中国东北样带草原段关键种——羊草茎、叶显微结构的生态可塑性及群落功能群组成和多样性研究

陆地样带是国际地圈——生物圈计划(IGBP)研究中最引入注目的创新之一。目前，国际上已经设立了15条陆地样带，研究内容涉及环境梯度分析、气候变化对植被初级生产力的影响及环境变化、土地利用等与植被变化的对应关系等。沿该陆地样带分布较广的关键种生理适应性等方面对影响其生理功能形态结构的研究较少，特别是茎、叶等组织功能研究较少。 中国东北样带(NECT)是全球陆地样带的重要组成部分，多年来已开展了大量深入系统的研究工作，已成为我国生态学、地学等学科的重要研究平台。本研究以中国东北样带中西段广泛分布的重要关键种——羊草（Leymus chinensis）为研究对象，分析了羊草茎、叶显微结构的生态可塑性及其与水分利用效率的关系，进而阐述了羊草适应不同生境条件，特别是适应水分变化的机制，为揭示羊草及其种群、群落乃至以羊草为优势种或建群种的草地生态系统在全球变化背景下的发展趋势提供理论依据。 基于2001年7～8月第3次中国东北样带考察资料，采用高精度Olympus显微镜及C同位素分析技术（δ13C判别值），结合在野外取样过程中测定的样地土壤含水量和海拔高度，以及近十年各样地年降水量和年均温度气象资料，分析了羊草茎、叶显微结构和水分利用变化与环境因子的关系，以及以羊草为建群种或共建种的无牧和放牧样地群落生物量、物种多样性和植物功能型组成变化与环境因子的关系。 结果表明：羊草叶片表面及内部主要显微结构特征参数各样地间有不同程度的差异，其中气孔密度与降水量呈线性正相关。代表气孔开张程度的气孔长度和宽度变化与土壤含水量呈线性相关。叶表面角质层厚度与海拔高度变化关系较大，并以上表面角质层厚度变化最为明显，主要受海拔高度升高引起的紫外线照射增强的影响。运动细胞带宽度占叶面积比虽然与各环境因子关系不很密切，但温度变化的影响较突出，这一显微结构调整与气孔变化构成干旱——高温调节机制。叶片表面毛茸的变化也是非常显著的，但与各环境因子关系密切程度均不大，可以肯定的是在土壤水分状况较好的生境下羊草叶片表面毛茸密度及长度明显增加，而一些干旱生境中常表现为毛茸较少、较短，个别样地基本没有发育较好的毛茸。总体上看，羊草叶片对干旱化的形态结构调整以气孔密度和开张程度的变化最大，是羊草叶片调节水分利用效率的重要适应性生态可塑性调整。 与叶片相比，羊草茎横切面结构特征的变化与各环境因子关系的显著性不是很强，但各样地间的差异是比较显著的，许多结构调整可能与土壤养分条件的变化有一定关系，如茎秆粗度变化、基本薄壁组织厚度和中央空腔（髓腔）直径的变化等，但本研究未能涉及这方面内容，有待于进一步研究。 羊草水分利用效率与降水量和土壤含水量呈显著的负相关关系，即随降水量和土壤含水量增大羊草水分利用效率明显降低，蒸腾耗水增大，这一生理变化与显微结构的调整关系密切，特别是气孔密度与气孔宽度在水分较差生境中明显减小，从而有利于适应干旱环境，减少耗水量。表现比较突出的是非地带性林西样地，其降水量处于10个样地的中等偏低水平，但其δ13C判别值较低，达-26.063‰，与降水量较大的长岭、双辽样地几乎相当，并比相邻的林东和克旗样地明显低，其气孔密度、开张程度及叶脉后生导管直径均较高（大），但其土壤水分状况是最好的样地之一，尽管取样时不幸遇到雨天，但从其群落类型——羊草杂类草草甸，并伴生许多中、湿生种类上看，其生境的湿润程度是毋庸置疑的。这一非地带性样地中羊草结构的变化从另一侧面反映了羊草显微结构调整对水分环境的适应。δ13C判别值是一个非常敏感的参数，在分析植物水分利用效率及其相关领域的研究中应深入利用。 群落植物功能群组成与环境因子及群落初级生产力关系研究结果表明，丛生禾草生长型功能群、旱生和中旱生植物水分生态类型功能群具有明显的地带性变化规律，并与群落生物量变化关系密切，变异性较低，占群落生物量比例较大，可考虑作为植物功能型组合对无牧样地植被变化进行评估和预测。在放牧影响下，C4植物光合类型功能群呈现明显的地带性变化，并在群落中所起的作用明显增强，亦可考虑作为评估和预测植被变化的植物功能型组合。无牧样地与放牧样地研究结果均表明，按Raunkiaer划分的地面芽、地下芽、地上芽和一年生植物生活型功能群，其地带性变化不明显，或变异率高，或占群落生物量比例小，不宜作植物功能群组合对植被变化进行评估和预测。

