Controls on decomposition and soil nitrogen availability at high latitudes

At high latitudes, decomposition rates and soil nitrogen (N) availability are pivotal in determining ecosystem responses to climate change. The effects of temperature, soil moisture content, resource quality, and saprotrophic fungi as an example of soil organisms, on carbon (C) and N mineralisation are reviewed. The controls on N availability are less well characterised than those on decomposition, and C and net N mineralisation sometimes do not respond to these controls in a parallel manner. Increases in mean summer temperatures of 2–4°C predicted for high latitudes may not necessarily cause greater rates of decomposition and N mineralisation because of concomitant small rises in soil temperature together with interactions between the controls, including interactions of the temperature and moisture content of the substrata with the diversity and function of decomposer fungi. Research on decomposition and soil N availability has been carried out at several scales, at all of which future research remains necessary. It is not clear whether species diversity of decomposer fungi influences decomposition and C and N release above the microscale.     

Increased topsoil carbon stock across China's forests

Biomass carbon accumulation in forest ecosystems is a widespread phenomenon at both regional and global scales. However, as coupled carbon–climate models predicted, a positive feedback could be triggered if accelerated soil carbon decomposition offsets enhanced vegetation growth under a warming climate. It is thus crucial to reveal whether and how soil carbon stock in forest ecosystems has changed over recent decades. However, large‐scale changes in soil carbon stock across forest ecosystems have not yet been carefully examined at both regional and global scales, which have been widely perceived as a big bottleneck in untangling carbon–climate feedback. Using newly developed database and sophisticated data mining approach, here we evaluated temporal changes in topsoil carbon stock across major forest ecosystem in China and analysed potential drivers in soil carbon dynamics over broad geographical scale. Our results indicated that topsoil carbon stock increased significantly within all of five major forest types during the period of 1980s–2000s, with an overall rate of 20.0 g C m^?2 yr^?1 (95% confidence interval, 14.1–25.5). The magnitude of soil carbon accumulation across coniferous forests and coniferous/broadleaved mixed forests exhibited meaningful increases with both mean annual temperature and precipitation. Moreover, soil carbon dynamics across these forest ecosystems were positively associated with clay content, with a larger amount of SOC accumulation occurring in fine‐textured soils. In contrast, changes in soil carbon stock across broadleaved forests were insensitive to either climatic or edaphic variables. Overall, these results suggest that soil carbon accumulation does not counteract vegetation carbon sequestration across China's forest ecosystems. The combination of soil carbon accumulation and vegetation carbon sequestration triggers a negative feedback to climate warming, rather than a positive feedback predicted by coupled carbon–climate models.     

Decadally cycling soil carbon is more sensitive to warming than faster‐cycling soil carbon

The response of soil organic carbon (SOC) pools to globally rising surface temperature crucially determines the feedback between climate change and the global carbon cycle. However, there is a lack of studies investigating the temperature sensitivity of decomposition for decadally cycling SOC which is the main component of total soil carbon stock and the most relevant to global change. We tackled this issue using two decadally ¹³C‐labeled soils and a much improved measuring system in a long‐term incubation experiment. Results indicated that the temperature sensitivity of decomposition for decadally cycling SOC (>23 years in one soil and >55 years in the other soil) was significantly greater than that for faster‐cycling SOC (<23 or 55 years) or for the entire SOC stock. Moreover, decadally cycling SOC contributed substantially (35–59%) to the total CO₂ loss during the 360‐day incubation. Overall, these results indicate that the decomposition of decadally cycling SOC is highly sensitive to temperature change, which will likely make this large SOC stock vulnerable to loss by global warming in the 21st century and beyond.     

Global decomposition experiment shows soil animal impacts on decomposition are climate‐dependent

