A conversão de florestas em pastagens e seu subseqüente abandono tem ocorrido por toda Amazônia, e embora exista muita pesquisa sobre as conseqüências desta mudança de cobertura do solo, ainda existem muitas perguntas sobre os processos biogeoquímicos associados a estas mudanças. Neste estudo, nós avaliamos os efeitos da mudança de cobertura sobre a respiração do solo em pastagens e florestas secundárias e intactas próximo de Rio Branco, Acre. Utilizou-se o método de câmaras dinâmicas associadas com analisador de gás por infravermelho. As folhas de gramíneas dentro dos anéis de medida nas pastagens foram responsáveis por cerca de 50% do fluxo durante a estação chuvosa, mas na estação seca, sua influência pode ser confundida com a variabilidade entre os anéis de medida. Os maiores fluxos de CO2 são observados em pastagens e não em florestas, mesmo se descontado o efeito das folhas em pastagens. As maiores amplitudes de variação sazonal também foi observada em pastagens. Devido aos maiores fluxos em pastagens, o fluxo anual de CO2 do solo para atmosfera foi 20% maior em pastagens em comparação com as florestas. A respiração heterotrófica é similar em pastagens e florestas secundárias e intactas, mostrando que a respiração autotrófica é responsável pelos altos fluxos de CO2 em pastagens . O ?13C do CO2 de origem heterotrófica em pastagem foi de -15‰, demonstrando que os microrganismos do solo se alimentam principalmente de matéria orgânica originado da pastagem. / Conversion of forest to cattle pastures and subsequent abandonment of those pastures is occurring throughout the Amazon Basin, but the biogeochemical consequences of this land cover change are not well understood. In this study we assess the effects of land-use change on soil respiration in pastures, secondary forests and mature forests near Rio Branco, Acre. Leaves inside the measurement chambers were responsible for about 50% of the pasture fluxes in the wet season, but in the dry season its influence was confounded with variability within replicates. The greatest CO2 fluxes are observed in pastures, which also presented the greatest amplitude of seasonal variation. Annual fluxes were 20% higher in pastures compared to forests. Heterotrophic respiration was similar in pasture and mature and secondary forests, indicating that autotrophic respiration is probably the main cause of higher fluxes in pastures. The ?13C of heterotrophic respired CO2 in pasture was -15‰, showing that microorganisms in pasture soil are feeding mostly on carbon from grasses and not from remaining forest carbon.

The relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem functioning is important in maintaining agroecosystem sustainability. Plant-microbe symbioses, such as exists between the grass tall fescue (Schedonorus arundinaceum) and the asexual fungal endophyte Epichloë coenophiala, can be utilized to enhance agroecosystem functions, such as herbivore resistance. “Novel” E. coenophiala strains that vary in the production of mammal- and insect-toxic compounds have been identified, inserted into tall fescue cultivars, and are planted in pastures globally. Novel fungal endophyte-tall fescue associations may have divergent ecosystem function effects. This study assessed effects of different fescue-endophyte symbiotic combinations on pasture ecosystem function, including aboveground (fescue biomass, plant species richness, alkaloid synthesis, arthropod abundance) and belowground (soil microbial biomass, soil enzyme activity, trace gas fluxes) parameters. Results showed no significant effects of increasing symbiotic diversity within a fescue stand on aboveground measurements, bar arthropod abundance and alkaloid synthesis. Most soil parameters quantified had significant symbiotic diversity effects. For example, soil microbial biomass decreased whereas soil enzyme activity increased with increasing symbiotic diversity. Overall, our results suggested that increasing symbiotic diversity had weak to moderate effects on aboveground processes and stronger effects on certain belowground processes, indicating that symbiotic diversity can impact ecosystem functions and warrants further research.

