification. Results were obtained from pH perturbation experiments, where rates of extracellular α- and β-glucosidase were measured and the loss of neutral and acidic sugars from phytoplankton-derived polysaccharides was determined. Our study suggests that a faster bacterial turnover of polysaccharides at lowered ocean pH has the potential to affect the cycling of organic carbon in the future ocean by weakening the biological carbon pump and increasing the respiratory production of CO2.

Description: Sinking particles through the pelagic ocean have been traditionally considered the most important vehicle by which the biological pump sequesters carbon in the ocean interior. Nevertheless, regional scale variability in particle flux is a major outstanding issue in oceanography. Here, we have studied the regional and temporal variability of total particulate organic matter fluxes, as well as chloropigment and total hydrolyzed amino acid (THAA) compositions and fluxes in the Canary Current region, between 20–30° N, during two contrasting periods: August 2006, characterized by warm and stratified waters, but also intense winds which enhanced eddy development south of the Canary Islands, and February 2007, characterized by colder waters, less stratification and higher productivity. We found that the eddy-field generated south of the Canary Islands enhanced by 〉2 times particulate organic carbon (POC) export with respect to stations (FF; far-field) outside the eddy-field influence. We also observed flux increases of one order of magnitude in chloropigment and 70% in THAA in the eddy-field relative to FF stations. Principal Components Analysis (PCA) was performed to assess changes in particulate organic matter composition between stations. At eddy-field stations, higher chlorophyll enrichment reflected "fresher" material, while at FF stations a higher proportion of pheophytin indicated greater degradation due to microbes and microzooplankton. PCA also suggests that phytoplankton community structure, particularly the dominance of diatoms versus carbonate-rich plankton, is the major factor influencing the POC export within the eddy field. In February, POC export fluxes were the highest ever reported for this area, reaching values of ~15 mmol C m−2 d−1 at 200 m depth. Compositional changes in pigments and THAA indicate that the source of sinking particles varies zonally and meridionally and suggest that sinking particles were more degraded at near-coastal stations relative to open ocean stations.

Description: Simultaneous measurements of atmospheric deposition and of sinking particles at 200 m depth, were performed in the Ligurian Sea (North-Western Mediterranean) between 2003 and 2007 along with the historical time records of phytoplanktonic activity from satellite images. Atmospheric deposition of Saharan dust particles was very irregular and confirmed the importance of sporadic high magnitude events over the annual average (11.4 g m−2 yr−1 for the 4 yr). The average marine total mass flux was 31 g m−2 yr−1, the larger fraction being the lithogenic one (~37%). The marine total mass flux displayed a seasonal pattern with a maximum in winter occurring before the onset of the spring bloom. The highest POC fluxes did not occur during the spring bloom nor could they be related to any noticeable increase in the surface phytoplanktonic activity. Over the 4 yr of the study, the strongest POC fluxes were concomitant with large increases of the lithogenic marine flux, which had originated from either recent Saharan fallout events (February 2004, August 2005), or from ''old'' Saharan dust ''stored'' in the upper water column layer (March 2003, February 2005), or alternatively from lithogenic material originating from Ligurian riverine flooding (December 2003, Arno, Roya and Var rivers). These ''lithogenic events'' are believed to result from a combination of physical processes (winter mixing), the aggregation of faecal pellets resulting from zooplankton activity, and also organic-mineral aggregation inducing a ballast effect. However, such an event also occurred in August 2005 without any physical mixing, and was attributed to Saharan dust-induced biological enhancement. POC export provoked by the simultaneous occurrence of winter mixing and an extreme dust event (February 2004, 22 g m−2 deposition) was shown to represent 50% of the total annual POC export at 200 m in the water column that year, as compared to only ~25% for the bloom period. This indicates the importance of atmospheric deposition for POC fluxes in the Mediterranean Sea, which is an area strongly influenced by Saharan dust inputs.