浑善达克沙地植物功能型多样性

植物随所处环境条件的变化而产生一系列的形态、生理以及其它特性上的相应变化，形成相应的适应对策，表现出一定的功能策略。把在生态系统中扮演着相似角色并且对环境条件表现出相似的响应的一组具有相似特征（形态和生理特征）的植物称为植物功能型（Plant Functional types），这一概念把植物从个体水平和整个生态系统水平上把生理和生活史过程以及策略合理的联系在一起。有了植物功能型的帮助，我们能够将个体种和个体种群的纷繁 复杂过程总结简化为相对简洁的演化模式。近来的研究已经提出在生态系统过程中功能型多样性比物种多样性更重要。 本文以浑善达克沙地植被为研究对象，按照生命期（一年生与多年生），光合途径（C3光合途径与 C4光合途径），繁殖方式（克隆繁殖和非克隆繁殖）以及生长型（禾草与非禾草）来划分浑善达克沙地的植物功能型，调查监测浑善达克沙地植物功能型的分布及其生态特征对沙地环境的响应。 通过对浑善达克沙地五种不同生境的土壤因子和植物功能型分布及其群落特征的分析研究，结果表明在流动沙丘上一年生C4非克隆繁殖的植物功能型首先侵入，半固定沙丘开始有多年生C3植物功能型定居并逐渐成为优势种，当成为固定沙丘时，本研究中所有浑善达克沙地植物功能型都出现了，其植物功能型多样性最高。滩地中的土壤的有机质和养分含量最高，多年生C3植物占据绝对优势。靠近淖尔边缘，盐分含量和水分增加，多年生C3非禾草成为优势种。在浑善达克沙地，一年生C4非克隆非禾草在沙丘生境中全都存在。流动沙丘、半固定沙丘和固定沙丘之间的土壤条件没有显著差异，但植被特征存在差异。因此，只要排除人为影响和牲畜干扰，辅助以一定的人工措施（如飞播），浑善达克沙地退化草地将向着良性的恢复方向发展。 通过对浑善达克沙地退化草地围封后的植物功能型特征变化研究，在四年的植被恢复过程中，功能型多样性最高的群落可能不是最稳定和恢复时间较长的群落，在我们的研究中，功能型多样性在恢复的第一年和第四年较高，而在恢复的第二年和第三年功能型多样性显著低于第一年和第四年。但第二年和第三年的地上生物量却高于第一年和第四年，从生态系统功能的角度考虑，说明恢复过程中群落的稳定性是短暂过渡的类型，群落恢复过程将呈周期性的波动。在四年的恢复时间里，多年生C3光合途径克隆繁殖禾草无论从植株密度、盖度、物种数以及地上生物量都在群落中占有绝对优势，在退化沙地草地自然恢复早期起到关键作用。 基于连续四年在浑善达克沙地围封区内滩地植被记录，分析了（1）滩地植物群落的植物功能型特征，包括密度、物种数、盖度、地上生物量以及相对重要值;（2）各植物功能型特征对植物功能型多样性（Shannon-Wiener index）的贡献以及(3) 群落初级生产力与物种多样性和植物功能型多样性的关系。结果表明，植物功能型特征显著受生命期、光合途径、繁殖方式以及生长型影响。植物功能型多样性与群落物种数显著相关。逐步回归分析结果显示多年生C3 克隆禾草随着退化草地的恢复进程对植物功能型多样性的影响越来越重要。植物功能型多样性与群落初级生产力之间的关系随着恢复进程而呈现不同的线性关系。 为了调查浑善达克沙地主要植物功能型优势物种对沙地环境的适应，研究了多年生根茎克隆繁殖禾草赖草和多年生非克隆繁殖非禾草褐沙蒿对沙埋和风蚀的响应。结果表明，不同的植物功能型对于沙地风沙蚀积表现出不同的适应对策。在一定程度的沙埋和风蚀胁迫下，赖草通过分株间克隆整合来抵御风沙蚀积，通过对根茎生物量的投资，来逃离胁迫环境。而褐沙蒿通过加大对根生物量的投资来抵御风蚀，通过加大对地上部分的生物量投资来抵御沙埋。

