Abstract
BackgroundThe fast-growing introduced mangrove Sonneratia apetala is widely used for mangrove afforestation and reforestation in China. Some studies suggested that this exotic species outperforms native species in terms of carbon sequestration potential. This study tested the hypothesis that multi-species mangrove plantations might have higher carbon sequestration potential than S. apetala monocultures.ResultsOur field measurements at Hanjiang River Estuary (Guangdong province, China) showed that the carbon stock (46.0 ± 3.0 Mg/ha) in S. apetala plantations where the native Kandelia obovata formed an understory shrub layer was slightly higher than that in S. apetala monocultures (36.6 ± 1.3 Mg/ha). Moreover, the carbon stock in monospecific K. obovata stands (106.6 ± 1.4 Mg/ha) was much larger than that of S. apetala monocultures.ConclusionsOur results show that K. obovata monocultures may have a higher carbon accumulation rate than S. apetala monocultures. Planting K. obovata seedlings in existing S. apetala plantations may enhance the carbon sink associated with these plantations.
Highlights
The fast-growing introduced mangrove Sonneratia apetala is widely used for mangrove afforestation and reforestation in China
Tree height and basal area of S. apetala showed no significant differences between the monoculture and mixed forest, while such parameters of K. obovata in the KO plantation were significantly lower than those of S. apetala in both SA and KS
The highest mean total vegetation biomass occurred in KO (231.3 ± 14.7 Mg ha−1), followed by KS and SA at 86.6 ± 8.2 and 73.7 ± 5.4 Mg ha−1, respectively
Summary
The fast-growing introduced mangrove Sonneratia apetala is widely used for mangrove afforestation and reforestation in China. This study tested the hypothesis that multi-species mangrove plantations might have higher carbon sequestration potential than S. apetala monocultures. Mangrove forests differ from terrestrial counterparts in their capacity to store > 90% of their carbon in the substrate (5–10.4 Pg globally) over millennial timescales [3,4,5]. The largest carbon pools are associated with living tree biomass and soil organic matter in forest ecosystems. He et al Carbon Balance Manage (2020) 15:28. The amount of soil organic carbon of mangrove forests dominated by different species varies greatly, from less than 0.5% to 40%, with a global mean of 2.2% [26]
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