Description: Coupled physical-biological-optical ocean ecosystem models often use sophisticated treatments of their physical and biological components, while oversimplifying the optical component to the possible detriment of the ecosystem predictions. To bring optical computations up to the standard required by recent ecosystem models, we developed a computationally fast numerical model, named EcoLight, that solves the azimuthally averaged radiative transfer equation to obtain accurate in-water spectral irradiances for use in calculations of photosynthesis and photo-oxidation. To evaluate its computational features, we incorporated EcoLight into an idealized physical-biological model for open-ocean Case 1 waters and compared ten-year simulations for a simple analytical irradiance model vs. EcoLight numerical calculations. After optimization, the EcoLight run times are less than 30% more than for the analytical irradiance model. Moreover, EcoLight is suitable for use in Case 2 and optically shallow waters, for which no analytical irradiance models exist. EcoLight also computes ancillary quantities such as the remote-sensing reflectance, which can be useful for ecosystem validation.

Description: We show here a new estimate of the variability and long-term trends in the net land carbon sink from 1960 onwards calculated from the difference between fossil fuel emissions, the observed atmospheric growth rate, and the ocean uptake obtained by recent ocean model simulations forced with reanalysis wind stress and heat and water fluxes. The net land carbon sink appears to have increased by −0.88 (−0.77 to −1.04) Pg C yr−1 after ~1988/1989 from a relatively constant mean of −0.27 Pg C yr−1 before then to −1.15 Pg C yr−1 thereafter (the sign convention is negative out of the atmosphere). This result is significant at the 1% critical level. The increase in net land uptake is partially compensated by a reduction in the expected oceanic uptake, which we estimate from model simulations as about 0.35 (0.26 to 0.49) Pg C yr−1. This implies that the atmospheric growth rate must have decreased by about −0.53 (−0.51 to −0.55) Pg C yr−1 (equivalent to −0.25 ppm yr−1) below what would have been projected if the ocean uptake had continued to grow at the rate expected from a constant climate model and if the net land uptake had continued at its pre-1988/1989 level. A regional synthesis and assessment of the land carbon sources and sinks over the post 1988/1989 period reveals broad agreement that the northern hemisphere land is a major sink of atmospheric CO2, but there remain major discrepancies with regard to the sign and magnitude of the net flux to and from tropical land.

Description: Alpine shrub- and grasslands are shaped by extreme climatic conditions such as a long-lasting snow cover and a short vegetation period. Such ecosystems are expected to be highly sensitive to global environmental change. Prolonged growing seasons and shifts in temperature and precipitation are likely to affect plant phenology and growth. In a unique experiment, climatology and plant growth was monitored for almost a decade at 17 snow meteorological stations in different alpine regions along the Swiss Alps. Regression analyses revealed highly significant correlations between mean air temperature in May/June and snow melt-out, onset of plant growth, and plant height. These correlations were used to project plant growth phenology for future climate conditions based on the gridded output of a set of regional climate models runs. Melt-out and onset of growth were projected to occur on average 17 days earlier by the end of the century than in the control period from 1971–2000 under the future climate conditions of the low resolution climate model ensemble. Plant height and biomass production were expected to increase by 77% and 45%, respectively. The earlier melt-out and onset of growth will probably cause a considerable shift towards higher growing plants and thus increased biomass. Our results represent the first quantitative and spatially explicit estimates of climate change impacts on future growing season length and the respective productivity of alpine plant communities in the Swiss Alps.

Description: Total ammonium (tot-NH4+) and total nitrate (tot-NO3−) provide a chemically conservative quantity in the measurement of exchange processes of reactive nitrogen compounds ammonia (NH3), particulate ammonium (NH4+), nitric acid (HNO3), and particulate nitrate (NO3−), using the aerodynamic gradient method. Total fluxes were derived from concentration differences of total ammonium (NH3 and NH4+) and total nitrate (HNO3 and NO3−) measured at two levels. Gaseous species and related particulate compounds were measured selectively, simultaneously and continuously above a spruce forest canopy in south-eastern Germany in summer 2007. Measurements were performed using a wet-chemical two-point gradient instrument, the GRAEGOR. Median concentrations of NH3, HNO3, NH4−, and NO3− were 0.57, 0.12, 0.76, and 0.48 μg m−3, respectively. Total ammonium and total nitrate fluxes showed large variations depending on meteorological conditions, with concentrations close to zero under humid and cool conditions and higher concentrations under dry conditions. Mean fluxes of total ammonium and total nitrate in September 2007 were directed towards the forest canopy and were −65.77 ng m−2 s−1 and −41.02 ng m−2 s−1 (in terms of nitrogen), respectively. Their deposition was controlled by aerodynamic resistances only, with very little influence of surface resistances. Including measurements of wet deposition and findings of former studies at the study site on occult deposition (fog water interception), the total N deposition in September 2007 was estimated to 5.86 kg ha−1.

