In:
Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, The Royal Society, Vol. 285, No. 1885 ( 2018-08-29), p. 20181240-
Kurzfassung:
Forest ecosystems are an integral component of the global carbon cycle as they take up and release large amounts of C over short time periods (C flux) or accumulate it over longer time periods (C stock). However, there remains uncertainty about whether and in which direction C fluxes and in particular C stocks may differ between forests of high versus low species richness. Based on a comprehensive dataset derived from field-based measurements, we tested the effect of species richness (3–20 tree species) and stand age (22–116 years) on six compartments of above- and below-ground C stocks and four components of C fluxes in subtropical forests in southeast China. Across forest stands, total C stock was 149 ± 12 Mg ha −1 with richness explaining 28.5% and age explaining 29.4% of variation in this measure. Species-rich stands had higher C stocks and fluxes than stands with low richness; and, in addition, old stands had higher C stocks than young ones. Overall, for each additional tree species, the total C stock increased by 6.4%. Our results provide comprehensive evidence for diversity-mediated above- and below-ground C sequestration in species-rich subtropical forests in southeast China. Therefore, afforestation policies in this region and elsewhere should consider a change from the current focus on monocultures to multi-species plantations to increase C fixation and thus slow increasing atmospheric CO 2 concentrations and global warming.
Materialart:
Online-Ressource
ISSN:
0962-8452
,
1471-2954
DOI:
10.1098/rspb.2018.1240
Sprache:
Englisch
Verlag:
The Royal Society
Publikationsdatum:
2018
ZDB Id:
1460975-7
SSG:
12
SSG:
25
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