A global analysis of terrestrial plant litter dynamics in non-perennial waterways

T. Datry; A. Foulquier; R. Corti; D. Von Schiller; K. Tockner; C. Mendoza-Lera; J. C. Clément; M. O. Gessner; M. Moleón; R. Stubbington; B. Gücker; R. Albarinõ; D. C. Allen; F. Altermatt; M. I. Arce; S. Arnon; D. Banas; A. Banegas-Medina; E. Beller; M. L. Blanchette; J. F. Blanco-Libreros; J. J. Blessing; I. G. Boëchat; K. S. Boersma; M. T. Bogan; N. Bonada; N. R. Bond; K. C. Brintrup Barriá; A. Bruder; R. M. Burrows; T. Cancellario; C. Canhoto; S. M. Carlson; S. Cauvy-Fraunié; N. Cid; M. Danger; Bianca De Freitas Terra; A. M. De Girolamo; Evans De La Barra; R. Del Campo; V. D. Diaz-Villanueva; F. Dyer; A. Elosegi; E. Faye; C. Febria; B. Four; S. Gafny; S. D. Ghate; R. Gómez; L. Gómez-Gener; M. A.S. Gracą; S. Guareschi; F. Hoppeler; J. L. Hwan; J. I. Jones; S. Kubheka; A. Laini; S. D. Langhans; C. Leigh; C. J. Little; S. Lorenz; J. C. Marshall; E. Martín; A. R. McIntosh; E. I. Meyer; M. Miliša; M. C. Mlambo; M. Morais; N. Moya; P. M. Negus; D. K. Niyogi; A. Papatheodoulou; I. Pardo; P. Pařil; S. U. Pauls; V. Pešić; M. Polášek; C. T. Robinson; P. Rodríguez-Lozano; R. J. Rolls; M. M. Sánchez-Montoya; A. Savić; O. Shumilova; K. R. Sridhar; A. L. Steward; R. Storey; A. Taleb; A. Uzan; Ross Vander Vorste; N. J. Waltham; C. Woelfle-Erskine; D. Zak; C. Zarfl; A. Zoppini

doi:10.1038/s41561-018-0134-4

A global analysis of terrestrial plant litter dynamics in non-perennial waterways

T. Datry, A. Foulquier, R. Corti, D. Von Schiller, K. Tockner, C. Mendoza-Lera, J. C. Clément, M. O. Gessner, M. Moleón, R. Stubbington, B. Gücker, R. Albarinõ, D. C. Allen, F. Altermatt, M. I. Arce, S. Arnon, D. Banas, A. Banegas-Medina, E. Beller, M. L. BlanchetteJ. F. Blanco-Libreros, J. J. Blessing, I. G. Boëchat, K. S. Boersma, M. T. Bogan, N. Bonada, N. R. Bond, K. C. Brintrup Barriá, A. Bruder, R. M. Burrows, T. Cancellario, C. Canhoto, S. M. Carlson, S. Cauvy-Fraunié, N. Cid, M. Danger, Bianca De Freitas Terra, A. M. De Girolamo, Evans De La Barra, R. Del Campo, V. D. Diaz-Villanueva, F. Dyer, A. Elosegi, E. Faye, C. Febria, B. Four, S. Gafny, S. D. Ghate, R. Gómez, L. Gómez-Gener, M. A.S. Gracą, S. Guareschi, F. Hoppeler, J. L. Hwan, J. I. Jones, S. Kubheka, A. Laini, S. D. Langhans, C. Leigh, C. J. Little, S. Lorenz, J. C. Marshall, E. Martín, A. R. McIntosh, E. I. Meyer, M. Miliša, M. C. Mlambo, M. Morais, N. Moya, P. M. Negus, D. K. Niyogi, A. Papatheodoulou, I. Pardo, P. Pařil, S. U. Pauls, V. Pešić, M. Polášek, C. T. Robinson, P. Rodríguez-Lozano, R. J. Rolls, M. M. Sánchez-Montoya, A. Savić, O. Shumilova, K. R. Sridhar, A. L. Steward, R. Storey, A. Taleb, A. Uzan, Ross Vander Vorste, N. J. Waltham, C. Woelfle-Erskine, D. Zak, C. Zarfl, A. Zoppini