Description: Soil respiration rates were measured along different parts of a slope in (a) an evergreen forest with mature soil and (b) a deciduous forest with immature soil. The effects of soil temperature, soil moisture, and soil properties on soil respiration rates were estimated individually, and the magnitudes of these effects were compared between the deciduous and evergreen forests. In the evergreen forest with mature soil, soil properties had the greatest effect on soil respiration rates, followed by soil moisture and soil temperature. These results may be explained by different properties of soils that matured under different environments. Thus, we argue that the low soil respiration rates in Plot L of the evergreen forest resulted from soil properties and not from wet soil conditions. In the deciduous forest, soil respiration rates were more strongly affected by soil moisture and soil temperature than by soil properties, which were likely due to the immaturity of the forest soil.

Description: Considering the feedback loops in radiation, temperature, and soil moisture with alterations in rainfall patterns, the influence of the changing monsoon on net ecosystem CO2 exchange can be critical to the estimation of carbon balance in Asia. In this paper, we examined the eddy covariance CO2 fluxes observed from 2004 to 2008 in two major plant functional types in KoFlux, i.e., the Gwangneung deciduous forest (GDK) site and the Haenam farmland (HFK) site. The objectives of the study were to (1) quantify the net ecosystem CO2 exchange (NEE), ecosystem respiration (RE), and gross primary production (GPP), (2) examine their interannual patterns, and (3) assess the mechanism for the coupling of carbon and water exchange associated with the summer monsoon. The GDK site, which had a maximum leaf area index (LAI) of ~5, was on average a relatively weak carbon sink with NEE of −84 gC m−2 y−1, RE of 1028 gC m−2 y−1, and GPP of 1113 gC m−2 y−1. Despite about 20% larger GPP (of 1321 gC m−2 y−1) in comparison with the GDK site, the HFK site (with the maximum LAI of 3 to 4) was a weaker carbon sink with NEE of −58 gC m−2 y−1 because of greater RE of 1263 gC m−2 y−1. In both sites, the annual patterns of NEE and GPP had a striking "mid-season depression" each year with two distinctive peaks of different timing and magnitude, whereas RE did not. The mid-season depression at the GDK site occurred typically from early June to late August, coinciding with the season of summer monsoon when the solar radiation decreased substantially due to frequent rainfalls and cloudiness. At the HFK site, the mid-season depression began earlier in May and continued until the end of July due to land use management (e.g., crop rotation) in addition to such disturbances as summer monsoon and typhoons. Other flux observation sites in East Asia also show a decline in radiation but with a lesser degree during the monsoon season, resulting in less pronounced depression in NEE. In our study, however, the observed depression in NEE changed the forest and farmland from a carbon sink to a source in the middle of the growing season. Consequently, the annually integrated values of NEE lies on the low end of the range reported in the literature. Such a delicate coupling between carbon and water cycles may turn these ecosystems into a stronger carbon sink with the projected trends of less frequent but more intensive rainfalls in this region.

Description: Nitrogen stable isotopes (δ15N) are increasingly used to trace food web relationships and the flow of matter in lakes. However, there is high variability in δ15N among primary producers and other primary energy resources that can eventually propagate throughout the lake food web. To increase our understanding of the origin of this variability, we measured ammonium and nitrate δ15N in atmospheric deposition (AD), epilimnetic water (EW), deep chlorophyll maximum water (DCMW), and sediment porewater (SPW) in eight mountain lakes. A general δ15N (−3.4‰) for AD was estimated as the signature for AD ammonium and nitrate did not differ. All lakes showed similar high δ15N-NH4+ values for SPW (ca. 2.2‰). In contrast, the variability among lakes in water column values was high, although differences between EW and DCMW within a lake were low. δ15N-NO3- correlated with the altitude of the lakes, and its variability was interpreted as the influence of catchment nitrification, which is higher in talus landscapes. δ15N-NH4+ distribution had two modes, positive values (ca. 3‰) were associated to DCMW of shallow lakes, and probably reflect the SPW influence. Lower values (ca. −3‰) occur in EW and DCMW of deep lakes, and its variability was related to the degree that NO3- was up taken by primary producers and recycled within the food-web when NH4+ availability was low compared to demand. Overall, altitude, lake depth and seasonal cumulative primary production largely explain the patterns of δ15N variability observed in nitrogen dissolved compounds.