半干旱风沙区植物功能特性与植物功能型研究

半干旱风沙区是我国北方土地沙漠化严重的生态脆弱地区，建设和保护本区植被是生态建设和环境保护的当务之急。为了深入了解半干旱风沙区的植被的组成和演替动态，为当地的植被管理提供建议，本文以科尔沁沙地乌兰敖都地区为例，比较系统地探讨了本区植被的数量特征、筛选出90种具有代表性的植物种类，研究了各物种的62种功能特性、并对代表种进行植物功能型划分，从植物功能特性和功能型的角度分析了半干旱风沙区植被的分布动态和管理。 研究结果表明：（1）90种代表植物的38种营养阶段特性和24种繁殖阶段特性之间呈现显著相关（P＜0.05）的特性对的比例要低于营养阶段和繁殖阶段内部，与营养特性显著相关（P＜0.05）的特性对占总显著相关特性对的83.9%，营养特性是植物生长过程中非常重要的特性；（2）应用62种功能特性将90种代表植物划分为6类植物功能型，植物体内氮和钾含量、营养扩散、种子萌发率、叶面积和叶体积等是本区植物重要的功能特性，6类植物功能型分别以豆科植物、菊科植物、多年生C3草本植物、单子叶草本植物、叶片较小的植物和叶片较大植物为主的类群；（3）生长在各种沙丘上的群落类型的功能多样性低于生长在草甸草原和丘间低地植物群落中的功能多样性；（4）土壤有机质、全氮、全磷、地下水位和速效钾是影响植物种类、群落、植物功能特性和功能型分布的重要因素。

An intercomparison of bio-optical techniques for detecting dominant phytoplankton size class from satellite remote sensing

Satellite remote sensing of ocean colour is the only method currently available for synoptically measuring wide-area properties of ocean ecosystems, such as phytoplankton chlorophyll biomass. Recently, a variety of bio-optical and ecological methods have been established that use satellite data to identify and differentiate between either phytoplankton functional types (PFTs) or phytoplankton size classes (PSCs). In this study, several of these techniques were evaluated against in situ observations to determine their ability to detect dominant phytoplankton size classes (micro-, nano- and picoplankton). The techniques are applied to a 10-year ocean-colour data series from the SeaWiFS satellite sensor and compared with in situ data (6504 samples) from a variety of locations in the global ocean. Results show that spectral-response, ecological and abundance-based approaches can all perform with similar accuracy. Detection of microplankton and picoplankton were generally better than detection of nanoplankton. Abundance-based approaches were shown to provide better spatial retrieval of PSCs. Individual model performance varied according to PSC, input satellite data sources and in situ validation data types. Uncertainty in the comparison procedure and data sources was considered. Improved availability of in situ observations would aid ongoing research in this field.

iMarNet: an ocean biogeochemistry model intercomparison project within a common physical ocean modelling framework

Ocean biogeochemistry (OBGC) models span a wide variety of complexities, including highly simplified nutrient-restoring schemes, nutrient–phytoplankton–zooplankton–detritus (NPZD) models that crudely represent the marine biota, models that represent a broader trophic structure by grouping organisms as plankton functional types (PFTs) based on their biogeochemical role (dynamic green ocean models) and ecosystem models that group organisms by ecological function and trait. OBGC models are now integral components of Earth system models (ESMs), but they compete for computing resources with higher resolution dynamical setups and with other components such as atmospheric chemistry and terrestrial vegetation schemes. As such, the choice of OBGC in ESMs needs to balance model complexity and realism alongside relative computing cost. Here we present an intercomparison of six OBGC models that were candidates for implementation within the next UK Earth system model (UKESM1). The models cover a large range of biological complexity (from 7 to 57 tracers) but all include representations of at least the nitrogen, carbon, alkalinity and oxygen cycles. Each OBGC model was coupled to the ocean general circulation model Nucleus for European Modelling of the Ocean (NEMO) and results from physically identical hindcast simulations were compared. Model skill was evaluated for biogeochemical metrics of global-scale bulk properties using conventional statistical techniques. The computing cost of each model was also measured in standardised tests run at two resource levels. No model is shown to consistently outperform all other models across all metrics. Nonetheless, the simpler models are broadly closer to observations across a number of fields and thus offer a high-efficiency option for ESMs that prioritise high-resolution climate dynamics. However, simpler models provide limited insight into more complex marine biogeochemical processes and ecosystem pathways, and a parallel approach of low-resolution climate dynamics and high-complexity biogeochemistry is desirable in order to provide additional insights into biogeochemistry–climate interactions.