Climate and litter quality are primary drivers of terrestrial decomposition and, based on evidence from multisite experiments at regional and global scales, are universally factored into global decomposition models. In contrast, soil animals are considered key regulators of decomposition at local scales but their role at larger scales is unresolved. Soil animals are consequently excluded from global models of organic mineralization processes. Incomplete assessment of the roles of soil animals stems from the difficulties of manipulating invertebrate animals experimentally across large geographic gradients. This is compounded by deficient or inconsistent taxonomy. We report a global decomposition experiment to assess the importance of soil animals in C mineralization, in which a common grass litter substrate was exposed to natural decomposition in either control or reduced animal treatments across 30 sites distributed from 43°S to 68°N on six continents. Animals in the mesofaunal size range were recovered from the litter by Tullgren extraction and identified to common specifications, mostly at the ordinal level. The design of the trials enabled faunal contribution to be evaluated against abiotic parameters between sites. Soil animals increase decomposition rates in temperate and wet tropical climates, but have neutral effects where temperature or moisture constrain biological activity. Our findings highlight that faunal influences on decomposition are dependent on prevailing climatic conditions. We conclude that (1) inclusion of soil animals will improve the predictive capabilities of region‐ or biome‐scale decomposition models, (2) soil animal influences on decomposition are important at the regional scale when attempting to predict global change scenarios, and (3) the statistical relationship between decomposition rates and climate, at the global scale, is robust against changes in soil faunal abundance and diversity.     

土壤呼吸的温度敏感性——全球变暖正负反馈的不确定因素

基于模型模拟结果表明,全球变暖与大气CO2浓度增加将形成正反馈关系,这种正反馈效应将明显加速21世纪的气候变暖。然而,这些模拟模型都基于一个重要假设,即不同平均驻留时间的土壤有机质分解具有相同的温度敏感性(Q10)。这一假设与酶动力学理论相悖,而且不同学者对不同质量土壤有机质分解温度敏感性的差异的认识存在严重分歧,所以,全球变暖与大气CO2浓度增加的正反馈关系的显著性仍值得商榷。围绕土壤呼吸的温度敏感性问题进行了讨论和评述,涉及1)土壤有机质分解温度敏感性争论的焦点问题;2)通过经验模型曲线拟合估计Q10值存在的分歧及Q10变异的机理解释;3)实验室土壤培养实验估计Q10值存在的问题;4)土壤培养实验中Q10值计算方法的改进。进一步深化有关土壤有机质分解温度敏感性不确定性的认识,将为今后土壤呼吸及其对气候变化响应的相关研究提供参考。     

森林土壤有机碳分解对模拟增温的响应

由化石燃料燃烧和土地利用变化引起的全球气候变暖是地球上最严重的人为干扰之一,对陆地生态系统结构和功能产生重要的影响。土壤有机碳（SOC）是陆地生态系统最大的碳库,其微小变化都会影响全球碳平衡和气候变化。近30年来,国内外学者在不同森林生态系统相继开展了野外模拟增温对SOC分解的影响及其调控机制研究。基于在全球建立的26个野外模拟气候变暖实验平台,系统分析增温对森林生态系统SOC分解的影响格局和潜在机制,发现增温通常促进森林SOC的分解,对气候变暖产生正反馈作用。然而,因增温方式和持续时间、土壤微生物群落结构和功能的多样性、SOC结构和组成的复杂性、植物-土壤-微生物之间相互作用以及森林类型等不同而存在差异,导致人们对森林SOC分解响应气候变暖的程度及时空格局变化缺乏统一的认识,且各类生物和非生物因子的相对贡献尚不清楚。基于已有研究,从土壤微生物群落结构和功能、有机碳组分以及植物-土壤-微生物互作3个方面构建了气候变暖影响SOC分解的概念框架,并进一步阐述了今后的重点研究方向,以期深入理解森林生态系统碳-气候反馈效应,为制定森林生态系统管理措施和实现"碳中和"提供科学依据。1）加强模拟增温对不同森林生态系统（特别是热带亚热带森林生态系统） SOC分解的长期观测研究,查明SOC分解的时空动态特征;2）加强土壤微生物功能群与SOC分解之间关系的研究,揭示SOC分解对增温响应的微生物学机制;3）形成统一的SOC组分研究方法,揭示不同碳组分对增温的响应特征和机制;4）加强森林生态系统植物-土壤-微生物间相互作用对模拟增温的响应及其对SOC分解调控的研究;5）加强模拟增温与其他全球变化因子（例如降水格局变化、土地利用变化、大气氮沉降）对SOC分解的交互作用,为更好评估未来全球变化背景下森林土壤碳动态及碳汇功能的维持提供理论基础。     

