Towards long-Term standardised carbon and greenhouse gas observations for monitoring Europe's terrestrial ecosystems: A review

Franz D., Acosta M., Altimir N., Arriga N., Arrouays D., Aubinet M., Aurela M., Ayres E., López-Ballesteros A., Barbaste M., Berveiller D., Biraud S., Boukir H., Brown T., Brömmer C., Buchmann N., Burba G., Carrara A., Cescatti A., Ceschia E., Clement R., Cremonese E., Crill P., Darenova E., Dengel S., D'Odorico P., Filippa G., Fleck S., Fratini G., Fuß R., Gielen B., Gogo S., Grace J., Graf A., Grelle A., Gross P., Grönwald T., Haapanala S., Hehn M., Heinesch B., Heiskanen J., Herbst M., Herschlein C., Hörtnagl L., Hufkens K., Ibrom A., Jolivet C., Joly L., Jones M., Kiese R., Klemedtsson L., Kljun N., Klumpp K., Kolari P., Kolle O., Kowalski A., Kutsch W., Laurila T., De Ligne A., Linder S., Lindroth A., Lohila A., Longdoz B., Mammarella I., Manise T., Jiménez S.M., Matteucci G., Mauder M., Meier P., Merbold L., Mereu S., Metzger S., Migliavacca M., Mölder M., Montagnani L., Moureaux C., Nelson D., Nemitz E., Nicolini G., Nilsson M.B., De Beeck M.O.M., Osborne B., Löfvenius M.O., Pavelka M., Peichl M., Peltola O., Pihlatie M., Pitacco A., Pokorný R., Pumpanen J., Ratié C., Rebmann C., Roland M., Sabbatini S., Saby N.P.A., Saunders M., Schmid H.P., Schrumpf M., Sedlák P., Ortiz P.S., Siebicke L., Šigut L., Silvennoinen H., Simioni G., Skiba U., Sonnentag O., Soudani K., Soulé P., Steinbrecher R., Tallec T., Thimonier A., Tuittila E.-S., Tuovinen J.-P., Vestin P., Vincent G., Vincke C., Vitale D., Waldner P., Weslien P., Wingate L., Wohlfahrt G., Zahniser M., Vesala T. (2018) Towards long-Term standardised carbon and greenhouse gas observations for monitoring Europe's terrestrial ecosystems: A review. International Agrophysics. 32: 439-455.
Enlace
Doi: 10.1515/intag-2017-0039

Resumen:

Research infrastructures play a key role in launching a new generation of integrated long-Term, geographically distributed observation programmes designed to monitor climate change, better understand its impacts on global ecosystems, and evaluate possible mitigation and adaptation strategies. The pan-European Integrated Carbon Observation System combines carbon and greenhouse gas (GHG; CO2, CH4, N2O, H2O) observations within the atmosphere, terrestrial ecosystems and oceans. High-precision measurements are obtained using standardised methodologies, are centrally processed and openly available in a traceable and verifiable fashion in combination with detailed metadata. The Integrated Carbon Observation System ecosystem station network aims to sample climate and land-cover variability across Europe. In addition to GHG flux measurements, a large set of complementary data (including management practices, vegetation and soil characteristics) is collected to support the interpretation, spatial upscaling and modelling of observed ecosystem carbon and GHG dynamics. The applied sampling design was developed and formulated in protocols by the scientific community, representing a trade-off between an ideal dataset and practical feasibility. The use of open-Access, high-quality and multi-level data products by different user communities is crucial for the Integrated Carbon Observation System in order to achieve its scientific potential and societal value. © 2018 Daniela Franz et al., published by Sciendo 2018.

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Estimating Carbon Avoided from the Implementation of Reduced-Impact Logging in Sabah, Malaysia

Galante M.V., Pinard M.A., Mencuccini M. (2018) Estimating Carbon Avoided from the Implementation of Reduced-Impact Logging in Sabah, Malaysia. International Forestry Review. 20: 58-78.
Enlace
Doi: 10.1505/146554818822824192

Resumen:

The objective of this study was to investigate the design and application of a carbon baseline for commercial timber harvest activities involving conventional timber harvest activities (CNV), relative to reduced-impact logging (RIL) in Sabah, Malaysia. As only RIL is eligible to be practiced in production forests, a baseline of CNV was estimated from the literature. The principle of net present value was applied to the post-harvest accumulation of carbon stocks after RIL to model a conservative 'crediting' baseline. Two areas representing opposite ends of a range of anthropogenic disturbance were sampled, with an old growth lower montane forest, and a lowland severely logged-over dipterocarp forest investigated before-, and two- and three-years after harvest, respectively. Areas impacted by CNV were estimated to contain 12-39% of pre-harvest carbon stock, relative to 57-63% under RIL and estimated to accumulate carbon in the range of 0.68-1.25 tC ha-1 yr1, averaging 14-55 years for recovery; in-line with body of knowledge. While the main limitation was our inability measure CNV directly, a balance of understanding is required for the development of a 'best estimate' using the literature. © 2018 Commonwealth Forestry Association. All rights reserved.

