Ericaceous species reduce methane emissions in sheep and red deer: Respiration chamber measurements and predictions at the scale of European heathlands

Abstract

Despite the importance of atmospheric methane as a potent greenhouse gas and the significant contribution from ruminant enteric fermentation on methane emissions at a global scale, little effort has been made to consider the influence that different plant-based natural diets have on methane emissions in grazing systems. Heathland is an ericaceous dwarf-shrub-dominated habitat widespread across the northern hemisphere, in Europe, provides valuable ecosystem services in areas with poor soils, such as water flow regulation, land-based carbon skin, energy reservoir and habitat of key game species. We (i) measured methane emissions from red deer (Cervus elaphus) and sheep (Ovis aries) fed mixed diets of natural grass plus ericaceous species (either Calluna vulgaris or Vaccinium myrtillus) using open-circuit respiration chambers; and (ii) modelled the results to estimate methane emissions from red deer and sheep populations inhabiting heathland habitats across Europe under different scenarios of grass-based mixed diets with varying proportions of ericaceous species. Our results indicated that methane emissions per unit of digestible organic matter intake decreased as the proportion of ericaceous species in diet increased, but this relationship was complex because of the significant interaction between the proportion of ericaceous species in the diet and digestible organic matter intake. According to our estimates red deer and sheep populations across European heathlands produce 129.7 kt·y−1 methane (se = 1.79) based on a hypothetical grass-ericaceous species mixed diet containing 30% of ericaceous species; this is 0.5% of total methane emissions from human activity across Europe (24,755 kt·y−1), and a reduction in methane emissions of 63.8 kt·y−1 against the same deer and sheep populations, if assumed to consume a grass-only diet. We suggest the implementation of carbon credits as a measure to value the relevance of heathland systems to promote biodiversity and its potential contribution to reduce methane emissions in ruminant grazing systems.