A framework for representing microbial decomposition in coupled climate models

Accurate prediction of future atmospheric CO₂ concentrations is essential for evaluating climate change impacts on ecosystems and human societies. One major source of uncertainty in model predictions is the extent to which global warming will increase atmospheric CO₂ concentrations through enhanced microbial decomposition of soil organic carbon. Recent advances in microbial ecology could help reduce this uncertainty, but current global models do not represent direct microbial control over decomposition. Instead, all of the coupled climate models reviewed in the most recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report assume that decomposition is a first-order decay process, proportional to the size of the soil carbon pool. Here we argue for the development of a new generation of models that link decomposition directly to the size and activity of microbial communities in coupled global models. This process begins with the formulation and validation of fine-scale models that capture fundamental microbial mechanisms without excessive mathematical complexity. These mechanistic models must then be scaled up through an aggregation process and validated at ecosystem to global scales prior to incorporation into global climate models (GCMs). Parameterizing microbial models at the global scale is challenging because some microbial properties such as in situ extracellular enzyme activities are very difficult to measure directly. New parameter fitting procedures may therefore be needed to infer the values of important microbial variables. Validating decomposition models at the global scale is also a challenge, and has not yet been accomplished with the land carbon models embedded in current GCMs. Fortunately new global datasets on soil carbon stocks and fluxes offer promising opportunities to validate both existing land carbon models and new microbial models. If challenges in scaling, parameterization, and validation can be overcome, a new generation of microbially-based decomposition models could substantially improve predictions of carbon–climate feedbacks in the Earth system. Development of new models structures would also reduce any bias due to the assumption of first-order decomposition across all of the models currently referenced in reports of the IPCC.     

Biogeographic variation in temperature sensitivity of decomposition in forest soils

Determining soil carbon (C) responses to rising temperature is critical for projections of the feedbacks between terrestrial ecosystems, C cycle, and climate change. However, the direction and magnitude of this feedback remain highly uncertain due largely to our limited understanding of the spatial heterogeneity of soil C decomposition and its temperature sensitivity. Here we quantified C decomposition and its response to temperature change with an incubation study of soils from 203 sites across tropical to boreal forests in China spanning a wide range of latitudes (18°16′ to 51°37′N) and longitudes (81°01′ to 129°28′E). Mean annual temperature (MAT) and mean annual precipitation primarily explained the biogeographic variation in the decomposition rate and temperature sensitivity of soils: soil C decomposition rate decreased from warm and wet forests to cold and dry forests, while Q_10‐MAT (standardized to the MAT of each site) values displayed the opposite pattern. In contrast, biological factors (i.e. plant productivity and soil bacterial diversity) and soil factors (e.g. clay, pH, and C availability of microbial biomass C and dissolved organic C) played relatively small roles in the biogeographic patterns. Moreover, no significant relationship was found between Q_10‐MAT and soil C quality, challenging the current C quality–temperature hypothesis. Using a single, fixed Q_10‐MAT value (the mean across all forests), as is usually done in model predictions, would bias the estimated soil CO₂ emissions at a temperature increase of 3.0°C. This would lead to overestimation of emissions in warm biomes, underestimation in cold biomes, and likely significant overestimation of overall C release from soil to the atmosphere. Our results highlight that climate‐related biogeographic variation in soil C responses to temperature needs to be included in next‐generation C cycle models to improve predictions of C‐climate feedbacks.     

模拟氮沉降和降雨对华西雨屏区常绿阔叶林土壤呼吸的影响

从2013年12月至2014年11月,通过野外原位试验,对华西雨屏区常绿阔叶林进行了模拟氮沉降和降雨试验,采用LI-8100土壤碳通量分析系统(LI-COR Inc.,USA)测定了对照(CK)、氮沉降(N)、减雨(R)、增雨(W)、氮沉降+减雨(NR)、氮沉降+增雨(NW)6个处理水平的土壤呼吸速率,并通过回归方程分析了温度和湿度与土壤呼吸速率间的关系。结果表明:(1)氮沉降和增雨抑制了常绿阔叶林土壤呼吸速率,减雨促进了常绿阔叶林土壤呼吸速率。(2)减雨使华西雨屏区常绿阔叶林土壤呼吸年通量增加了258 g/m~2,而模拟氮沉降和增雨使华西雨屏区常绿阔叶林土壤呼吸年通量分别减少了321g/m~2和406g/m~2。(3)减雨增加了土壤呼吸的温度敏感性,模拟氮沉降和增雨降低了土壤呼吸的温度敏感性。(4)模拟温度和湿度与土壤呼吸速率间回归方程分析表明,土壤水分对土壤呼吸速率的影响较小。(5)模拟氮沉降和增雨处理减少土壤微生物生物量碳、氮的含量,减雨处理增加了土壤微生物生物量碳、氮的含量。(6)模拟氮沉降和降雨对华西雨屏区土壤CO_2释放的影响未表现出明显的交互作用。     