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The spatial scaling of species interaction networks

Galiana N., Lurgi M., Claramunt-López B., Fortin M.-J., Leroux S., Cazelles K., Gravel D., Montoya J.M. (2018) The spatial scaling of species interaction networks. Nature Ecology and Evolution. 2: 782-790.
Enlace
Doi: 10.1038/s41559-018-0517-3

Resumen:

Species-area relationships (SARs) are pivotal to understand the distribution of biodiversity across spatial scales. We know little, however, about how the network of biotic interactions in which biodiversity is embedded changes with spatial extent. Here we develop a new theoretical framework that enables us to explore how different assembly mechanisms and theoretical models affect multiple properties of ecological networks across space. We present a number of testable predictions on network-area relationships (NARs) for multi-trophic communities. Network structure changes as area increases because of the existence of different SARs across trophic levels, the preferential selection of generalist species at small spatial extents and the effect of dispersal limitation promoting beta-diversity. Developing an understanding of NARs will complement the growing body of knowledge on SARs with potential applications in conservation ecology. Specifically, combined with further empirical evidence, NARs can generate predictions of potential effects on ecological communities of habitat loss and fragmentation in a changing world. © 2018 The Author(s).

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The effect of multiple biotic interaction types on species persistence

García-Callejas D., Molowny-Horas R., Araújo M.B. (2018) The effect of multiple biotic interaction types on species persistence. Ecology. 99: 2327-2337.
Enlace
Doi: 10.1002/ecy.2465

Resumen:

No species can persist in isolation from other species, but how biotic interactions affect species persistence is still a matter of inquiry. Is persistence more likely in communities with higher proportion of competing species, or in communities with more positive interactions? How do different components of community structure mediate this relationship? We address these questions using a novel simulation framework that generates realistic communities with varying numbers of species and different proportions of biotic interaction types within and across trophic levels. We show that when communities have fewer species, persistence is more likely if positive interactions—such as mutualism and commensalism—are prevalent. In species-rich communities, the disproportionate effect of positive interactions on persistence is diluted and different combinations of biotic interaction types can coexist without affecting persistence significantly. We present the first theoretical examination of how multiple-interaction networks with varying architectures relate to local species persistence, and provide insight about the underlying causes of stability in communities. © 2018 by the Ecological Society of America

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Joining empirical and modelling approaches to estimate dry deposition of nitrogen in Mediterranean forests

García-Gómez H., Izquieta-Rojano S., Aguillaume L., González-Fernández I., Valiño F., Elustondo D., Santamaría J.M., Àvila A., Bytnerowicz A., Bermejo V., Alonso R. (2018) Joining empirical and modelling approaches to estimate dry deposition of nitrogen in Mediterranean forests. Environmental Pollution. 243: 427-436.
Enlace
Doi: 10.1016/j.envpol.2018.09.015

Resumen:

In Mediterranean areas, dry deposition is a major component of the total atmospheric N input to natural habitats, particularly to forest ecosystems. An innovative approach, combining the empirical inferential method (EIM) for surface deposition of NO3 − and NH4 + with stomatal uptake of NH3, HNO3 and NO2 derived from the DO3SE (Deposition of Ozone and Stomatal Exchange) model, was used to estimate total dry deposition of inorganic N air pollutants in four holm oak forests under Mediterranean conditions in Spain. The estimated total deposition varied among the sites and matched the geographical patterns previously found in model estimates: higher deposition was determined at the northern site (28.9 kg N ha−1 year−1) and at the northeastern sites (17.8 and 12.5 kg N ha−1 year−1) than at the central-Spain site (9.4 kg N ha−1 year−1). On average, the estimated dry deposition of atmospheric N represented 77% ± 2% of the total deposition of N, of which surface deposition of gaseous and particulate atmospheric N averaged 10.0 ± 2.9 kg N ha−1 year−1 for the four sites (58% of the total deposition), and stomatal deposition of N gases averaged 3.3 ± 0.8 kg N ha−1 year−1 (19% of the total deposition). Deposition of atmospheric inorganic N was dominated by the surface deposition of oxidized N in all the forests (means of 54% and 42% of the dry and total deposition, respectively). The relative contribution of NO2 to dry deposition averaged from 19% in the peri-urban forests to 11% in the most natural site. During the monitoring period, the empirical critical loads provisionally proposed for ecosystem protection (10–20 kg N ha−1 year−1) was exceeded in three of the four studied forests. Dry deposition of atmospheric N in four forests of Quercus ilex represented 77% of the total deposition of N and it was dominated by the surface deposition of oxidized N. © 2018 Elsevier Ltd

