Browse by author
Lookup NU author(s): Dr Ryan Pereira, Dr Isabella Bovolo, Dr Rob Spencer, Dr Geoffrey ParkinORCiD, Professor Thomas Wagner
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND).
This study emphasizes the importance of rainstorm events in mobilizing carbon at the soil-stream interface from tropical rainforests. Half-hourly geochemical/isotopic records over a 13.5 hour period from a 20 km2 tropical rainforest headwater in Guyana show an order of magnitude increase in dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentration in less than 30 minutes (10.6-114 mg/L). The composition of DOC varies significantly and includes optically invisible dissolved organic matter (iDOM) that accounts for a large proportion (4-89%) of the total DOC, quantified using size exclusion chromatography (SEC). SEC suggests that iDOM is comprised of low molecular weight organic moieties, which are likely sourced from fresh leaf litter and/or topsoil, as shown in soils from the surrounding environment. Although poorly constrained at present, the presence of iDOM further downstream during the wet season suggests that this organic matter fraction may represent an un-quantified source of riverine CO2 outgassing in tropical headwaters, requiring further consideration.
Author(s): Pereira R, Bovolo CI, Spencer RGM, Hernes PJ, Tipping E, Vieth-Hillebrand A, Pedentchouk N, Chappell NA, Parkin G, Wagner T
Publication type: Article
Publication status: Published
Journal: Geophysical Research Letters
Year: 2014
Volume: 41
Issue: 4
Pages: 1202-1208
Print publication date: 19/02/2014
Online publication date: 19/02/2014
Acceptance date: 15/01/2014
Date deposited: 25/03/2014
ISSN (print): 0094-8276
ISSN (electronic): 1944-8007
Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell
URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/2013GL058658
DOI: 10.1002/2013GL058658
Altmetrics provided by Altmetric