Role of zooplankton dynamics for Southern Ocean phytoplankton biomass and global biogeochemical cycles

Global ocean biogeochemistry models currently employed in climate change projections use highly simplified representations of pelagic food webs. These food webs do not necessarily include critical pathways by which ecosystems interact with ocean biogeochemistry and climate. Here we present a global biogeochemical model which incorporates ecosystem dynamics based on the representation of ten plankton functional types (PFTs); six types of phytoplankton, three types of zooplankton, and heterotrophic bacteria. We improved the representation of zooplankton dynamics in our model through (a) the explicit inclusion of large, slow-growing zooplankton, and (b) the introduction of trophic cascades among the three zooplankton types. We use the model to quantitatively assess the relative roles of iron vs. grazing in determining phytoplankton biomass in the Southern Ocean High Nutrient Low Chlorophyll (HNLC) region during summer. When model simulations do not represent crustacean macrozooplankton grazing, they systematically overestimate Southern Ocean chlorophyll biomass during the summer, even when there was no iron deposition from dust. When model simulations included the developments of the zooplankton component, the simulation of phytoplankton biomass improved and the high chlorophyll summer bias in the Southern Ocean HNLC region largely disappeared. Our model results suggest that the observed low phytoplankton biomass in the Southern Ocean during summer is primarily explained by the dynamics of the Southern Ocean zooplankton community rather than iron limitation. This result has implications for the representation of global biogeochemical cycles in models as zooplankton faecal pellets sink rapidly and partly control the carbon export to the intermediate and deep ocean.

Pollen-based reconstructions of biome distributions for Australia, Southeast Asia and the Pacific (SEAPAC region) at 0,6000 and 18,000 14C yr B.P.

Aim  This paper documents reconstructions of the vegetation patterns in Australia, Southeast Asia and the Pacific (SEAPAC region) in the mid-Holocene and at the last glacial maximum (LGM). Methods  Vegetation patterns were reconstructed from pollen data using an objective biomization scheme based on plant functional types. The biomization scheme was first tested using 535 modern pollen samples from 377 sites, and then applied unchanged to fossil pollen samples dating to 6000 ± 500 or 18,000 ± 1000 14C yr bp. Results  1. Tests using surface pollen sample sites showed that the biomization scheme is capable of reproducing the modern broad-scale patterns of vegetation distribution. The north–south gradient in temperature, reflected in transitions from cool evergreen needleleaf forest in the extreme south through temperate rain forest or wet sclerophyll forest (WSFW) and into tropical forests, is well reconstructed. The transitions from xerophytic through sclerophyll woodlands and open forests to closed-canopy forests, which reflect the gradient in plant available moisture from the continental interior towards the coast, are reconstructed with less geographical precision but nevertheless the broad-scale pattern emerges. 2. Differences between the modern and mid-Holocene vegetation patterns in mainland Australia are comparatively small and reflect changes in moisture availability rather than temperature. In south-eastern Australia some sites show a shift towards more moisture-stressed vegetation in the mid-Holocene with xerophytic woods/scrub and temperate sclerophyll woodland and shrubland at sites characterized today by WSFW or warm-temperate rain forest (WTRF). However, sites in the Snowy Mountains, on the Southern Tablelands and east of the Great Dividing Range have more moisture-demanding vegetation in the mid-Holocene than today. South-western Australia was slightly drier than today. The single site in north-western Australia also shows conditions drier than today in the mid-Holocene. Changes in the tropics are also comparatively small, but the presence of WTRF and tropical deciduous broadleaf forest and woodland in the mid-Holocene, in sites occupied today by cool-temperate rain forest, indicate warmer conditions. 3. Expansion of xerophytic vegetation in the south and tropical deciduous broadleaf forest and woodland in the north indicate drier conditions across mainland Australia at the LGM. None of these changes are informative about the degree of cooling. However the evidence from the tropics, showing lowering of the treeline and forest belts, indicates that conditions were between 1 and 9 °C (depending on elevation) colder. The encroachment of tropical deciduous broadleaf forest and woodland into lowland evergreen broadleaf forest implies greater aridity. Main conclusions  This study provides the first continental-scale reconstruction of mid-Holocene and LGM vegetation patterns from Australia, Southeast Asia and the Pacific (SEAPAC region) using an objective biomization scheme. These data will provide a benchmark for evaluation of palaeoclimate simulations within the framework of the Palaeoclimate Modelling Intercomparison Project.