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Climate change-driven extinctions of tree species affect forest functioning more than random extinctions

García-Valdés R., Bugmann H., Morin X. (2018) Climate change-driven extinctions of tree species affect forest functioning more than random extinctions. Diversity and Distributions. : 0-0.
Enlace
Doi: 10.1111/ddi.12744

Resumen:

Aim: Climate change affects forest functioning not only through direct physiological effects such as modifying photosynthesis and growing season lengths, but also through indirect effects on community composition related to species extinctions and colonizations. Such indirect effects remain poorly explored in comparison with the direct ones. Biodiversity-ecosystem functioning (BEF) studies commonly examine the effects of species loss by eliminating species randomly. However, species extinctions caused by climate change will depend on the species' vulnerability to the new environmental conditions, thus occurring in a specific, non-random order. Here, we evaluated whether successive tree species extinctions, according to their vulnerability to climate change, impact forest functions differently than random species losses. Location: Eleven temperate forests across a gradient of climatic conditions in central Europe. Methods: We simulated tree community dynamics with a forest succession model to study the impact of species loss on the communities' aboveground biomass, productivity and temporal stability. Tree species were removed from the local pool (1) randomly, and according to (2) their inability to be recruited under a warmer climate or (3) their increased mortality under drier conditions. Results: Results showed that non-random species loss (i.e., based on their vulnerability to warmer or drier conditions) changed forest functioning at a different rate, and sometimes direction, than random species loss. Furthermore, directed extinctions, unlike random, triggered tipping points along the species loss process where forest functions were strongly impacted. These tipping points occurred after fewer extinctions in forests located in the coldest areas, where ecosystem functioning relies on fewer species. Main conclusions: We showed that the extinction of species in a deterministic and mechanistically motivated order, in this case the species vulnerability to climate change, strengthens the selection effect of diversity on ecosystem functioning. BEF studies exploring the impact of species loss on ecosystem functioning using random extinctions thus possibly underestimate the potential effect of biodiversity loss when driven by a directional force, such as climate change. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

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Root exudate metabolomes change under drought and show limited capacity for recovery

Gargallo-Garriga A., Preece C., Sardans J., Oravec M., Urban O., Peñuelas J. (2018) Root exudate metabolomes change under drought and show limited capacity for recovery. Scientific Reports. 8: 0-0.
Enlace
Doi: 10.1038/s41598-018-30150-0

Resumen:

Root exudates comprise a large variety of compounds released by plants into the rhizosphere, including low-molecular-weight primary metabolites (particularly saccharides, amino acids and organic acids) and secondary metabolites (phenolics, flavonoids and terpenoids). Changes in exudate composition could have impacts on the plant itself, on other plants, on soil properties (e.g. amount of soil organic matter), and on soil organisms. The effects of drought on the composition of root exudates, however, have been rarely studied. We used an ecometabolomics approach to identify the compounds in the exudates of Quercus ilex (holm oak) under an experimental drought gradient and subsequent recovery. Increasing drought stress strongly affected the composition of the exudate metabolome. Plant exudates under drought consisted mainly of secondary metabolites (71% of total metabolites) associated with plant responses to drought stress, whereas the metabolite composition under recovery shifted towards a dominance of primary metabolites (81% of total metabolites). These results strongly suggested that roots exude the most abundant root metabolites. The exudates were changed irreversibly by the lack of water under extreme drought conditions, and the plants could not recover. © 2018, The Author(s).

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Inter- and intra-specific trait shifts among sites differing in drought conditions at the north western edge of the Mediterranean Region

Garnier E., Vile D., Roumet C., Lavorel S., Grigulis K., Navas M.-L., Lloret F. (2018) Inter- and intra-specific trait shifts among sites differing in drought conditions at the north western edge of the Mediterranean Region. Flora: Morphology, Distribution, Functional Ecology of Plants. : 0-0.
Enlace
Doi: 10.1016/j.flora.2018.07.009

Resumen:

Identifying consistent and predictable associations between traits and environment is one of the oldest quest of ecology. Yet, there are few formal and robust quantification of such associations, which seriously impedes our capacity to predict how ecological systems respond to global changes, including climate. This study was designed to assess how differences in environmental conditions affect plant form and function in a wide array of species. Twelve traits were measured on 40 species in three Mediterranean sites differing in drought conditions. Some species being common among sites, 78 species belonging to four major Raunkiær life form categories were studied. These traits correspond to: (i) plant size: vegetative and maximum plant height, (ii) seed mass, (iii) leaf morpho-anatomical traits: leaf area, specific leaf area, dry matter content and thickness, (iv) leaf chemical composition: mass based nitrogen, phosphorus and carbon contents, and carbon isotopic fraction. On average, there was a shift in the phenotypic space towards more resource conservative and taller species in the drier sites. These changes were not always consistent for hemicryptophytes and chamaephytes on the one hand, and for phanerophytes on the other hand. This is interpreted as different species responding to different aspects of complex changes in environmental factors. Intraspecific trait variation differed among species, and was lower than interspecific variation. Changes in site-average trait values were therefore mostly driven by species turnover among sites. The traits selected do not respond strongly to the differences in environmental conditions however, resulting in a moderate shift in the phenotypic space between sites. We argue that traits more directly related to plant water economy should be considered for an improved description of plant phenotypic response to the environmental factors at stake. The implications for the prediction of plant responses to climate changes likely to occur in the Mediterranean Region are discussed. © 2018

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Habitat disturbance selects against both small and large species across varying climates

Gibb H., Sanders N.J., Dunn R.R., Arnan X., Vasconcelos H.L., Donoso D.A., Andersen A.N., Silva R.R., Bishop T.R., Gomez C., Grossman B.F., Yusah K.M., Luke S.H., Pacheco R., Pearce-Duvet J., Retana J., Tista M., Parr C.L. (2018) Habitat disturbance selects against both small and large species across varying climates. Ecography. 41: 1184-1193.
Enlace
Doi: 10.1111/ecog.03244

Resumen:

Global extinction drivers, including habitat disturbance and climate change, are thought to affect larger species more than smaller species. However, it is unclear if such drivers interact to affect assemblage body size distributions. We asked how these two key global change drivers differentially affect the interspecific size distributions of ants, one of the most abundant and ubiquitous animal groups on earth. We also asked whether there is evidence of synergistic interactions and whether effects are related to species’ trophic roles. We generated a global dataset on ant body size from 333 local ant assemblages collected by the authors across a broad range of climates and in disturbed and undisturbed habitats. We used head length (range: 0.22–4.55 mm) as a surrogate of body size and classified species to trophic groups. We used generalized linear models to test whether body size distributions changed with climate and disturbance, independent of species richness. Our analysis yielded three key results: 1) climate and disturbance showed independent associations with body size; 2) assemblages included more small species in warmer climates and fewer large species in wet climates; and 3) both the largest and smallest species were absent from disturbed ecosystems, with predators most affected in both cases. Our results indicate that temperature, precipitation and disturbance have differing effects on the body size distributions of local communities, with no evidence of synergistic interactions. Further, both large and small predators may be vulnerable to global change, particularly through habitat disturbance. © 2017 The Authors

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Ancillary vegetation measurements at ICOS ecosystem stations

Gielen B., Acosta M., Altimir N., Buchmann N., Cescatti A., Ceschia E., Fleck S., Hörtnagl L., Klumpp K., Kolari P., Lohila A., Loustau D., Marańon-Jimenez S., Manise T., Matteucci G., Merbold L., Metzger C., Moureaux C., Montagnani L., Nilsson M.B., Osborne B., Papale D., Pavelka M., Saunders M., Simioni G., Soudani K., Sonnentag O., Tallec T., Tuittila E.-S., Peichl M., Pokorny R., Vincke C., Wohlfahrt G. (2018) Ancillary vegetation measurements at ICOS ecosystem stations. International Agrophysics. 32: 645-664.
Enlace
Doi: 10.1515/intag-2017-0048

Resumen:

The Integrated Carbon Observation System is a Pan-European distributed research infrastructure that has as its main goal to monitor the greenhouse gas balance of Europe. The ecosystem component of Integrated Carbon Observation System consists of a multitude of stations where the net greenhouse gas exchange is monitored continuously by eddy covariance measurements while, in addition many other measurements are carried out that are a key to an understanding of the greenhouse gas balance. Amongst them are the continuous meteorological measurements and a set of non-continuous measurements related to vegetation. The latter include Green Area Index, aboveground biomass and litter biomass. The standardized methodology that is used at the Integrated Carbon Observation System ecosystem stations to monitor these vegetation related variables differs between the ecosystem types that are represented within the network, whereby in this paper we focus on forests, grasslands, croplands and mires. For each of the variables and ecosystems a spatial and temporal sampling design was developed so that the variables can be monitored in a consistent way within the ICOS network. The standardisation of the methodology to collect Green Area Index, above ground biomass and litter biomass and the methods to evaluate the quality of the collected data ensures that all stations within the ICOS ecosystem network produce data sets with small and similar errors, which allows for inter-comparison comparisons across the Integrated Carbon Observation System ecosystem network. © 2018 Bert Gielen et al., published by Sciendo 2018.

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