Description: Dissolved CH4 was measured in the water column at the Boknis Eck (BE) time series station in the Eckernförde Bay (SW Baltic Sea) on a monthly basis from June 2006 to November 2008. The water column at BE was always supersaturated with CH4 and, therefore, CH4 was released to the atmosphere throughout the sampling period. A flux estimate indicates that the atmospheric CH4 emissions are balanced by the CH4 flux from the sediment. We did not detect a straightforward relationship between periods of enhanced CH4 in the bottom layer and hypoxic events at BE: The sedimentary release of CH4 seemed to be mainly triggered by sedimenting organic material from phytoplankton blooms. We conclude that future CH4 emissions from BE will be determined by both the occurrence and the intensity of phytoplankton blooms, which in turn will be influenced by eutrophication. However, hypoxic events seem to have only a modulating effect in the way that they enhance sedimentary methanogenesis.

Description: We present an overview of the plankton studies conducted during the last 25 years in the epipelagic offshore waters of the Mediterranean Sea. This quasi-enclosed sea is characterized by a rich and complex physical dynamics that includes unique thermohaline features, particular multilayer circulation, topographic gyres, and meso- and sub-mesoscale activity. Recent investigations have basically confirmed the long-recognised oligotrophic character of this sea, which enhances along both the west-east, and the north-south directions. Nutrient availability is low, especially for phosphorous (N:P up to 60), although limitation may be relaxed by inputs from highly populated coasts and from the atmosphere. Phytoplankton biomass as chl-a, generally displays low values (less than 0.2 μg chl-a l-1) over large areas, with a modest late winter increase. A large bloom (up to 3 μg l-1) throughout the late winter and early spring is only observed in the NW area. Relatively high biomass peaks are also recorded in fronts and cyclonic gyres. A deep chlorophyll maximum is a~permanent feature for the whole basin (except during the late winter mixing). It progressively deepens from the Alboran Sea (30 m) to the easternmost Levantine basin (120 m). Primary production reveals a similar west-east decreasing trend and ranges from 59 to 150 g C m-2 y-1 (in situ measurements). Overall the basin is largely dominated by small-sized autotrophs, microheterotrophs and egg-carrying copepod species. The phytoplankton, the microbial (both autotrophic and heterotrophic) and the zooplankton components reveal a considerable diversity and variability over spatial and temporal scales, the latter less explored though. Examples are the wide diversity of dinoflagellates and coccolithophores, the multifarious role of diatoms or picoeukaryotes, and the distinct seasonal or spatial patterns of the species-reach copepod genera or families which dominate in the basin. Major dissimilarities between western and eastern basins have been highlighted in species composition of phytoplankton and mesozooplankton, but also in the microbial components and in their relationships. Superimposed to these longitudinal differences, a pronounced biological heterogeneity is also observed in areas hosting deep convection, fronts, cyclonic and anti-cyclonic gyres or eddies. There, the intermittent nutrient enrichment promotes switches from a small-sized microbial community to diatom-dominated populations. A classical food web is ready to substitute the microbial food web in these cases. These switches, likely occurring within a continuum of trophic pathways, may greatly enhance the flux towards high trophic levels, in spite of an apparent heterotrophy. Basically, the system seems to be top-down controlled and characterised by a ‘multivorous web’, as shown by the great variety of feeding modes and preferences and by the significant and simultaneous grazing impact on phytoplankton and ciliates by mesozooplankton. ‘La Mediterrània, o almenys la seva zona pelàgica, seria comparable a una Amazònia marina.’ (Margalef, 1995) (The Mediterranean, or at least its pelagic zone, would be like a marine version of the Amazon forest.)

