Wetlands

, Volume 36, Issue 5, pp 841–848 | Cite as

Allometric Models for Estimating Aboveground Biomass, Carbon and Nitrogen Stocks in Temperate Avicennia marina Forests

  • Richard H. Bulmer
  • Luitgard Schwendenmann
  • Carolyn J. Lundquist
Original Research
First Online:
Received:
Accepted:

Abstract

Estuarine ecosystems are changing rapidly in response to anthropogenic impacts. Mangrove expansion in New Zealand is mainly attributed to favourable climatic conditions and increased sedimentation due to land use change. This expansion is associated with large scale shifts in ecosystem structure and function, with significant potential impacts on coastal carbon and nitrogen storage. A fundamental aspect of understanding these impacts is accurately estimating storage within above ground biomass. We developed allometric equations to estimate above ground biomass, carbon and nitrogen stocks for temperate Avicennia marina subsp. Australasica growing near the southern limit of the species distribution range in New Zealand. We compare these equations with existing equations for Avicennia spp. Tree height, trunk circumference, tree canopy volume and tree canopy area were strong predictors of total above ground biomass, carbon, and nitrogen stocks. Carbon and nitrogen stocks accounted for 41.23 ± 0.40 % and 1.28 ± 0.03 %, respectively, of total above ground biomass. This study is the first to develop allometric equations to estimate biomass, carbon and nitrogen stocks in temperate Avicennia marina. These equations can be used to improve assessments of the impact of changes on mangrove forest structure and function, in particular carbon and nitrogen storage.

Keywords

Blue carbon Mangrove Carbon and nitrogen concentration Wood density Tree canopy Volume Allometry 
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Notes

Acknowledgments

We thank the University of Auckland staff and students for field and laboratory assistance. We would also like to acknowledge NIWA Freshwater and Estuaries Centre core funding for this project (project #FWEH1402 and FWEH1502, “Mangrove ecosystem services”).

Supplementary material

13157_2016_793_MOESM1_ESM.docx (28 kb)
Supplementary Table 1 Tree characteristics of each sampled tree used to develop the allometric equations for Avicennia marina subsp. Australasica. nd = no data, W = Whangamata, T = Tairua. (DOCX 28 kb)
13157_2016_793_MOESM2_ESM.docx (40 kb)
Supplementary Table 2 Allometric equations for temperate Avicennia marina subsp. Australasica for different tree biomass components and carbon and nitrogen stocks (DOCX 39 kb)
13157_2016_793_MOESM3_ESM.jpg (3.8 mb)
Supplementary Figure 1 Images of single stem mangroves (Avicennia marina) in New Zealand, near their southern range limit. Clockwise from bottom left, example individual from 0.5–1 m size class, 1–1.5 m size class, 1.5–2.5 m size class, and >2.5 m size class. (JPEG 3912 kb)
13157_2016_793_MOESM4_ESM.jpg (471 kb)
Supplementary Figure 2 Map of Northern New Zealand showing location of study sites. Dashed lines indicate the southern boundary of Avicennia marina distribution in New Zealand. (JPEG 471 kb)

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Copyright information

© Society of Wetland Scientists 2016

Authors and Affiliations

  • Richard H. Bulmer
    • 1
  • Luitgard Schwendenmann
    • 2
  • Carolyn J. Lundquist
    • 1
    • 3
  1. 1.Institute of Marine ScienceUniversity of AucklandAucklandNew Zealand
  2. 2.School of EnvironmentUniversity of AucklandAucklandNew Zealand
  3. 3.National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research Ltd (NIWA)HamiltonNew Zealand

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