Palaeovegetation of China: a pollen data-based synthesis for the mid-Holocene and last glacial maximum.

Pollen data from China for 6000 and 18,000 14C yr bp were compiled and used to reconstruct palaeovegetation patterns, using complete taxon lists where possible and a biomization procedure that entailed the assignment of 645 pollen taxa to plant functional types. A set of 658 modern pollen samples spanning all biomes and regions provided a comprehensive test for this procedure and showed convincing agreement between reconstructed biomes and present natural vegetation types, both geographically and in terms of the elevation gradients in mountain regions of north-eastern and south-western China. The 6000 14C yr bp map confirms earlier studies in showing that the forest biomes in eastern China were systematically shifted northwards and extended westwards during the mid-Holocene. Tropical rain forest occurred on mainland China at sites characterized today by either tropical seasonal or broadleaved evergreen/warm mixed forest. Broadleaved evergreen/warm mixed forest occurred further north than today, and at higher elevation sites within the modern latitudinal range of this biome. The northern limit of temperate deciduous forest was shifted c. 800 km north relative to today. The 18,000 14C yr bp map shows that steppe and even desert vegetation extended to the modern coast of eastern China at the last glacial maximum, replacing today’s temperate deciduous forest. Tropical forests were excluded from China and broadleaved evergreen/warm mixed forest had retreated to tropical latitudes, while taiga extended southwards to c. 43°N.

Pollen-based biomes for Beringia 18,000, 6000 and 0 14C yr B.P.

The objective biomization method developed by Prentice et al. (1996) for Europe was extended using modern pollen samples from Beringia and then applied to fossil pollen data to reconstruct palaeovegetation patterns at 6000 and 18,000 14C yr bp. The predicted modern distribution of tundra, taiga and cool conifer forests in Alaska and north-western Canada generally corresponds well to actual vegetation patterns, although sites in regions characterized today by a mosaic of forest and tundra vegetation tend to be preferentially assigned to tundra. Siberian larch forests are delimited less well, probably due to the extreme under-representation of Larix in pollen spectra. The biome distribution across Beringia at 6000 14C yr bp was broadly similar to today, with little change in the northern forest limit, except for a possible northward advance in the Mackenzie delta region. The western forest limit in Alaska was probably east of its modern position. At 18,000 14C yr bp the whole of Beringia was covered by tundra. However, the importance of the various plant functional types varied from site to site, supporting the idea that the vegetation cover was a mosaic of different tundra types.

Mid-Holocene and glacial-maximum vegetation geography of the northern continents and Africa.

