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Using stable isotopes to quantify water uptake by Cyclobalanopsis glauca in typical clusters of karst peaks in China

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Abstract

In this study, stable isotopes (18O and 2H) were used to determine the sources of water for Cyclobalanopsis glauca in two habitats: limestone outcrops and thin soils in clusters of karst peaks in southwest China, where soils are scattered only in rock gaps and are underlain by rigid carbonate rocks. We used a direct inference approach and the IsoSource mixing model to estimate the contributions of different sources to the plant xylem water. The results showed that adult C. glauca growing on limestone outcrops mainly used water from soils in rock gaps, which comprised 65 % of all water sources during the rainy season, and water from rainwater sources during the rain-dry season and dry season; the proportion of deep water used increased during the dry season. In contrast, young C. glauca growing on limestone outcrops relied on a mixture of rainwater and soil water during the rainy and the rain-dry seasons, and on rainwater in the dry season, accounting for 66.3 and 64.0 % of water use, respectively. Adult C. glauca on thin soils mainly used soil water in rainy seasons, a mixture of soil water and rain water in the rain-dry season, and rainwater in the dry season. Water held within bedrock was essential for meeting plant transpiration requirements in karst peak cluster areas. The results will provide knowledge for the effective protection of vulnerable karst environments and for the recovery of vegetation on karst rocky desertification areas.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No: 40902074 and 41361054), National Key Project of Science and Technical Supporting Programs (No: 2011BAC09B02), Fundamental scientific research funds for central public scientific institutes (YWF201401) and National Natural Science Foundation of Guangxi (2013GXNSFBA019220 and 2011GXNSFA018006). The authors are grateful to the anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments and suggestions to improve this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences (Wuhan), 430074, Wuhan, People’s Republic of China

    Yan Deng & Yi-Ming Kuo

  2. Key laboratory of Karst Ecosystem and Rocky Desertification Treatment, Institute of Karst Geology,Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences, Guilin, Guangxi, People’s Republic of China

    Yan Deng, Zhongcheng Jiang, Xingming Qin & Zhenjiang Jin

  3. State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geosciences (Wuhan), 430074, Wuhan, People’s Republic of China

    Yi-Ming Kuo

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  1. Yan Deng
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Correspondence to Yi-Ming Kuo.

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Deng, Y., Kuo, YM., Jiang, Z. et al. Using stable isotopes to quantify water uptake by Cyclobalanopsis glauca in typical clusters of karst peaks in China. Environ Earth Sci 74, 1039–1046 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-014-3780-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-014-3780-x

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