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When the Source of Flooding Matters: Divergent Responses in Carbon Fluxes in an Alaskan Rich Fen to Two Types of Inundation

Ecosystems volume 23, pages 1138–1153 (2020)Cite this article

Abstract

The extent of groundwater-influenced rich fens is increasing across northern regions as permafrost thaws. The increase in the extent of these fens, which store large amounts of carbon in deep organic deposits, is coupled to increases in rainfall and runoff. We examine interannual variations in carbon and water fluxes at a rich fen in interior Alaska that included early (May–June) and mid-late (July–September) dry and wet periods, with early season wet periods coincident with runoff from snowmelt and later season wet periods coincident with inundation from rainfall. From May 2011 to December 2018, the fen was estimated as a 170 ± 64 g C m−2 source of CO2. When controlling for soil temperature, net CO2 uptake was greatest during the early season under dry conditions, with the water table position below the surface, and least during the mid-late season when the water table position was above the surface. Methane emissions were lowest during early season wet periods and greatest during late season wet periods. Our results suggest that it is important to consider the seasonality of wet and dry periods, and how these may potentially be related to runoff from snowmelt versus rainfall in boreal rich fens, when considering the annual net C balance and making accurate projections of carbon balance in northern wetlands.

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Data availability

The data are available through the Bonanza Creek Long Term Ecological Research Site data portal: https://www.lter.uaf.edu/data/data-catalog.

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Acknowledgements

This project was funded by National Science Foundation Grants DEB LTREB 1354370, DEB-0425328, DEB-0724514, and DEB-0830997. Bonanza Creek Long Term Experimental Research station provided lab space, equipment, and time to this project. This research was also funded by the US Geological Survey and received in-kind support from the US Forest Service Northern Research Station.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Arctic Biology, University of Alaska Fairbanks, 902 N. Koyukuk Dr., Box 757000, Fairbanks, Alaska, 99775, USA

    E. S. Euskirchen & C. W. Edgar

  2. School of Forest Resources and Environmental Sciences, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, Michigan, 49931, USA

    E. S. Kane

  3. U.S. Forest Service, Northern Research Station, Houghton, Michigan, 49931, USA

    E. S. Kane

  4. Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, NIG IG2, Canada

    M. R. Turetsky

Authors
  1. E. S. Euskirchen
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  2. E. S. Kane
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  3. C. W. Edgar
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  4. M. R. Turetsky
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to E. S. Euskirchen.

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Author Contributions

ESE, ESK, and MRT designed the study. ESE, ESK, and CWE analyzed data. All authors performed the research. ESE wrote the paper with contributions from all authors.

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Euskirchen, E.S., Kane, E.S., Edgar, C.W. et al. When the Source of Flooding Matters: Divergent Responses in Carbon Fluxes in an Alaskan Rich Fen to Two Types of Inundation. Ecosystems 23, 1138–1153 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10021-019-00460-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10021-019-00460-z

Keywords

  • Boreal
  • Rainfall
  • Runoff
  • Permafrost thaw
  • Water balance
  • Net ecosystem exchange
  • Methane emissions

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