全球气候变暖对凋落物分解的影响

凋落物分解作为生态系统核心过程,参与生态系统碳的周转与循环,影响生态系统碳的收支平衡,调控生态系统对全球气候变暖的反馈结果。全球气候变暖通过环境因素、凋落物数量和质量以及分解者3个方面,直接或间接地作用于凋落物分解过程,并进一步影响土壤养分周转和碳库动态。气候变暖可通过升高温度和改变实际蒸散量等环境因素直接作用于凋落物分解。气候变暖可引起植物物种短期内碳、氮和木质素等化学性质的改变以及群落中物种组成的长期变化从而改变凋落物质量。在凋落物分解过程中,土壤分解者亚系统作为主要生命组分(土壤动物和微生物)彼此相互作用、相互协调共同参与调节凋落物的分解过程。凋落物分解可以通过改变土壤微生物量、微生物活动和群落结构来加快微生物养分的固定或矿化,以形成新的养分利用模式来改变土壤有机质从而对气候变化做出响应。未来凋落物分解的研究方向应基于大尺度跨区域分解实验和长期实验,关注多个因子交互影响下,分解过程中碳、氮养分释放、地上/地下凋落物分解生物学过程与联系、分解者亚系统营养级联效应等方面。     

Global climate change and soil carbon stocks; predictions from two contrasting models for the turnover of organic carbon in soil

Enhanced release of CO₂ to the atmosphere from soil organic carbon as a result of increased temperatures may lead to a positive feedback between climate change and the carbon cycle, resulting in much higher CO₂ levels and accelerated global warming. However, the magnitude of this effect is uncertain and critically dependent on how the decomposition of soil organic C (heterotrophic respiration) responds to changes in climate. Previous studies with the Hadley Centre's coupled climate–carbon cycle general circulation model (GCM) (HadCM3LC) used a simple, single‐pool soil carbon model to simulate the response. Here we present results from numerical simulations that use the more sophisticated ‘RothC’ multipool soil carbon model, driven with the same climate data. The results show strong similarities in the behaviour of the two models, although RothC tends to simulate slightly smaller changes in global soil carbon stocks for the same forcing. RothC simulates global soil carbon stocks decreasing by 54 Gt C by 2100 in a climate change simulation compared with an 80 Gt C decrease in HadCM3LC. The multipool carbon dynamics of RothC cause it to exhibit a slower magnitude of transient response to both increased organic carbon inputs and changes in climate. We conclude that the projection of a positive feedback between climate and carbon cycle is robust, but the magnitude of the feedback is dependent on the structure of the soil carbon model.     

Historical precipitation predictably alters the shape and magnitude of microbial functional response to soil moisture

Soil moisture constrains the activity of decomposer soil microorganisms, and in turn the rate at which soil carbon returns to the atmosphere. While increases in soil moisture are generally associated with increased microbial activity, historical climate may constrain current microbial responses to moisture. However, it is not known if variation in the shape and magnitude of microbial functional responses to soil moisture can be predicted from historical climate at regional scales. To address this problem, we measured soil enzyme activity at 12 sites across a broad climate gradient spanning 442–887 mm mean annual precipitation. Measurements were made eight times over 21 months to maximize sampling during different moisture conditions. We then fit saturating functions of enzyme activity to soil moisture and extracted half saturation and maximum activity parameter values from model fits. We found that 50% of the variation in maximum activity parameters across sites could be predicted by 30‐year mean annual precipitation, an indicator of historical climate, and that the effect is independent of variation in temperature, soil texture, or soil carbon concentration. Based on this finding, we suggest that variation in the shape and magnitude of soil microbial response to soil moisture due to historical climate may be remarkably predictable at regional scales, and this approach may extend to other systems. If historical contingencies on microbial activities prove to be persistent in the face of environmental change, this approach also provides a framework for incorporating historical climate effects into biogeochemical models simulating future global change scenarios.     