Description: The effect of carbonate ion concentration ([CO32−]) on calcification rates estimated from shell size and weight was investigated in the planktonic foraminifera Orbulina universa and Globigerinoides sacculifer. Experiments on G. sacculifer were conducted under two irradiance levels (35 and 335 μmol photons m−2 s−1). Calcification was ca. 30% lower under low light than under high light, irrespective of the [CO32−]. Both O. universa and G. sacculifer exhibited reduced final shell weight and calcification rate under low [CO32−]. At the [CO32−] expected for the end of the century, the calcification rates of these two species are projected to be 6 to 13% lower than at present conditions, while the final shell weights are reduced by 20 to 27% for O. universa and by 4 to 6% for G. sacculifer. These results indicate that ocean acidification would impact calcite production by foraminifera and may decrease the calcite flux contribution from these organisms.

Description: A recent mesocosm study under high CO2 conditions has found phytoplankton carbon consumption is elevated beyond typical Redfield ratios (Riebesell et al., 2007). We investigate the efficacy of this elevated biological carbon consumption to increase global oceanic CO2 uptake from the atmosphere in an ocean general circulation model (OGCM). In the OGCM, elevated biological carbon consumption throughout the ocean increased oceanic CO2 uptake by 46 Pg C during 1800 to 2100 period, which is less than half the value estimated by (Riebesell et al., 2007). Our study's lower ratio of oceanic CO2 uptake from the atmosphere caused by enhanced biological carbon consumption (export production) is due to a more realistic 3-D circulation and the resulting spatial patterns in the re-supply of carbon from the interior ocean to the surface. In our OGCM simulations, despite increased biological carbon export to the ocean interior, some regions like the eastern equatorial Pacific and Southern Ocean actually take up less CO2 from the atmosphere. This is due to the pooling of exported carbon at intermediate depths within these regions (analogous to nutrient trapping) and its subsequent re-supply back to the surface that exceeds the enhanced biological carbon export in the high CO2 world. Thus large-scale increases in biological carbon export can lead to some areas where surface ocean pCO2 increases more rapidly than atmospheric CO2. Furthermore, our results demonstrate that enhancing biological carbon export via other means such as iron fertilization is inefficient in regions like the Southern Ocean because of the rapid vertical re-supply of carbon-rich waters. This vertical resupply of carbon-rich waters in the Southern Ocean dampens the oceanic CO2 uptake efficiency due to enhanced biological carbon consumption to be only 16% and suggests a very low efficacy of biological fertilization in the region.

Description: Optical properties are used to characterize the biogeochemistry of cyclonic eddy Opal in the lee of Hawaii. The eddy featured an intense diatom bloom. Our results show that the ratio of chlorophyll concentration to particulate beam attenuation coefficient, [chl]/cp, is not a good indicator of the changes in particle composition through the water column. The ratio is controlled primarily by the variation in chlorophyll concentration per cell with depth (photoadaptation), so that its values increase throughout the Deep Chlorophyll Maximum Layer (DCML). Below the DCML, high values of [chl]/cp suggest that remineralization might be another important controlling factor. On the other hand, the backscattering ratio (particle backscattering to particle scattering ratio, b~bp) clearly indicates a shift from a small phytoplankton to a diatom dominated community. Below an upper layer characterized by constant values, the b~bp ratio showed a rapid decrease to a broad minimum within the DCML. The higher values below the DCML are consistent with enhanced remineralization below the eddy-induced bloom. The DCML was characterized by a layer of "healthy" diatoms underlying a layer of "senescent" diatoms. These two layers are characterized by similar optical properties, indicating some possible limitations in using optical measurements to fully characterize the composition of suspended material in the water column. An inverse relationship between b~bp and [chl]/cp, also reported by others, is observed as deep as the DCML. There, [chl]/cp increases whereas b~bp remains similar to values found in the empty frustule layer. This is a further indication that [chl]/cp might not be a good alternative to the backscattering ratio for investigating changes in particle composition with depth in Case I waters.

