Biogeosciences www.biogeosciences.net 1726-4170 1726-4189 5 6 2008 10.5194/bg-5-1615-2008 http://www.biogeosciences.net/5/1615/2008/ http://www.biogeosciences.net/5/1615/2008/bg-5-1615-2008.html http://www.biogeosciences.net/5/1615/2008/bg-5-1615-2008.pdf 1615 1623 2008-12-03 Particulate organic carbon (POC) in relation to other pore water carbon fractions in drained and rewetted fens in Southern Germany S. Fiedler fiedler@uni-hohenheim.de B. S. Höll A. Freibauer K. Stahr M. Drösler M. Schloter H. F. Jungkunst Institute of Soil Science and Land Evaluation, University of Hohenheim, Emil-Wolff-Strasse 27, 70599 Stuttgart, Germany Ludwig-Maximilians University, Department of Geography, Luisenstr. 37, 80333 Munich, Germany Max-Planck-Institute for Biogeochemistry, Postfach 100164, 07701 Jena, Germany Vegetation Ecology, Technical University of Munich, Am Hochanger 6, 85350 Freising, Germany Helmholtz Center Munich, German Research Center for Environmental Health (GmbH), Institute for Soil Ecology, Department for Terrestrial Ecotoxicology, Ingolstädter Landstr. 1, 85758 Oberschleissheim, Germany Landscape Ecology, Institute of Geography, University of Göttingen, Goldschmidtstr. 5, 37077 Göttingen, Germany Numerous studies have dealt with carbon (C) contents in Histosols, but there are no studies quantifying the relative importance of the individual C components in pore waters. For this study, measurements were taken of all the carbon components (particulate organic carbon, POC; dissolved organic carbon, DOC; dissolved inorganic carbon, DIC; dissolved methane, CH4) in the soil pore water of calcareous fens under three different water management regimes (re-wetted, deeply and moderately drained). Pore water was collected weekly or biweekly (April 2004 to April 2006) at depths between 10 and 150 cm. The main results obtained were: (1) DIC (94–280 mg C l−1) was the main C-component. (2) POC and DOC concentrations in the pore water (14–125 mg C l−1 vs. 41–95 mg C l−1) were pari passu. (3) Dissolved CH4 was the smallest C component (0.005–0.9 mg C l−1). Interestingly, about 30% of the POM particles were colonized by microbes indicating that they are active in the internal C turnover. Certainly, both POC and DOC fractions are essential components of the C budget of peatlands. Furthermore, dissolved CO2 in all forms of DIC appears to be an important part of peatland C-balance. Amann, R. I., Krumholz, L., and Stahl D. A.: Fluorescent oligonucleotide probing of whole cells for determinative, phylogenetic, and environmental studies in microbiology, J. Bacteriol., 172, 762–770, 1990. Assmus, B., Hutzler, P., Kirchhof, G., Amann, R. Lawrence, J., and Hartmann, A.: In Situ Localization of Azospirillum brasilense in the Rhizosphere of Wheat with Fluorescently Labeled, rRNA-Targeted Oligonucleotide Probes and Scanning Confocal Laser Microscopy, Appl. Env. Microbiol., 61, 1013–1019, 1995. Billett, M. F., Palmer, S. M., Hope, D., Deacon, C., Storeton-West, R., Hargreaves, K. J., Flechard, C., and Fowler, D.: Linking land-atmosphere-stream carbon fluxes in a lowland peatland system, Glob. Biogeochem. Cy., 18, doi:10.1029/2000GB002058, 2004. Bouchard, V.: Export of organic matter from a coastal freshwater wetland to Lake Erie: an extension of the outwelling hypothesis, Aquatic Ecology, 41, 1–7, 2007. Chow, A. T., Gio, F., Gao, S., Breuer, R., and Dahlgren, R. A.: Filter pore size selection for characterizing dissolved organic carbon and trihalomethane precursors from soils, Water Res., 39, 1255–1264, 2005. Clever, H. L. and Young, C. L.: IUPAC – solubility data series, Methane, 27/28, 97 pp., Pergamon, Oxford, UK, 1986. Dawson, J. J. C., Billet, M. F., Hope, D., Palmer, S. M., and Deacon, C. M.: Sources and sinks of aquatic carbon in a peatland stream continuum, Biogeochemistry, 70, 71–92, 2004. Dawson, J. J. C., Billet, M. F., Neal, C., and Hill, S.: A comparison of particulate, dissolved and gaseous carbon in two contrasting upland streams in the UK, J. Hydrol., 257, 226–246, 2002. Deines, P.: The terrestrial environment, in: Handbook of Environmental Isotope Geochemistry, edited by: Fritz, P. and Fontes, J. C., Elsevier, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 75–140, 1980. Fiedler, S., Höll, B. S., and Jungkunst H. F.: Discovering the importance of dissolved carbon dioxide export from a temperate spruce forest ecosystem, Sci. Total Environ., 368, 909–915, 2006. Fiedler, S., Höll, B. S., and Jungkunst H. F.: Methane budget of a forest catchment in relation to soil pattern, Biogeochemistry, 76, 1–20, 2005. Flinsbach, D., Haakh, F., Locher, A., Mäck, U., Röhrle, B., Scheck, R., Schloz, W., Steiner, H. and Weinzierl, W.: Das württembergische