Litter decomposition in grasslands of Central North America (US Great Plains)

One of the major concerns about global warming is the potential for an increase in decomposition and soil respiration rates, increasing CO₂ emissions and creating a positive feedback between global warming and soil respiration. This is particularly important in ecosystems with large belowground biomass, such as grasslands where over 90% of the carbon is allocated belowground. A better understanding of the relative influence of climate and litter quality on litter decomposition is needed to predict these changes accurately in grasslands. The Long‐Term Intersite Decomposition Experiment Team (LIDET) dataset was used to evaluate the influence of climatic variables (temperature, precipitation, actual evapotranspiration, and climate decomposition index), and litter quality (lignin content, carbon : nitrogen, and lignin : nitrogen ratios) on leaf and root decomposition in the US Great Plains. Wooden dowels were used to provide a homogeneous litter quality to evaluate the relative importance of above and belowground environments on decomposition. Contrary to expectations, temperature did not explain variation in root and leaf decomposition, whereas precipitation partially explained variation in root decomposition. Percent lignin was the best predictor of leaf and root decomposition. It also explained most variation in root decomposition in models which combined litter quality and climatic variables. Despite the lack of relationship between temperature and root decomposition, temperature could indirectly affect root decomposition through decreased litter quality and increased water deficits. These results suggest that carbon flux from root decomposition in grasslands would increase, as result of increasing temperature, only if precipitation is not limiting. However, where precipitation is limiting, increased temperature would decrease root decomposition, thus likely increasing carbon storage in grasslands. Under homogeneous litter quality, belowground decomposition was faster than aboveground and was best predicted by mean annual precipitation, which also suggests that the high moisture in soil accelerates decomposition belowground.     

Transplantation of organic surface horizons of boreal soils into warmer regions alters microbiology but not the temperature sensitivity of decomposition

Changes in soil carbon, the largest terrestrial carbon pool, are critical for the global carbon cycle, atmospheric CO₂ levels and climate. Climate warming is predicted to be most pronounced in the northern regions and therefore the large soil carbon pool residing in boreal forests will be subject to larger global warming impact than soil carbon pools in the temperate or the tropical forest. A major uncertainty in current estimates of the terrestrial carbon balance is related to decomposition of soil organic matter (SOM). We hypothesized that when soils are exposed to warmer climate the structure of the ground vegetation will change much more rapidly than the dominant tree species. This change will alter the quality and amount of litter input to the soil and induce changes in microbial communities, thus possibly altering the temperature sensitivity of SOM decomposition. We transferred organic surface soil sections from the northern borders of the boreal forest zone to corresponding forest sites in the southern borders of the boreal forest zone and studied the effects of warmer climate after an adaptation period of 2 years. The results showed that initially ground vegetation and soil microbial community structure and community functions were different in northern and southern forest sites and that 2 years of exposure to warmer climate was long enough to cause changes in these ecological indicators. The rate of SOM decomposition was approximately equally sensitive to temperature irrespective of changes in vegetation or microbial communities in the studied forest sites. However, as temperature sensitivity of the decomposition increases with decreasing temperature regime, the proportional increase in the decomposition rate in northern latitudes could lead to significant carbon losses from the soils.     

Effects of soil moisture on the temperature sensitivity of heterotrophic respiration vary seasonally in an old‐field climate change experiment

Microbial decomposition of soil organic matter produces a major flux of CO₂ from terrestrial ecosystems and can act as a feedback to climate change. Although climate‐carbon models suggest that warming will accelerate the release of CO₂ from soils, the magnitude of this feedback is uncertain, mostly due to uncertainty in the temperature sensitivity of soil organic matter decomposition. We examined how warming and altered precipitation affected the rate and temperature sensitivity of heterotrophic respiration (R_h) at the Boston‐Area Climate Experiment, in Massachusetts, USA. We measured R_h inside deep collars that excluded plant roots and litter inputs. In this mesic ecosystem, R_h responded strongly to precipitation. Drought reduced R_h, both annually and during the growing season. Warming increased R_h only in early spring. During the summer, when R_h was highest, we found evidence of threshold, hysteretic responses to soil moisture: R_h decreased sharply when volumetric soil moisture dropped below ~15% or exceeded ~26%, but R_h increased more gradually when soil moisture rose from the lower threshold. The effect of climate treatments on the temperature sensitivity of R_h depended on the season. Apparent Q₁₀ decreased with high warming (~3.5 °C) in spring and fall. Presumably due to limiting soil moisture, warming and precipitation treatments did not affect apparent Q₁₀ in summer. Drought decreased apparent Q₁₀ in fall compared to ambient and wet precipitation treatments. To our knowledge, this is the first field study to examine the response of R_h and its temperature sensitivity to the combined effects of warming and altered precipitation. Our results highlight the complex responses of R_h to soil moisture, and to our knowledge identify for the first time the seasonal variation in the temperature sensitivity of microbial respiration in the field. We emphasize the importance of adequately simulating responses such as these when modeling trajectories of soil carbon stocks under climate change scenarios.     