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Abstract

Perennial rivers and streams make a disproportionate contribution to global carbon (C) cycling. However, the contribution of intermittent rivers and ephemeral streams (IRES), which sometimes cease to flow and can dry completely, is largely ignored although they represent over half the global river network. Substantial amounts of terrestrial plant litter (TPL) accumulate in dry riverbeds and, upon rewetting, this material can undergo rapid microbial processing. We present the results of a global research collaboration that collected and analysed TPL from 212 dry riverbeds across major environmental gradients and climate zones. We assessed litter decomposability by quantifying the litter carbon-to-nitrogen ratio and oxygen (O₂) consumption in standardized assays and estimated the potential short-term CO₂ emissions during rewetting events. Aridity, cover of riparian vegetation, channel width and dry-phase duration explained most variability in the quantity and decomposability of plant litter in IRES. Our estimates indicate that a single pulse of CO₂ emission upon litter rewetting contributes up to 10% of the daily CO₂ emission from perennial rivers and stream, particularly in temperate climates. This indicates that the contributions of IRES should be included in global C-cycling assessments.

Original language	English (US)
Pages (from-to)	497-503
Number of pages	7
Journal	Nature Geoscience
Volume	11
Issue number	7
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-018-0134-4
State	Published - Jul 1 2018

ASJC Scopus subject areas

General Earth and Planetary Sciences

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10.1038/s41561-018-0134-4

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Datry, T., Foulquier, A., Corti, R., Von Schiller, D., Tockner, K., Mendoza-Lera, C., Clément, J. C., Gessner, M. O., Moleón, M., Stubbington, R., Gücker, B., Albarinõ, R., Allen, D. C., Altermatt, F., Arce, M. I., Arnon, S., Banas, D., Banegas-Medina, A., Beller, E., ... Zoppini, A. (2018). A global analysis of terrestrial plant litter dynamics in non-perennial waterways. Nature Geoscience, 11(7), 497-503. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-018-0134-4

Datry, T, Foulquier, A, Corti, R, Von Schiller, D, Tockner, K, Mendoza-Lera, C, Clément, JC, Gessner, MO, Moleón, M, Stubbington, R, Gücker, B, Albarinõ, R, Allen, DC, Altermatt, F, Arce, MI, Arnon, S, Banas, D, Banegas-Medina, A, Beller, E, Blanchette, ML, Blanco-Libreros, JF, Blessing, JJ, Boëchat, IG, Boersma, KS, Bogan, MT, Bonada, N, Bond, NR, Brintrup Barriá, KC, Bruder, A, Burrows, RM, Cancellario, T, Canhoto, C, Carlson, SM, Cauvy-Fraunié, S, Cid, N, Danger, M, De Freitas Terra, B, De Girolamo, AM, De La Barra, E, Del Campo, R, Diaz-Villanueva, VD, Dyer, F, Elosegi, A, Faye, E, Febria, C, Four, B, Gafny, S, Ghate, SD, Gómez, R, Gómez-Gener, L, Gracą, MAS, Guareschi, S, Hoppeler, F, Hwan, JL, Jones, JI, Kubheka, S, Laini, A, Langhans, SD, Leigh, C, Little, CJ, Lorenz, S, Marshall, JC, Martín, E, McIntosh, AR, Meyer, EI, Miliša, M, Mlambo, MC, Morais, M, Moya, N, Negus, PM, Niyogi, DK, Papatheodoulou, A, Pardo, I, Pařil, P, Pauls, SU, Pešić, V, Polášek, M, Robinson, CT, Rodríguez-Lozano, P, Rolls, RJ, Sánchez-Montoya, MM, Savić, A, Shumilova, O, Sridhar, KR, Steward, AL, Storey, R, Taleb, A, Uzan, A, Vander Vorste, R, Waltham, NJ, Woelfle-Erskine, C, Zak, D, Zarfl, C & Zoppini, A 2018, 'A global analysis of terrestrial plant litter dynamics in non-perennial waterways', Nature Geoscience, vol. 11, no. 7, pp. 497-503. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-018-0134-4

