Abstract
Methane uptake was measured for two consecutive years for four forest and one savanna sites in a seasonally dry tropical region of India. The soils were nutrient-poor and well drained. These sites differed in vegetational cover and physico-chemical features of the soil. There were significant differences in CH4 consumption rates during the two years (mean 0.43 and 0.49 mg m-2 h-1), and at different sites (mean 0.36 to 0.57 mg m-2 h-1). The mean uptake rate was higher (P < 0.05) in dry seasons than in the rainy season at all the sites. There was a significant season and site interaction, indicating that the effect of different seasons differed across the sites. There was a positive relation between soil moisture and CH4 uptake rates during summer (the driest period) and a negative relation during the rest of the year. The results suggested that seasonally dry tropical forests are a strong sink for CH4, and C and N status of soils regulates the strength of the sink in the long term.
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Singh, J., Singh, S., Raghubanshi, A. et al. Effect of soil nitrogen, carbon and moisture on methane uptake by dry tropical forest soils. Plant and Soil 196, 115–121 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1004233208325
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1004233208325