Microbial dynamics and soil physicochemical properties explain large‐scale variations in soil organic carbon

First‐order organic matter decomposition models are used within most Earth System Models (ESMs) to project future global carbon cycling; these models have been criticized for not accurately representing mechanisms of soil organic carbon (SOC) stabilization and SOC response to climate change. New soil biogeochemical models have been developed, but their evaluation is limited to observations from laboratory incubations or few field experiments. Given the global scope of ESMs, a comprehensive evaluation of such models is essential using in situ observations of a wide range of SOC stocks over large spatial scales before their introduction to ESMs. In this study, we collected a set of in situ observations of SOC, litterfall and soil properties from 206 sites covering different forest and soil types in Europe and China. These data were used to calibrate the model MIMICS (The MIcrobial‐MIneral Carbon Stabilization model), which we compared to the widely used first‐order model CENTURY. We show that, compared to CENTURY, MIMICS more accurately estimates forest SOC concentrations and the sensitivities of SOC to variation in soil temperature, clay content and litter input. The ratios of microbial biomass to total SOC predicted by MIMICS agree well with independent observations from globally distributed forest sites. By testing different hypotheses regarding (using alternative process representations) the physicochemical constraints on SOC deprotection and microbial turnover in MIMICS, the errors of simulated SOC concentrations across sites were further decreased. We show that MIMICS can resolve the dominant mechanisms of SOC decomposition and stabilization and that it can be a reliable tool for predictions of terrestrial SOC dynamics under future climate change. It also allows us to evaluate at large scale the rapidly evolving understanding of SOC formation and stabilization based on laboratory and limited filed observation.     

腾格里沙漠东南缘不同类型生物土壤结皮对土壤有机碳矿化的影响

生物土壤结皮(BSCs)是荒漠生态系统的重要组成部分,是该区土壤碳循环及碳平衡的关键影响因素。研究了腾格里沙漠东南缘不同类型生物土壤结皮覆盖下土壤碳矿化过程及其对温度(10℃、25℃和35℃)和水分(土壤含水量10%和25%)变化响应特征,分析了土壤碳矿化过程与土壤理化性质的关系。结果表明:(1)结皮的形成和发育显著影响土壤有机碳矿化过程,藻类、地衣和藓类结皮覆盖的土壤碳矿化速率和CO_2-C累积释放量均显著高于去除结皮的土壤,不同类型BSCs覆盖土壤和去除结皮土壤之间均表现为藓类结皮土壤地衣结皮土壤藻类结皮。(2)含结皮层土壤的平均和最大矿化速率均随温度升高和水分增加而逐渐增大,有结皮覆盖的土壤和去除结皮的土壤对温度和水分变化的响应规律相同。(3)有结皮土壤和去除结皮土壤碳矿化速率的温度敏感性(Q_(10))与结皮类型密切相关,均表现为藓类结皮地衣结皮藻类结皮。结果表明生物土壤结皮由以藻类为主向以藓类为主的演变进一步促进了土壤碳矿化过程,结皮对土壤碳循环的调控作用受水热等环境因子的共同影响。     

Temperature and vegetation effects on soil organic carbon quality along a forested mean annual temperature gradient in North America