BIOME 6000 is an international project to map vegetation globally at mid-Holocene (6000 14C yr bp) and last glacial maximum (LGM, 18,000 14C yr bp), with a view to evaluating coupled climate-biosphere model results. Primary palaeoecological data are assigned to biomes using an explicit algorithm based on plant functional types. This paper introduces the second Special Feature on BIOME 6000. Site-based global biome maps are shown with data from North America, Eurasia (except South and Southeast Asia) and Africa at both time periods. A map based on surface samples shows the method’s skill in reconstructing present-day biomes. Cold and dry conditions at LGM favoured extensive tundra and steppe. These biomes intergraded in northern Eurasia. Northern hemisphere forest biomes were displaced southward. Boreal evergreen forests (taiga) and temperate deciduous forests were fragmented, while European and East Asian steppes were greatly extended. Tropical moist forests (i.e. tropical rain forest and tropical seasonal forest) in Africa were reduced. In south-western North America, desert and steppe were replaced by open conifer woodland, opposite to the general arid trend but consistent with modelled southward displacement of the jet stream. The Arctic forest limit was shifted slighly north at 6000 14C yr bp in some sectors, but not in all. Northern temperate forest zones were generally shifted greater distances north. Warmer winters as well as summers in several regions are required to explain these shifts. Temperate deciduous forests in Europe were greatly extended, into the Mediterranean region as well as to the north. Steppe encroached on forest biomes in interior North America, but not in central Asia. Enhanced monsoons extended forest biomes in China inland and Sahelian vegetation into the Sahara while the African tropical rain forest was also reduced, consistent with a modelled northward shift of the ITCZ and a more seasonal climate in the equatorial zone. Palaeobiome maps show the outcome of separate, independent migrations of plant taxa in response to climate change. The average composition of biomes at LGM was often markedly different from today. Refugia for the temperate deciduous and tropical rain forest biomes may have existed offshore at LGM, but their characteristic taxa also persisted as components of other biomes. Examples include temperate deciduous trees that survived in cool mixed forest in eastern Europe, and tropical evergreen trees that survived in tropical seasonal forest in Africa. The sequence of biome shifts during a glacial-interglacial cycle may help account for some disjunct distributions of plant taxa. For example, the now-arid Saharan mountains may have linked Mediterranean and African tropical montane floras during enhanced monsoon regimes. Major changes in physical land-surface conditions, shown by the palaeobiome data, have implications for the global climate. The data can be used directly to evaluate the output of coupled atmosphere-biosphere models. The data could also be objectively generalized to yield realistic gridded land-surface maps, for use in sensitivity experiments with atmospheric models. Recent analyses of vegetation-climate feedbacks have focused on the hypothesized positive feedback effects of climate-induced vegetation changes in the Sahara/Sahel region and the Arctic during the mid-Holocene. However, a far wider spectrum of interactions potentially exists and could be investigated, using these data, both for 6000 14C yr bp and for the LGM.

Improved simulation of fire–vegetation interactions in the Land surface Processes and eXchanges dynamic global vegetation model (LPX-Mv1)

The Land surface Processes and eXchanges (LPX) model is a fire-enabled dynamic global vegetation model that performs well globally but has problems representing fire regimes and vegetative mix in savannas. Here we focus on improving the fire module. To improve the representation of ignitions, we introduced a reatment of lightning that allows the fraction of ground strikes to vary spatially and seasonally, realistically partitions strike distribution between wet and dry days, and varies the number of dry days with strikes. Fuel availability and moisture content were improved by implementing decomposition rates specific to individual plant functional types and litter classes, and litter drying rates driven by atmospheric water content. To improve water extraction by grasses, we use realistic plant-specific treatments of deep roots. To improve fire responses, we introduced adaptive bark thickness and post-fire resprouting for tropical and temperate broadleaf trees. All improvements are based on extensive analyses of relevant observational data sets. We test model performance for Australia, first evaluating parameterisations separately and then measuring overall behaviour against standard benchmarks. Changes to the lightning parameterisation produce a more realistic simulation of fires in southeastern and central Australia. Implementation of PFT-specific decomposition rates enhances performance in central Australia. Changes in fuel drying improve fire in northern Australia, while changes in rooting depth produce a more realistic simulation of fuel availability and structure in central and northern Australia. The introduction of adaptive bark thickness and resprouting produces more realistic fire regimes in Australian savannas. We also show that the model simulates biomass recovery rates consistent with observations from several different regions of the world characterised by resprouting vegetation. The new model (LPX-Mv1) produces an improved simulation of observed vegetation composition and mean annual burnt area, by 33 and 18% respectively compared to LPX.

An intercomparison of bio-optical techniques for detecting dominant phytoplankton size class from satellite remote sensing

Satellite remote sensing of ocean colour is the only method currently available for synoptically measuring wide-area properties of ocean ecosystems, such as phytoplankton chlorophyll biomass. Recently, a variety of bio-optical and ecological methods have been established that use satellite data to identify and differentiate between either phytoplankton functional types (PFTs) or phytoplankton size classes (PSCs). In this study, several of these techniques were evaluated against in situ observations to determine their ability to detect dominant phytoplankton size classes (micro-, nano- and picoplankton). The techniques are applied to a 10-year ocean-colour data series from the SeaWiFS satellite sensor and compared with in situ data (6504 samples) from a variety of locations in the global ocean. Results show that spectral-response, ecological and abundance-based approaches can all perform with similar accuracy. Detection of microplankton and picoplankton were generally better than detection of nanoplankton. Abundance-based approaches were shown to provide better spatial retrieval of PSCs. Individual model performance varied according to PSC, input satellite data sources and in situ validation data types. Uncertainty in the comparison procedure and data sources was considered. Improved availability of in situ observations would aid ongoing research in this field. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Transient simulations of the carbon and nitrogen dynamics in northern peatlands: from the Last Glacial Maximum to the 21st century