Donauried, Seine Bedeutung für Wasserversorgung, Landwirtschaft und Naturschutz, Zweckverband Landeswasserversorgung, Stuttgart, Germany, 178 pp., 1997. Geyer, O. F. and Gwinner, M. P.: Geologie von Baden-Württemberg, Schweizerbart`sche Verlagsbuchhandlung, Stuttgart, Germany, 4, 482 pp., 1986. Glatzel, S., Kalbitz, K., Dalva, M., and Moore, T.: Dissolved organic matter properties and their relationship to carbon dioxide efflux from restored peat bogs, Geoderma, 113, 397–411, 2003. Höll, B. S.: Die Rolle des Porenraums im Kohlenstoffhaushalt anthropogen beeinflusster Niedermoore des Donaurieds, PhD, University of Hohenheim, Institute of Soil Science, online available at: http://opus.ub.uni-hohenheim.de/volltexte/2007/187/, 2007. Hope, D., Billett, M., and Cresser, M. S.: Exports of organic carbon in two river systems in NE Scotland, J. Hydrol., 193, 61–82, 1997. IPCC: Fourth Assessment Report, Clim. Change, online available at: http://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar4/syr/ar4_syr_topic1.pdf, 2007. Johnson, G. D. and de C. Nogueira Araujo, G. M.: A simple method of reducing the fading of immunofluorescence during microscopy, J. Immunol. Methods, 43, 349–350, 1981. Kerner, M., Hohenhberg, H., Ertl, S., Reckermann, M., and Spitzy, A.: Self-organization of dissolved organic matter to micelle-like microparticles in river water, Nature, 422, 150–153, 2003. Laudon, H., Köhler, S., and Buffam, I.: Seasonal TOC export from seven boreal catchments in northern Sweden, Aqu. Sci., 66, 223–230, 2004. Li, S.-L., Liu, C.-Q., Lang, Y.-C., Tao, F., Zhao, Z., and Zhou Z.: Stable carbon isotope biogeochemistry and anthropogenic impacts on karst ground water, Zunyi, Southwest China, Aquat. Geochem., 14, 211–221, 2008. Marfia, A. M., Krishnamurthy, R. V., Atekwama, E. A., and Panton, W. F.: Isotopic and geochemical evolution of ground and surface waters in a karst dominated geological setting: a case study from Belize, Central America, App. Geochem., 19, 937–946, 2004. Michalzik, B. and Stadler, B.: Importance of canopy herbivores to dissolved and partiulate organic matter fluxes to the forest floor, Geoderma, 127, 227–236, 2005. Moore, T. R. and Clarkson, B. R.: Dissolved organic carbon in New Zealand peatlands, N. Z. J. Mar. Freshw. Res., 41, 137–141, 2007. Neal, C. and Hill, S.: Dissolved inorganic and organic carbon in moorland and forest streams: Plynlimon, mid Wales, J. Hydrol., 153, 231–243, 1994. Nordén, B., Bohlin, E., Nilson, M., Albano, A., and Röckner, C.: Characterization of particle size fractions of peat. An integrated biological, chemical, and spectroscopic approach, Soil Sci., 153, 382–396, 1992. Oades, J. M. and Waters, A. G.: Aggregate hierarchy in soils, Aust. J. Soil Res., 29, 815–828, 1991. Pan, G., Shiyi, H., Jianhua, C., Yuxiang, T., and Yuhua, S.: Variation of $\delta^13$C in karst soil in Yaji Karst Experiment Site, Guilin. Chin. Sci. Bull., 47, 500–503, 2002. Pastor, J., Solin, J., Bridgham, S. D., Updegraff, K. Harth, C., Weishampel, W., and Dewey, B.: Global Warming and the export of dissolved organic carbon from boreal peatlands, Oikos, 100, 380–386, 2003. Pawson R. R, Lord, D. R., Evans, M. G. E., and Allott, T. E. H.: Fluvial organic carbon flux from an eroding peatland catchment, southern Pennines, UK, Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 12, 625–634, 2008. Petry, C.: Mikrobieller Abbau von partikulärem organischen Materialien der tiefen Wassersäule, Ph.D. thesis, Leibnitz-Institut für Ostseeforschung, Meereswissenschaftliche Beiträge, Warnemünde, Germany, 61, 137 pp., 2004. Ranville, J. F. and Schmiermund, R. L.: An overview of environmental colloids, in: Perspectives in Environmental Chemistry, edited by: Macalady, D. L., Oxford University Press, New York, USA, 25–56, 1998. Sigfusson, B., Paton, G. I., and Gislason, S. R.: The impact of sampling techniques on soil pore water carbon measurements in an Icelandic Histic, Andosol. Sci. Total Environ., 396, 203–219, 2006. Thurman, E. M.: Organic geochemistry of natural waters, Martinus Nijhoff/Dr. W. Junk Publishers, Dordrecht/Boston/Lancaster, 497 pp., 1985. Waddington, J. M. and Roulet, N. T.: Groundwater flow and dissolved carbon movement in a boreal peatland, J. Hydrol., 191, 122–138, 1997. Worrall, F., Burt, T., and Adamson, J.: Fluxes of dissolved carbon dioxide and inorganic carbon from an upland peat catchment: implications for soil respiration, Biogeochemistry, 73, 515–539, 2005. Worrall, F., Reed, M., Warburton, J., and Burt, T.: Carbon budget for a British upland peat catchment, Sci. Total Environ., 312, 133–146, 2003. Zsolnay, A.: Dissolved organic matter: artefacts, definitions, and functions, Geoderma, 113, 187–209, 2003.