Both climate and plant species are hypothesized to influence soil organic carbon (SOC) quality, but accurate prediction of how SOC process rates respond to global change will require an improved understanding of how SOC quality varies with mean annual temperature (MAT) and forest type. We investigated SOC quality in paired hardwood and pine stands growing in coarse textured soils located along a 22 °C gradient in MAT. To do this, we conducted 80‐day incubation experiments at 10 and 30 °C to quantify SOC decomposition rates, which we used to kinetically define SOC quality. We used these experiments to test the hypotheses that SOC quality decreases with MAT, and that SOC quality is higher under pine than hardwood tree species. We found that both SOC quantity and quality decreased with increasing MAT. During the 30 °C incubation, temperature sensitivity (Q₁₀) values were strongly and positively related to SOC decomposition rates, indicating that substrate supply can influence temperature responsiveness of SOC decomposition rates. For a limited number of dates, Q₁₀ was negatively related to MAT. Soil chemical properties could not explain observed patterns in soil quality. Soil pH and cation exchange capacity (CEC) both declined with increasing MAT, and soil C quality was positively related to pH but negatively related to CEC. Clay mineralogy of soils also could not explain patterns of SOC quality as complex (2 : 1), high CEC clay minerals occurred in cold climate soils while warm climate soils were dominated by simpler (1 : 1), low CEC clay minerals. While hardwood sites contained more SOC than pine sites, with differences declining with MAT, clay content was also higher in hardwood soils. In contrast, there was no difference in SOC quality between pine and hardwood soils. Overall, these findings indicate that SOC quantity and quality may both decrease in response to global warming, despite long‐term changes in soil chemistry and mineralogy that favor decomposition.     

Soil carbon stock and its changes in northern China's grasslands from 1980s to 2000s

Climate warming is likely to accelerate the decomposition of soil organic carbon (SOC) which may lead to an increase of carbon release from soils, and thus provide a positive feedback to climate change. However, SOC dynamics in grassland ecosystems over the past two decades remains controversial. In this study, we estimated the magnitude of SOC stock in northern China's grasslands using 981 soil profiles surveyed from 327 sites across the northern part of the country during 2001–2005. We also examined the changes of SOC stock by comparing current measurements with historical records of 275 soil profiles derived from China's National Soil Inventory during the 1980s. Our results showed that, SOC stock in the upper 30 cm in northern China's grasslands was estimated to be 10.5 Pg C (1 Pg=10¹⁵ g), with an average density (carbon stock per area) of 5.3 kg C m^?2. SOC density (SOCD) did not show significant association with mean annual temperature, but was positively correlated with mean annual precipitation. SOCD increased with soil moisture and reached a plateau when soil moisture was above 30%. Site‐level comparison indicated that grassland SOC stock did not change significantly over the past two decades, with a change of 0.08 kg C m^?2, ranging from ?0.30 to 0.46 kg C m^?2 at 95% confidence interval. Transect‐scale comparison confirmed that grassland SOC stock remained relatively constant from 1980s to 2000s, suggesting that soils in northern China's grasslands have been carbon neutral over the last 20 years.     

The use of stable carbon isotopes to decipher global change effects on soil organic carbon: present status,limitations, and future prospects

Major global change factors, including carbon dioxide (CO₂) fertilization, warming, change in precipitation, nitrogen deposition, and land-use change have the potential to significantly affect future stocks of soil organic carbon (SOC). These factors, individually or by interacting with each other, can also trigger positive or negative feedback to the processes affecting the rate of SOC formation or loss. Despite rapid progress in the understanding of carbon (C) cycling processes in the last few decades, much uncertainty remains in our ability to precisely forecast potential changes in SOC stocks in the rapidly changing future world. Stable C isotopes have been extensively used in natural observational studies as well as in laboratory and field experiments that manipulate CO₂ concentration, temperature, moisture, nitrogen fertilization, and vegetation type to understand the complex interactions and feedbacks that result from changing climate, plants and their herbivores, as well as soil microorganisms. Newly developed tools such as compound-specific isotope analysis, nano-SIMS (secondary ion mass spectroscopy), and stable isotope probing (SIP) permit isotope tracing in a specific ecosystem pool into specific C compounds and processes, thus providing in-depth insights into many processes affecting C biogeochemistry. The recent availability of affordable and reliable field-deployable optical isotope monitoring devices has provided researchers with a new set of tools for continuously tracking the ¹³C-CO₂ fluxes at the ecosystem level, enabling deeper insights into C biogeochemistry under changing environmental conditions. Despite these great strides, there is a scarcity of review studies that have comprehensively examined the use of C isotopes in studying SOC responses under global change factors. This review highlights recent progress in understanding the effect of major global change factors on SOC fluxes and stocks using selected examples covering scales from plant rhizospheres to geographic regions. Moreover, we discuss the strengths and limitations of current approaches and recent scientific advancements to highlight the new prospects evolving from the exceptional temporal and spatial resolution of stable isotope analysis in studying how global change affects SOC. Finally, we suggest that studies using stable C isotopes are well-poised to focus on identifying how dominant SOC cycling processes respond to environment-specific limiting factors and any thresholds and tipping points that define those relationships.