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title = "A global analysis of terrestrial plant litter dynamics in non-perennial waterways",

abstract = "Perennial rivers and streams make a disproportionate contribution to global carbon (C) cycling. However, the contribution of intermittent rivers and ephemeral streams (IRES), which sometimes cease to flow and can dry completely, is largely ignored although they represent over half the global river network. Substantial amounts of terrestrial plant litter (TPL) accumulate in dry riverbeds and, upon rewetting, this material can undergo rapid microbial processing. We present the results of a global research collaboration that collected and analysed TPL from 212 dry riverbeds across major environmental gradients and climate zones. We assessed litter decomposability by quantifying the litter carbon-to-nitrogen ratio and oxygen (O2) consumption in standardized assays and estimated the potential short-term CO2 emissions during rewetting events. Aridity, cover of riparian vegetation, channel width and dry-phase duration explained most variability in the quantity and decomposability of plant litter in IRES. Our estimates indicate that a single pulse of CO2 emission upon litter rewetting contributes up to 10% of the daily CO2 emission from perennial rivers and stream, particularly in temperate climates. This indicates that the contributions of IRES should be included in global C-cycling assessments.",

author = "T. Datry and A. Foulquier and R. Corti and {Von Schiller}, D. and K. Tockner and C. Mendoza-Lera and Cl{\'e}ment, {J. C.} and Gessner, {M. O.} and M. Mole{\'o}n and R. Stubbington and B. G{\"u}cker and R. Albarin{\~o} and Allen, {D. C.} and F. Altermatt and Arce, {M. I.} and S. Arnon and D. Banas and A. Banegas-Medina and E. Beller and Blanchette, {M. L.} and Blanco-Libreros, {J. F.} and Blessing, {J. J.} and Bo{\"e}chat, {I. G.} and Boersma, {K. S.} and Bogan, {M. T.} and N. Bonada and Bond, {N. R.} and {Brintrup Barri{\'a}}, {K. C.} and A. Bruder and Burrows, {R. M.} and T. Cancellario and C. Canhoto and Carlson, {S. M.} and S. Cauvy-Frauni{\'e} and N. Cid and M. Danger and {De Freitas Terra}, Bianca and {De Girolamo}, {A. M.} and {De La Barra}, Evans and {Del Campo}, R. and Diaz-Villanueva, {V. D.} and F. Dyer and A. Elosegi and E. Faye and C. Febria and B. Four and S. Gafny and Ghate, {S. D.} and R. G{\'o}mez and L. G{\'o}mez-Gener and Grac{\c a}, {M. A.S.} and S. Guareschi and F. Hoppeler and Hwan, {J. L.} and Jones, {J. I.} and S. Kubheka and A. Laini and Langhans, {S. D.} and C. Leigh and Little, {C. J.} and S. Lorenz and Marshall, {J. C.} and E. Mart{\'i}n and McIntosh, {A. R.} and Meyer, {E. I.} and M. Mili{\v s}a and Mlambo, {M. C.} and M. Morais and N. Moya and Negus, {P. M.} and Niyogi, {D. K.} and A. Papatheodoulou and I. Pardo and P. Pa{\v r}il and Pauls, {S. U.} and V. Pe{\v s}i{\'c} and M. Pol{\'a}{\v s}ek and Robinson, {C. T.} and P. Rodr{\'i}guez-Lozano and Rolls, {R. J.} and S{\'a}nchez-Montoya, {M. M.} and A. Savi{\'c} and O. Shumilova and Sridhar, {K. R.} and Steward, {A. L.} and R. Storey and A. Taleb and A. Uzan and {Vander Vorste}, Ross and Waltham, {N. J.} and C. Woelfle-Erskine and D. Zak and C. Zarfl and A. Zoppini",

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doi = "10.1038/s41561-018-0134-4",

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TY - JOUR

T1 - A global analysis of terrestrial plant litter dynamics in non-perennial waterways

AU - Datry, T.

AU - Foulquier, A.

AU - Corti, R.

AU - Von Schiller, D.

AU - Tockner, K.

AU - Mendoza-Lera, C.

AU - Clément, J. C.

AU - Gessner, M. O.

AU - Moleón, M.

AU - Stubbington, R.

AU - Gücker, B.

AU - Albarinõ, R.

AU - Allen, D. C.

AU - Altermatt, F.

AU - Arce, M. I.

AU - Arnon, S.

AU - Banas, D.

AU - Banegas-Medina, A.

AU - Beller, E.

AU - Blanchette, M. L.

AU - Blanco-Libreros, J. F.

AU - Blessing, J. J.

AU - Boëchat, I. G.

AU - Boersma, K. S.

AU - Bogan, M. T.

AU - Bonada, N.

AU - Bond, N. R.

AU - Brintrup Barriá, K. C.

AU - Bruder, A.

AU - Burrows, R. M.

AU - Cancellario, T.

AU - Canhoto, C.

AU - Carlson, S. M.

AU - Cauvy-Fraunié, S.

