What's the flux? Unraveling how CO2 fluxes from trees reflect underlying physiological processes

Susan E. Trumbore,Norbert Kunert,Alon Angert,Jan Muhr,Jeffrey Q. Chambers

doi:10.1111/nph.12065

Abstract

What's the flux? Unraveling how <scp>CO</scp><sub>2</sub> fluxes from trees reflect underlying physiological processes

Highlights

A number of factors can influence the efflux of CO2 measured by a flux chamber covering a segment of tree stem (Fig. 1)
The cambium is the site of formation of new tissue, that is, of growth, while maintenance respiration produces CO2 in all living tissues
The pathways for respiration may vary with time or tree species: recently 18O/16O measurements in oxygen (O2) provided the first evidence for the alternative oxidase pathway contributing to respiration in some tree stems (Angert et al, 2012a)

Summary

Introduction

Tree stems and branches emit carbon dioxide (CO2) at rates that per unit area can rival emissions from leaves or the soil surface and summed over a forest stand can comprise 14–30% of the total CO2 efflux (Chambers et al, 2004; Ryan et al, 2009). A number of factors can influence the efflux of CO2 measured by a flux chamber covering a segment of tree stem (Fig. 1).

Results

Conclusion