Northern peatlands hold large amounts of organic carbon (C) in their soils and are as such important in a climate change context. Blanket bogs, i.e. nutrient-poor peatlands restricted to maritime climates, may be extra vulnerable to global warming since they require a positive water balance to sustain their moss dominated vegetation and C sink functioning. This study presents a 4.5 year record of land–atmosphere carbon dioxide (CO2) exchange from the Andøya blanket bog in northern Norway. Compared with other peatlands, the Andøya peatland exhibited low flux rates, related to the low productivity of the dominating moss and lichen communities and the maritime settings that attenuated seasonal temperature variations. It was observed that under periods of high vapour pressure deficit, net ecosystem exchange was reduced, which was mainly caused by a decrease in gross primary production. However, no persistent effects of dry conditions on the CO2 exchange dynamics were observed, indicating that under present conditions and within the range of observed meteorological conditions the Andøya blanket bog retained its C uptake function. Continued monitoring of these ecosystem types is essential in order to detect possible effects of a changing climate.
Arctic Research Centre, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Denmark;Department of Physical Geography and Ecosystem Science, Lund University, Sweden;Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Norway;Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, USA;Norwegian Institute for Air Research, Norway;Norwegian Institute for Air Research, Norway;Arctic Research Centre, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Denmark;Department of Physical Geography and Ecosystem Science, Lund University, Sweden;Bioforsk, Norwegian Institute for Agricultural and Environmental Research, Norway;Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, USA;Bioforsk, Norwegian Institute for Agricultural and Environmental Research, Norway;Department of Science, Waterford Institute of Technology, Ireland;Environmental Research Institute, University College Cork, Ireland;Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Norway;Bioforsk, Norwegian Institute for Agricultural and Environmental Research, Norway;Bioforsk, Norwegian Institute for Agricultural and Environmental Research, Norway
Recommended Citation:
Magnus Lund,J W Bjerke,B G Drake,et al. Low impact of dry conditions on the CO2 exchange of a Northern-Norwegian blanket bog[J]. Environmental Research Letters,2015-01-01,10(2)