AU - Cid, N.

AU - Danger, M.

AU - De Freitas Terra, Bianca

AU - De Girolamo, A. M.

AU - De La Barra, Evans

AU - Del Campo, R.

AU - Diaz-Villanueva, V. D.

AU - Dyer, F.

AU - Elosegi, A.

AU - Faye, E.

AU - Febria, C.

AU - Four, B.

AU - Gafny, S.

AU - Ghate, S. D.

AU - Gómez, R.

AU - Gómez-Gener, L.

AU - Gracą, M. A.S.

AU - Guareschi, S.

AU - Hoppeler, F.

AU - Hwan, J. L.

AU - Jones, J. I.

AU - Kubheka, S.

AU - Laini, A.

AU - Langhans, S. D.

AU - Leigh, C.

AU - Little, C. J.

AU - Lorenz, S.

AU - Marshall, J. C.

AU - Martín, E.

AU - McIntosh, A. R.

AU - Meyer, E. I.

AU - Miliša, M.

AU - Mlambo, M. C.

AU - Morais, M.

AU - Moya, N.

AU - Negus, P. M.

AU - Niyogi, D. K.

AU - Papatheodoulou, A.

AU - Pardo, I.

AU - Pařil, P.

AU - Pauls, S. U.

AU - Pešić, V.

AU - Polášek, M.

AU - Robinson, C. T.

AU - Rodríguez-Lozano, P.

AU - Rolls, R. J.

AU - Sánchez-Montoya, M. M.

AU - Savić, A.

AU - Shumilova, O.

AU - Sridhar, K. R.

AU - Steward, A. L.

AU - Storey, R.

AU - Taleb, A.

AU - Uzan, A.

AU - Vander Vorste, Ross

AU - Waltham, N. J.

AU - Woelfle-Erskine, C.

AU - Zak, D.

AU - Zarfl, C.

AU - Zoppini, A.

PY - 2018/7/1

Y1 - 2018/7/1

N2 - Perennial rivers and streams make a disproportionate contribution to global carbon (C) cycling. However, the contribution of intermittent rivers and ephemeral streams (IRES), which sometimes cease to flow and can dry completely, is largely ignored although they represent over half the global river network. Substantial amounts of terrestrial plant litter (TPL) accumulate in dry riverbeds and, upon rewetting, this material can undergo rapid microbial processing. We present the results of a global research collaboration that collected and analysed TPL from 212 dry riverbeds across major environmental gradients and climate zones. We assessed litter decomposability by quantifying the litter carbon-to-nitrogen ratio and oxygen (O2) consumption in standardized assays and estimated the potential short-term CO2 emissions during rewetting events. Aridity, cover of riparian vegetation, channel width and dry-phase duration explained most variability in the quantity and decomposability of plant litter in IRES. Our estimates indicate that a single pulse of CO2 emission upon litter rewetting contributes up to 10% of the daily CO2 emission from perennial rivers and stream, particularly in temperate climates. This indicates that the contributions of IRES should be included in global C-cycling assessments.

AB - Perennial rivers and streams make a disproportionate contribution to global carbon (C) cycling. However, the contribution of intermittent rivers and ephemeral streams (IRES), which sometimes cease to flow and can dry completely, is largely ignored although they represent over half the global river network. Substantial amounts of terrestrial plant litter (TPL) accumulate in dry riverbeds and, upon rewetting, this material can undergo rapid microbial processing. We present the results of a global research collaboration that collected and analysed TPL from 212 dry riverbeds across major environmental gradients and climate zones. We assessed litter decomposability by quantifying the litter carbon-to-nitrogen ratio and oxygen (O2) consumption in standardized assays and estimated the potential short-term CO2 emissions during rewetting events. Aridity, cover of riparian vegetation, channel width and dry-phase duration explained most variability in the quantity and decomposability of plant litter in IRES. Our estimates indicate that a single pulse of CO2 emission upon litter rewetting contributes up to 10% of the daily CO2 emission from perennial rivers and stream, particularly in temperate climates. This indicates that the contributions of IRES should be included in global C-cycling assessments.

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U2 - 10.1038/s41561-018-0134-4

DO - 10.1038/s41561-018-0134-4

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:85047190733

SN - 1752-0894

VL - 11

SP - 497

EP - 503

JO - Nature Geoscience

JF - Nature Geoscience

IS - 7

ER -

A global analysis of terrestrial plant litter dynamics in non-perennial waterways

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