Description: Changes in carbon density (i.e., carbon stock per unit area) and land cover greatly affect carbon sequestration. Previous studies have shown that land cover change detection strongly depends on spatial scale. However, the influence of the spatial resolution of land cover change information on the estimated terrestrial carbon sequestration is not known. Here, we quantified and evaluated the impact of land cover change databases at various spatial resolutions (250 m, 500 m, 1 km, 2 km, and 4 km) on the magnitude and spatial patterns of regional carbon sequestration in the southeastern United States using the General Ensemble biogeochemical Modeling System (GEMS). Results indicated a threshold of 1 km in the land cover change databases and in the estimated regional terrestrial carbon sequestration. Beyond this threshold, significant biases occurred in the estimation of terrestrial carbon sequestration, its interannual variability, and spatial patterns. In addition, the overriding impact of interannual climate variability on the temporal change of regional carbon sequestration was unrealistically overshadowed by the impact of land cover change beyond the threshold. The implications of these findings directly challenge current continental- to global-scale carbon modeling efforts relying on information at coarse spatial resolution without incorporating fine-scale land cover dynamics.

Description: Settling particles were collected using sediment traps deployed along three transects in the Lacaze-Duthiers and Cap de Creus canyons and the adjacent southern open slope from October 2005 to October 2006. The settling material was analysed to obtain total mass fluxes and main constituent contents (organic matter, opal, calcium carbonate, and siliciclastics). Cascades of dense shelf water from the continental shelf edge to the lower continental slope occurred from January to March 2006. They were traced through strong negative near-bottom temperature anomalies and increased current speeds, and generated two intense pulses of mass fluxes in January and March 2006. This oceanographic phenomenon appeared as the major physical forcing of settling particles at almost all stations, and caused both high seasonal variability in mass fluxes and important qualitative changes in settling material. Fluxes during the dense shelf water cascading (DSWC) event ranged from 90.1 g m−2 d−1 at the 1000 m depth station in the Cap de Creus canyon to 3.2 g m−2 d−1 at the canyon mouth at 1900 m. Fractions of organic matter, opal and calcium carbonate components increased seaward, thus diminishing the siliciclastic fraction. Temporal variability of the major components was larger in the canyon mouth and open slope sites, due to the mixed impact of dense shelf water cascading processes and the pelagic biological production. Results indicate that the cascading event remobilized and homogenized large amounts of material down canyon and southwardly along the continental slope contributing to a better understanding of the internal dynamics of DSWC events. While the late winter/early spring bloom signature was diluted when DSWC occurred, the primary production dynamics were observable at all stations during the rest of the year and highlighted the biological community succession in surface waters.

Description: Terrestrial biosphere models show large uncertainties when simulating carbon and water cycles, and reducing these uncertainties is a priority for developing more accurate estimates of both terrestrial ecosystem statuses and future climate changes. To reduce uncertainties and improve the understanding of these carbon budgets, we investigated the ability of flux datasets to improve model simulations and reduce variabilities among multi-model outputs of terrestrial biosphere models in Japan. Using 9 terrestrial biosphere models (Support Vector Machine-based regressions, TOPS, CASA, VISIT, Biome-BGC, DAYCENT, SEIB, LPJ, and TRIFFID), we conducted two simulations: (1) point simulations at four flux sites in Japan and (2) spatial simulations for Japan with a default model (based on original settings) and an improved model (based on calibration using flux observations). Generally, models using default model settings showed large deviations in model outputs from observation with large model-by-model variability. However, after we calibrated the model parameters using flux observations (GPP, RE and NEP), most models successfully simulated seasonal variations in the carbon cycle, with less variability among models. We also found that interannual variations in the carbon cycle are mostly consistent among models and observations. Spatial analysis also showed a large reduction in the variability among model outputs, and model calibration using flux observations significantly improved the model outputs. These results show that to reduce uncertainties among terrestrial biosphere models, we need to conduct careful validation and calibration with available flux observations. Flux observation data significantly improved terrestrial biosphere models, not only on a point scale but also on spatial scales.

Description: Synchronized transitions in the polymorph mineralogy of the major reef-building and sediment-producing calcareous marine organisms and abiotic CaCO3 precipitates (ooids, marine cements) throughout Phanerozoic time is believed to have been caused by tectonically-induced variations in seawater molar Mg/Ca (〉2="aragonite seas";