Mixed layer heat and salinity budgets during the onset of the 2011 Atlantic cold tongue

The mixed layer (ML) temperature and salinity changes in the central tropical Atlantic have been studied by a dedicated experiment (Cold Tongue Experiment (CTE)) carried out from May to July 2011. The CTE was based on two successive research cruises, a glider swarm, and moored observations. The acquired in situ data sets together with satellite, reanalysis, and assimilation model data were used to evaluate box-averaged ML heat and salinity budgets for two subregions: (1) the western equatorial Atlantic cold tongue (ACT) (23°-10°W) and (2) the region north of the ACT. The strong ML heat loss in the ACT region during the CTE was found to be the result of the balance of warming due to net surface heat flux and cooling due to zonal advection and diapycnal mixing. The northern region was characterized by weak cooling and the dominant balance of net surface heat flux and zonal advection. A strong salinity increase occurred at the equator, 10°W, just before the CTE. During the CTE, ML salinity in the ACT region slightly increased. Largest contributions to the ML salinity budget were zonal advection and the net surface freshwater flux. While essential for the ML heat budget in the ACT region, diapycnal mixing played only a minor role for the ML salinity budget. In the region north of the ACT, the ML freshened at the beginning of the CTE due to precipitation, followed by a weak salinity increase. Zonal advection changed sign contributing to ML freshening at the beginning of the CTE and salinity increase afterward.

Estimation of nitrogen budgets for contrasting catchments at the landscape scale.

A comprehensive assessment of nitrogen (N) flows at the landscape scale is fundamental to understand spatial interactions in the N cascade and to inform the development of locally optimised N management strategies. To explore these interactions, complete N budgets were estimated for two contrasting hydrological catchments (dominated by agricultural grassland vs. semi-natural peat-dominated moorland), forming part of an intensively studied landscape in southern Scotland. Local scale atmospheric dispersion modelling and detailed farm and field inventories provided high resolution estimations of input fluxes. Direct agricultural inputs (i.e. grazing excreta, N2 fixation, organic and synthetic fertiliser) accounted for most of the catchment N inputs, representing 82% in the grassland and 62% in the moorland catchment, while atmospheric deposition made a significant contribution, particularly in the moorland catchment, contributing 38% of the N inputs. The estimated catchment N budgets highlighted areas of key uncertainty, particularly N2 exchange and stream N export. The resulting N balances suggest that the study catchments have a limited capacity to store N within soils, vegetation and groundwater. The "catchment N retention", i.e. the amount of N which is either stored within the catchment or lost through atmospheric emissions, was estimated to be 13% of the net anthropogenic input in the moorland and 61% in the grassland catchment. These values contrast with regional scale estimates: Catchment retentions of net anthropogenic input estimated within Europe at the regional scale range from 50% to 90%, with an average of 82% (Billen et al., 2011). This study emphasises the need for detailed budget analyses to identify the N status of European landscapes.

Unearthing the roots of degradation of Quercus pyrenaica coppices: an integrative perspective from clonal structure to carbon budgets