A conversão de florestas em pastagens e seu subseqüente abandono tem ocorrido por toda Amazônia, e embora exista muita pesquisa sobre as conseqüências desta mudança de cobertura do solo, ainda existem muitas perguntas sobre os processos biogeoquímicos associados a estas mudanças. Neste estudo, nós avaliamos os efeitos da mudança de cobertura sobre a respiração do solo em pastagens e florestas secundárias e intactas próximo de Rio Branco, Acre. Utilizou-se o método de câmaras dinâmicas associadas com analisador de gás por infravermelho. As folhas de gramíneas dentro dos anéis de medida nas pastagens foram responsáveis por cerca de 50% do fluxo durante a estação chuvosa, mas na estação seca, sua influência pode ser confundida com a variabilidade entre os anéis de medida. Os maiores fluxos de CO2 são observados em pastagens e não em florestas, mesmo se descontado o efeito das folhas em pastagens. As maiores amplitudes de variação sazonal também foi observada em pastagens. Devido aos maiores fluxos em pastagens, o fluxo anual de CO2 do solo para atmosfera foi 20% maior em pastagens em comparação com as florestas. A respiração heterotrófica é similar em pastagens e florestas secundárias e intactas, mostrando que a respiração autotrófica é responsável pelos altos fluxos de CO2 em pastagens . O ?13C do CO2 de origem heterotrófica em pastagem foi de -15‰, demonstrando que os microrganismos do solo se alimentam principalmente de matéria orgânica originado da pastagem. / Conversion of forest to cattle pastures and subsequent abandonment of those pastures is occurring throughout the Amazon Basin, but the biogeochemical consequences of this land cover change are not well understood. In this study we assess the effects of land-use change on soil respiration in pastures, secondary forests and mature forests near Rio Branco, Acre. Leaves inside the measurement chambers were responsible for about 50% of the pasture fluxes in the wet season, but in the dry season its influence was confounded with variability within replicates. The greatest CO2 fluxes are observed in pastures, which also presented the greatest amplitude of seasonal variation. Annual fluxes were 20% higher in pastures compared to forests. Heterotrophic respiration was similar in pasture and mature and secondary forests, indicating that autotrophic respiration is probably the main cause of higher fluxes in pastures. The ?13C of heterotrophic respired CO2 in pasture was -15‰, showing that microorganisms in pasture soil are feeding mostly on carbon from grasses and not from remaining forest carbon.

Present organic carbon fluxes from an upland peat catchment were quantified through measurement of in-situ direct and indirect greenhouse gas fluxes. To predict future greenhouse gas (GHG) fluxes, peat from eroded (E) and uneroded (U) site of an upland peat catchment was characterized.Composition of peat from E and U sites at the Crowden Great Brook catchment, Peak District Nation Park, UK that was characterized by Pyrolysis-Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (Py-GC-MS) at 700 oC. Pyrolysis products of the peat were then classified using the Vancampenhout classification into 6 compound classes - viz. aromatic and polyaromatic (Ar), phenols (Ph), lignin compounds (Lg), soil lipids (Lp), polysaccharide compounds (Ps) and N-compounds (N). There was no significant difference in the composition between the eroded and uneroded sites within the study area or between peats from different depths within each site. Nevertheless, there was a significant difference between sites in the proportions of Sphagnum that had contributed to the peat. Pyrolysis products of the peat were also classified into pedogenic (Pd) and aquagenic (Aq) OC – the mean percentage of Pd in both eroded and uneroded peats was 43.93 ± 4.30 % with the balance of the OC classified as Aq.Greenhouse gas (GHG) fluxes were quantified directly by in-situ continuous measurement of GHG was carried out at the E and U sites of the catchment using a GasClam: mean in-situ gas concentrations of CH4 (1.30 ± 0.04 % v/v (E), 0.59 ± 0.05 % v/v (U) and CO2 (8.83 ± 0.22 % v/v (E), 1.77 ± 0.03 % v/v (U)) were observed, with both the CH4 and CO2 concentrations apparently unrelated to atmospheric pressure and temperature changes. Laboratory measurements of ex-situ gas production - for both CH4 and CO2 this was higher for U site soils than for E site soils. At the U site, maximum production rates of both CH4 (46.11±1.47 mMol t-1 day-1) and CO2 (45.56 ± 10.19 mMol t-1 day-1) were observed for 0-50 cm depth in soils. Increased temperature did not affect gas production, whilst increased oxygen increased gas production. The CH4/CO2 ratios observed in-situ are not similar to those observed in the ex-situ laboratory experiments; suggest that some caution is advised in interpreting the latter. However, the maximum OC loss of 2.3 wt. % observed after 20 weeks of ex-situ incubation is nevertheless consistent with the long-term degradation noted by Bellamy et al (1985) from organic-rich UK soils. Indirect greenhouse gas (GHG) fluxes were quantified through the mass flux of suspended organic carbon (SsOC) drained from studied catchments. The SsOC was quantified by interpolating and rating methods. Unfiltered (UF) organic carbon (OC) fluxes in 2010 were calculated to be 8.86 t/km2/yr for the eroded sub-catchment and 6.74 t/km2/yr for the uneroded sub-catchment. All the rating relationships have a large amount of scatter. Both UF OC and <0.2 µm fraction OC are positively correlated with discharge at the eroded site, whilst there is no discernable relationship with discharge at the uneroded site. SsOC is dominated by Pd type OC (95.23 ± 10.20 % from E; 92.84 ± 5.38 % from U) far more so than in sources of the peats, suggesting slower oxidation of Pd (cf. Aq) OC.