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It is vital to understand responses of soil microorganisms to predicted climate changes, as these directly control soil carbon (C) dynamics. The rate of turnover of soil organic carbon is mediated by soil microorganisms whose activity may be affected by climate change. After one year of multifactorial climate change treatments, at an undisturbed temperate heathland, soil microbial community dynamics were investigated by injection of a very small concentration (5.12 µg C g(-1) soil) of (13)C-labeled glycine ((13)C2, 99 atom %) to soils in situ. Plots were treated with elevated temperature (+1°C, T), summer drought (D) and elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide (510 ppm [CO2]), as well as combined treatments (TD, TCO2, DCO2 and TDCO2). The (13)C enrichment of respired CO2 and of phospholipid fatty acids (PLFAs) was determined after 24 h. (13)C-glycine incorporation into the biomarker PLFAs for specific microbial groups (Gram positive bacteria, Gram negative bacteria, actinobacteria and fungi) was quantified using gas chromatography-combustion-stable isotope ratio mass spectrometry (GC-C-IRMS). Gram positive bacteria opportunistically utilized the freshly added glycine substrate, i.e. incorporated (13)C in all treatments, whereas fungi had minor or no glycine derived (13)C-enrichment, hence slowly reacting to a new substrate. The effects of elevated CO2 did suggest increased direct incorporation of glycine in microbial biomass, in particular in G(+) bacteria, in an ecosystem subjected to elevated CO2. Warming decreased the concentration of PLFAs in general. The FACE CO2 was (13)C-depleted (δ(13)C = 12.2‰) compared to ambient (δ(13)C = ∼-8‰), and this enabled observation of the integrated longer term responses of soil microorganisms to the FACE over one year. All together, the bacterial (and not fungal) utilization of glycine indicates substrate preference and resource partitioning in the microbial community, and therefore suggests a diversified response pattern to future changes in substrate availability and climatic factors.

Rationale: Pulse-labeling with (13)CO2 and the subsequent analysis of (13)C-carbon via isotope ratio mass spectrometry (IRMS) have been shown to be an excellent method to investigate the terrestrial carbon cycle. Improving (13)CO2 manipulation experiments will facilitate our understanding of carbon cycling processes., Methods: A mobile field setup for in situ (13)CO2 pulse-labeling was developed for low vegetation field experiments. Two pulse-labeling experiments were conducted in a Danish heathland in September 2010 (Exp1) and May 2011 (Exp2). A flow-through system was developed where labeling chambers were supplied with (13)CO2-enriched air from a gas reservoir. Reservoir and chamber air was sampled over the course of the experiments and analyzed for CO2 concentration and isotopic composition on a GasBench II interfaced with an isotope ratio mass spectrometer. The soil CO2 efflux and the atom% excess in soil respiration were assessed after the (13)CO2-pulse to verify the setup performance., Results: The carbon dioxide concentrations and (13)CO2 enrichments were stable during the experiments. The CO2 concentrations conformed to the aimed values, whereas the (13)CO2 enrichments were lower than expected. The sources of error for the deviation in observed atom% (13)CO2 values are discussed, and a measurement procedure is suggested for samples highly enriched in (13)C by using adjusted resistor settings of the mass spectrometer. However, more work has to be done. Enrichment patterns in soil respiration agree with published observations indicating satisfactory performance of the developed system., Conclusions: A mobile flow-through system suitable for continuous in situ (13)CO2 pulse-labeling was successfully developed that is easily applicable in remote natural ecosystems., (Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.)