Quercus pyrenaica es una especie rebrotadora de raíz intensa e históricamente aprovechada en monte bajo para la obtención de leñas, carbón y pastos. Debido al éxodo rural y a la aparición de nuevas fuentes energéticas, este aprovechamiento fue abandonado en la década de 1970. Desde entonces, las bajas producciones de madera y bellota y el puntisecado de los pies evidencian el generalizado estancamiento de estas masas. Uno de los mayores retos actuales de la selvicultura en el ámbito mediterráneo es encontrar usos alternativos para estos montes abandonados, siendo la conversión a monte alto una de las alternativas preferidas. Se han realizado resalveos de conversión, sin embrago, éstos se aplican sin un conocimiento integral de las causas de la degradación. En esta tesis doctoral, estudiamos un hipotético desequilibrio entre la parte radical y la parte aérea (R:S) de las cepas de rebollo como causa subyacente de su decaimiento. En una parcela experimental, aprovechada al menos desde el siglo XII, se realizaron análisis genéticos a priori para elucidar la estructura genética del rodal, y así estudiar la influencia del tamaño clonal en el funcionamiento de las cepas. Las cepas de mayor tamaño presentaron un menor crecimiento diametral de sus pies, así como mayores tasas de respiración radical, estimadas a partir de flujos internos de CO2 a través del xilema (FT) y de los flujos de CO2 del suelo. Estos resultados sugieren que el desequilibrio R:S aumenta con el tamaño clonal, dado que la eliminación periódica de órganos aéreos, al mismo tiempo que las raíces permanecen intactas, da lugar a un gran desarrollo del sistema radical que consume gran parte de los carbohidratos no estructurales (NSC) en respiración de mantenimiento, comprometiendo así el desarrollo de órganos aéreos. Se excavaron y pesaron dos cepas compuestas por cuatro y ocho pies, las cuales mostraron ratios R:S (0.5 y 1, respectivamente) superiores a los registrados en pies de origen sexual. Al igual que en otras especies rebrotadoras de raíz, se observaron altas concentraciones de NSC en las raíces (> 20% en primavera) y una gran proporción de albura en el sistema radical (52%) que alberga una notable reserva de NSC (87 kg en la cepa de mayor tamaño). En el sistema radical de dicha cepa, estimada mediante dataciones radiocarbónicas en 550 años de edad, se contaron 248 uniones radicales. La persistencia de sistemas radicales grandes, viejos, y altamente interconectados sugiere que la gran cantidad de recursos almacenados y consumidos en las raíces compensan un pobre desarrollo aéreo con una alta resiliencia vegetativa. Para un mejor entendimiento de los balances de carbono y del agotamiento de NSC en las cepas de rebollo, se midieron los flujos internos y externos de CO2 en troncos y los flujos de CO2 del suelo, y se estimó la respiración de órganos aéreos (RS) y subterráneos (RR). Estacionalmente, RS y RR reflejaron las dinámicas de flujo de savia y de crecimiento del tronco, y estuvieron determinadas principalmente por los flujos externos de CO2, dada la escasa contribución de FT a RS y RR (< 10% y < 2%, respectivamente). En una escala circadiana, la contribución de FT a RS aumentó hasta un 25% en momentos de alta transpiración. Las bajas concentraciones de CO2 en el xilema ([CO2] hasta un 0.11%) determinaron comparativamente unos bajos FT, probablemente causados por una limitada respiración del xilema y una baja resistencia a la difusión radial del CO2 impuestos por la sequía estival. Los pulsos de [CO2] observados tras las primeras lluvias de otoño apoyan esta idea. A lo largo del periodo vegetativo, el flujo medio de CO2 procedente del suelo (39 mol CO2 day-1) fue el mayor flujo respiratorio, tres y cuatro veces superior a RS (12 mol CO2 day-1) y RR (8-9 mol CO2 day-1), respectivamente. Ratios RR/RS menores que la unidad evidencian un importante peso de la respiración aérea como sumidero de carbono adicional. Finalmente, se ensayó el zanjado de raíces y el anillamiento de troncos como tratamientos selvícolas alternativos con el objetivo de aumentar las reservas de NSC en los troncos de las cepas. Los resultados preliminares desaconsejan el zanjado de raíces por el alto coste derivado posiblemente de la cicatrización de las heridas. El anillado de troncos imposibilitó el transporte de NSC a las raíces y aumentó la concentración de almidón por encima de la zona anillada, mientras que sistema radical se mantiene por los pies no anillados de la cepa. Son necesarias más mediciones y datos adicionales para comprobar el mantenimiento de esta respuesta positiva a largo plazo. Para concluir, destacamos la necesidad de estudios multidisciplinares que permitan una comprensión integral de la degradación de los rebollares ibéricos para