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Fluorescence characteristics and biodegradability of dissolved organic matter in forest and wetland soils from coastal temperate watersheds in southeast Alaska

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Abstract

Understanding how the concentration and chemical quality of dissolved organic matter (DOM) varies in soils is critical because DOM influences an array of biological, chemical, and physical processes. We used PARAFAC modeling of excitation–emission fluorescence spectroscopy, specific UV absorbance (SUVA254) and biodegradable dissolved organic carbon (BDOC) incubations to investigate the chemical quality of DOM in soil water collected from 25 cm piezometers in four different wetland and forest soils: bog, forested wetland, fen and upland forest. There were significant differences in soil solution concentrations of dissolved organic C, N, and P, DOC:DON ratios, SUVA254 and BDOC among the four soil types. Throughout the sampling period, average DOC concentrations in the four soil types ranged from 9–32 mg C l−1 and between 23–42% of the DOC was biodegradable. Seasonal patterns in dissolved nutrient concentrations and BDOC were observed in the three wetland types suggesting strong biotic controls over DOM concentrations in wetland soils. PARAFAC modeling of excitation–emission fluorescence spectroscopy showed that protein-like fluorescence was positively correlated (r 2 = 0.82; P < 0.001) with BDOC for all soil types taken together. This finding indicates that PARAFAC modeling may substantially improve the ability to predict BDOC in natural environments. Coincident measurements of DOM concentrations, BDOC and PARAFAC modeling confirmed that the four soil types contain DOM with distinct chemical properties and have unique fluorescent fingerprints. DOM inputs to streams from the four soil types therefore have the potential to alter stream biogeochemical processes differently by influencing temporal patterns in stream heterotrophic productivity.

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Acknowledgements

The authors wish to acknowledge Karen Michael Jacob Berkowitz, Erik Norberg, Denise Elston, Nicholas Bonzey and Andy Bookter for their tremendous laboratory and field assistance. We also thank the anonymous reviewers whose insightful comments greatly improved the content of the manuscript. This study was funded by the US Department of Agriculture National Research Initiative, grant number 2005-35102-16289, the USDA Forest Service, Resource Management and Productivity Program and the Aquatic and Land Interactions Program at the Pacific Northwest Research Station in Juneau, AK. The use of trade or firm names in this publication is for reader information and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Department of Agriculture of any product or service.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Arctic Biology, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK, 99775, USA

    Jason B. Fellman & Richard D. Boone

  2. U.S.D.A. Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station, Juneau, AK, 99801, USA

    David V. D’Amore

  3. Environmental Science Program, University of Alaska Southeast, Juneau, AK, 99801, USA

    Eran Hood

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  1. Jason B. Fellman
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Correspondence to Jason B. Fellman.

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Fellman, J.B., D’Amore, D.V., Hood, E. et al. Fluorescence characteristics and biodegradability of dissolved organic matter in forest and wetland soils from coastal temperate watersheds in southeast Alaska. Biogeochemistry 88, 169–184 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10533-008-9203-x

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