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Methane and Carbon Dioxide Dynamics in a Northern Hardwood Ecosystem

Dep. of Natural Resources, Fernow Hall, Cornell Univ., Ithaca, NY 14853

J. A. Simmons

Dep. of Plant, Soil and Environmental Science, Univ. of Maine, Orono, ME 04469

*Corresponding author (jbyl{at}cornell.edu).

ABSTRACT

There is evidence that oxidation of CH₄ to CO₂ by methanotrophic bacteria in forest soil is a major sink for atmospheric CH₄, even though growth of the bacteria on such low CH₄ concentrations (<1.7 µL L^–1) is perplexing. Measurements of CH₄ and CO₂ in a northern hardwood ecosystem in the Adirondack Park in the state of New York indicated that: (i) soil CH₄ concentrations were mostly higher than the concentration of CH₄ in forest air, with concentrations as high as 500 µL L^–1 at the 0.1-m depth in the early and late parts of the growing season; (ii) soil CO₂ concentrations ranged from the atmospheric level to as high as 19 000 µL L^–1 at the 0.2-m depth in midsummer; (iii) net consumption of atmospheric CH₄ emission by soil in midsummer averaged only 0.25 mg m^–2 d^–1, which is low compared with findings for most forest ecosystems; and (iv) methanogenesis occurred in soil samples throughout the profile when incubated anaerobically as well as aerobically with CH₃F to inhibit methanotrophs. The prominent activity of methanogenic bacteria producing CH₄ in the spring and autumn could support the growth of methanotrophic bacteria that otherwise consume atmospheric CH₄ when methanogens are not active. Therefore, CH₄ dynamics in this Spodosol represent the balance between CH₄ production and CH₄ oxidation, which is similar to the CH₄ dynamics in many wetland ecosystems.

Received for publication June 27, 1994.

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