Ofiti et al. (2023): Climate warming and elevated CO2 alter peatland soil carbon sources and stability

Nicholas O. E. Ofiti, Michael W. I. Schmidt, Samuel Abiven, Paul J. Hanson, Colleen M. Iversen, Rachel M. Wilson, Joel E. Kostka, Guido L. B. Wiesenberg, Avni Malhotra IN: Nature Communications, 14, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-43410-z

Here, the authors examine the impact of warming and elevated atmospheric CO2 concentration (eCO2) on the molecular composition of soil organic carbon (SOC) to infer SOC sources (microbe-, plant- and fire-derived) and stability in a boreal peatland. They show that while warming alone decreased plant- and microbe-derived SOC due to enhanced decomposition, warming combined with eCO2 increased plant-derived SOC compounds. The authors further observed increasing root-derived inputs (suberin) and declining leaf/needle-derived inputs (cutin) into SOC under warming and eCO2. The decline in SOC compounds with warming and gains from new root-derived C under eCO2, suggest that warming and eCO2 may shift peatland C budget towards pools with faster turnover.

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