The development of northern high-latitude peatlands played an important role in the carbon (C) balance of the land biosphere since the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). At present, carbon storage in northern peatlands is substantial and estimated to be 500 ± 100 Pg C (1 Pg C = 1015 g C). Here, we develop and apply a peatland module embedded in a dynamic global vegetation and land surface process model (LPX-Bern 1.0). The peatland module features a dynamic nitrogen cycle, a dynamic C transfer between peatland acrotelm (upper oxic layer) and catotelm (deep anoxic layer), hydrology- and temperature-dependent respiration rates, and peatland specific plant functional types. Nitrogen limitation down-regulates average modern net primary productivity over peatlands by about half. Decadal acrotelm-to-catotelm C fluxes vary between −20 and +50 g C m−2 yr−1 over the Holocene. Key model parameters are calibrated with reconstructed peat accumulation rates from peat-core data. The model reproduces the major features of the peat core data and of the observation-based modern circumpolar soil carbon distribution. Results from a set of simulations for possible evolutions of northern peat development and areal extent show that soil C stocks in modern peatlands increased by 365–550 Pg C since the LGM, of which 175–272 Pg C accumulated between 11 and 5 kyr BP. Furthermore, our simulations suggest a persistent C sequestration rate of 35–50 Pg C per 1000 yr in present-day peatlands under current climate conditions, and that this C sink could either sustain or turn towards a source by 2100 AD depending on climate trajectories as projected for different representative greenhouse gas concentration pathways.

(Table 1) Species richness and diversity of tundra plants in herbivore exclosure and control plots near Barrow, Alaska

To determine the role lemmings play in structuring plant communities and their contribution to the 'greening of the Arctic', we measured plant cover and biomass in 50 + year old lemming exclosures and control plots in the coastal tundra near Barrow, Alaska. The response of plant functional types to herbivore exclusion varied among land cover types. In general, the abundance of lichens and bryophytes increased with the exclusion of lemmings, whereas graminoids decreased, although the magnitude of these responses varied among land cover types. These results suggest that sustained lemming activity promotes a higher biomass of vascular plant functional types than would be expected without their presence and highlights the importance of considering herbivory when interpreting patterns of greening in the Arctic. In light of the rapid environmental change ongoing in the Arctic and the potential regional to global implications of this change, further exploration regarding the long-term influence of arvicoline rodents on ecosystem function (e.g. carbon and energy balance) should be considered a research priority.

Contiunous surface water uncorrected and quench-corrected active fluorescence and derived chlorophyll a concentration using calibration by HPLC pigments during POLARSTERN cruise ANT-XXV/1

The relationship between phytoplankton assemblages and the associated optical properties of the water body is important for the further development of algorithms for large-scale remote sensing of phytoplankton biomass and the identification of phytoplankton functional types (PFTs), which are often representative for different biogeochemical export scenarios. Optical in-situ measurements aid in the identification of phytoplankton groups with differing pigment compositions and are widely used to validate remote sensing data. In this study we present results from an interdisciplinary cruise aboard the RV Polarstern along a north-to-south transect in the eastern Atlantic Ocean in November 2008. Phytoplankton community composition was identified using a broad set of in-situ measurements. Water samples from the surface and the depth of maximum chlorophyll concentration were analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), flow cytometry, spectrophotometry and microscopy. Simultaneously, the above- and underwater light field was measured by a set of high spectral resolution (hyperspectral) radiometers. An unsupervised cluster algorithm applied to the measured parameters allowed us to define bio-optical provinces, which we compared to ecological provinces proposed elsewhere in the literature. As could be expected, picophytoplankton was responsible for most of the variability of PFTs in the eastern Atlantic Ocean. Our bio-optical clusters agreed well with established provinces and thus can be used to classify areas of similar biogeography. This method has the potential to become an automated approach where satellite data could be used to identify shifting boundaries of established ecological provinces or to track exceptions from the rule to improve our understanding of the biogeochemical cycles in the ocean.