poder aplicar a posteriori una gestión adecuada en estos montes bajos abandonados. ABSTRACT Quercus pyrenaica is a vigorous root-resprouting species intensively and historically coppiced for firewood, charcoal and woody pastures. Due to the rural exodus and the appearance of new energy sources, coppicing was abandoned towards 1970. Since then, tree overaging has resulted in stand stagnation displayed by slow stem growth, branch dieback, and scarce acorn production. The urgent need to find new alternative uses for abandoned coppices is recognized as one of the biggest challenges which currently faces Mediterranean silviculture; conversion into high forest by thinning is one of the preferred alternatives. For this aim, thinning has been broadly applied and seldom tested, although without a comprehensive understanding of the causes of stand stagnation. In this PhD study, we test the hypothesis of an imbalance between above- and below-ground organs, result of long term coppicing, as the underlying cause of Q. pyrenaica decay. In an experimental plot coppiced since at least the 12th century, genetic analyses were performed a priori to elucidate inconspicuous clonal structure of Q. pyrenaica to evaluate how clonal size affects the functioning of these multi-stemmed trees. Clonal size negatively affected diametric stem growth, whereas root respiration rates, measured by internal fluxes of CO2 through xylem (FT) and soil CO2 efflux, increased with clonal size. These results suggest root-to-shoot (R:S) imbalance intensifying with clonal size: periodic removal of aboveground organs whilst belowground organs remain undisturbed may have led to massive root systems which consume a great proportion of non-structural carbohydrates (NSC) for maintenance respiration, thus constraining aboveground performance. Furthermore, excavation of two multi-stemmed trees, composed by four and eight stems, revealed R:S ratios (0.5 and 1, respectively) greater than those reported for sexually regenerated trees. Moreover, as similarly observed in several root-resprouting species, NSC allocation to roots was favored ([NSC] > 20% in spring): a large proportion of sapwood maintained throughout the root system (52%) stored a remarkable NSC pool of 87 kg in the case of the largest clone. In this root system of the eight-stemmed tree, 248 root connections were counted and, by radiocarbon dating, its age was estimated to be 550-years-old. Persistence of massive, old and highly interconnected root systems suggests that enhanced belowground NSC storage and consumption reflects a trade-off between vegetative resilience and aboveground development. For a better understanding of tree carbon budget and the potential role of carbon starvation in Q. pyrenaica decay, internal and external stem CO2 fluxes and soil CO2 effluxes were monitored to evaluate respiratory costs above- and below-ground. On a seasonal scale, stem and root respiration (RS and RR) mirrored sap flow and stem growth dynamics. Respiration was determined to the greatest extent by external fluxes of CO2 to the atmosphere or soil, since FT accounted for a low proportion of RS and RR (< 10% and < 2%, respectively). On a diel scale, the contribution of FT to RS increased up to 25% at high transpiration rates. Comparatively low FT was determined by the low concentration of xylem CO2 registered ([CO2] as low as 0.11%), likely as a consequence of constrained xylem respiration and reduced resistance to CO2 radial diffusion imposed by summer drought. Xylem [CO2] pulses following first autumn rains support this idea. Averaged over the growing season, soil CO2 efflux was the greatest respiratory flux (39 mol CO2 day-1), three and four times greater than RS (12 mol CO2 day-1) and RR (8-9 mol CO2 day-1), respectively. Ratios of RR/RS below one evidence an additional and important weight of aboveground respiration as a tree carbon sink. Finally, root trenching and stem girdling were tested as complimentary treatments to thinning as a means to improve carbon reserves in stems of clonal trees. Preliminary results discouraged root trenching due to the high cost likely incurred for wound closure. Stem girdling successfully blocked NSC translocation downward, increasing starch concentrations above the girdled zone whilst the root system is fed by non-girdled stems within the clone. Further measurements and ancillary data are necessary to verify that this positive effect hold over time. To conclude, the need of multidisciplinary approaches for an integrative understanding on the functioning of abandoned Q pyrenaica coppices is highlighted for an appropriate management of these stands.

Family budgets of American wage-earners: a critical analysis

National Industrial Conference Board.