The rising atmospheric CO(2) concentration, increasing temperature and changed patterns of precipitation currently expose terrestrial ecosystems to altered environmental conditions. This may affect belowground nutrient cycling through its intimate relationship with the belowground decomposers. Three climate change factors (elevated CO(2), increased temperature and drought) were investigated in a full factorial field experiment at a temperate heathland location. The combined effect of biotic and abiotic factors on nitrogen and carbon flows was traced in plant root → litter → microbe → detritivore/omnivore → predator food-web for one year after amendment with (15)N(13)C(2)-glycine. Isotope ratio mass spectrometry (IRMS) measurement of (15)N/(14)N and (13)C/(12)C in soil extracts and functional ecosystem compartments revealed that the recovery of (15)N sometimes decreased through the chain of consumption, with the largest amount of bioactive (15)N label pool accumulated in the microbial biomass. The elevated CO(2) concentration at the site for 2 years increased the biomass, the (15)N enrichment and the (15)N recovery in detritivores. This suggests that detritivore consumption was controlled by both the availability of the microbial biomass, a likely major food source, and the climatic factors. Furthermore, the natural abundance δ(13)C of enchytraeids was significantly altered in CO(2)-fumigated plots, showing that even small changes in δ(13)C-CO(2) can be used to detect transfer of carbon from primary producers to detritivores. We conclude that, in the short term, the climate change treatments affected soil organism activity, possibly with labile carbohydrate production controlling the microbial and detritivore biomass, with potential consequences for the decomposition of detritus and nutrient cycling. Hence, there appears to be a strong coupling of responses in carbon and nitrogen cycling at this temperate heath., (Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.)

Nitrogen (N) dynamic is one of the main controlling factors of responses to climate change in N‐limited terrestrial ecosystems, which rely on nutrient recycling and retention. In this study we investigate the N partitioning in ecosystem compartments of a grassland heath, and the impact of multiple climate change factors on long‐term N retention after 15N pulse labelling. The impacts of elevated carbon dioxide (eCO2), warming and drought and the treatments in combination on ecosystem N retention were investigated in a field scale manipulation experiment. A 6‐year time‐course was assessed by pulse‐labelling with the stable N isotope 15N and by sampling after 1 day, 1 year and 6 years. After 6 years we observed that the total ecosystem retained 42% of the amended 15N across treatments (recovery of the amended 15N in the pool). The fate of the applied 15N was mainly stabilization in soil, with 36% 15N recovery in soil, while the plant compartment and microbial biomass each retained only 1%–2% of the added 15N. This suggests a moderate retention of N, for all treatments, as compared to similar long‐term studies of forest ecosystems. A decreased ammonium and vegetation N pool combined with higher 15N retention in the soil under eCO2 treatments suggests that eCO2 promoted processes that immobilize N in soil, while warming counteracted this when combined with eCO2. Drought treatments contrastingly increased the vegetation N pool. We conclude that as the organic soil layer has the main capacity for N storage in a temperate heathland‐grassland, it is important for buffering nutrient availability and maintaining a resilient ecosystem. However, the full treatment combination of drought, warming and eCO2 did not differ in 15N recovery from the control, suggesting unchanged long‐term consequences of climate change on retention of pulse added N in this ecosystem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wildfire frequency and expanse in the Arctic have increased in recent years and are projected to increase further with changes in climatic conditions due to warmer and drier summers. Yet, there is a lack of knowledge about the impacts such events may have on the net greenhouse gas (GHG) balances in Arctic ecosystems. We investigated in situ effects of an experimental fire in 2017 on carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), and nitrous oxide (N2O) surface fluxes in the most abundant tundra ecosystem in West Greenland in ambient and warmer conditions. Measurements from the growing seasons 2017 to 2019 showed that burnt areas became significant net CO2 sources for the entire study period, driven by increased ecosystem respiration (ER) immediately after the fire and decreased gross ecosystem production (GEP). Warming by open‐top chambers significantly increased both ER and GEP in control, but not in burnt plots. In contrast to CO2, measurements suggest that the overall sink capacity of atmospheric CH4, as well as net N2O emissions, were not affected by fire in the short term, but only immediately after the fire. The minor effects on CH4 and N2O, which was surprising given the significantly higher nitrate availability observed in burnt plots. However, the minor effects are aligned with the lack of significant effects of fire on soil moisture and soil temperature. Net uptake and emissions of all three GHG from burnt soils were less temperature‐sensitive than in the undisturbed control plots. Overall, this study highlights that wildfires in a typical tundra ecosystem in Greenland may not lead to markedly increased net GHG emissions other than CO2. Additional investigations are needed to assess the consequences of more severe fires. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Soil N availability for plants and microorganisms depends on the breakdown of soil polymers such as proteins into smaller, assimilable units by microbial extracellular enzymes. Changing climatic conditions are expected to alter protein depolymerization rates over the next decades, and thereby affect the potential for plant productivity. We here tested the effect of increased CO2 concentration, temperature, and drought frequency on gross rates of protein depolymerization, N mineralization, microbial amino acid and ammonium uptake using 15N pool dilution assays. Soils were sampled in fall 2013 from the multifactorial climate change experiment CLIMAITE that simulates increased CO2 concentration, temperature, and drought frequency in a fully factorial design in a temperate heathland. Eight years after treatment initiation, we found no significant effect of any climate manipulation treatment, alone or in combination, on protein depolymerization rates. Nitrogen mineralization, amino acid and ammonium uptake showed no significant individual treatment effects, but significant interactive effects of warming and drought. Combined effects of all three treatments were not significant for any of the measured parameters. Our findings therefore do not suggest an accelerated release of amino acids from soil proteins in a future climate at this site that could sustain higher plant productivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Carbon dioxide (CO2) fluxes, composing net ecosystem exchange (NEE), ecosystem respiration (ER), and soil respiration (SR) were measured in a temperate heathland exposed to elevated CO2 by the FACE (free-air carbon enrichment) technique, raising the atmospheric CO2 concentration from c. 380μmolmol−1 to 510μmolmol−1. All CO2 fluxes were measured by the static chamber methodology. Although the FACE technique enriches the atmosphere with CO2 to a fixed level, the above ground CO2 concentrations may nevertheless locally vary strongly (from about ambient to ∼1000μmolmol−1). Deployment of static chambers to FACE experiments should therefore be performed with great care in order to ensure reproducible conditions with respect to chamber headspace CO2 concentration. We demonstrate that that the fluxes measured by closed chambers relate linearly to the initial headspace CO2 concentration. When changing the initial headspace CO2 concentration from 380 to 510μmolmol−1 the net CO2 assimilation expressed by NEE increased instantaneously 1.51 times in control plots and 1.71 times in FACE plots. By contrast, ER in control plots decreased, being 0.87 times that measured at the low CO2 concentration, and the flux also decreased in FACE plots, to 0.79 times that at low concentration. Similar SR in control plots was decreased 0.94 times in control plots and 0.88 times in FACE plots. We found that a useful method to achieve stable and reproducible chamber headspace and soil CO2 concentration prior to commencement of flux measurements was to turn off the FACE system at least 10min in advance. Within 10min a new equilibrium was established between the soil and atmosphere, apparently due to CO2 degassing from the top soil. The observed increase in SR in response to increased CO2 persisted for up to 18h during which measurements should be performed. Soil CO2 concentrations were increased by up to 500μmolmol−1 by the FACE treatment, substantially more than the 130μmolmol−1 enrichment achieved in the atmosphere suggesting that the increased SR flux was caused by increased belowground respiration. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

By this in vitro study addressing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from soil-plant mesocosms, we suggest a method to investigate the joint effects of environmental conditions, growth of plants, and agricultural soil management. Soils from two long-term agricultural trials in France were placed in climate chambers. The rotation trial was with or without grain legumes, and the tillage trial used plowing or reduced tillage. Environmental conditions consisted of two contrasting temperature regimes combined with ambient (400 ppm) or high (700 ppm) CO2 concentrations in climate chambers. The plant growth went from seeding to vegetative growth. Carbon dioxide gas exchange measurements were conducted in both soil types for a period representing initial plant growth. The CO2 exchange was influenced by the growing plants increasing the mesocosm respiration and gross ecosystem production. The environmental settings had no noticeable impact on the CO2 exchange in the soils from the legume trial. The CO2 exchange from the tillage trial soils exhibited variations induced by the environmental conditions depending on the tillage treatment. The N2O emission measurements in the legume trial soils showed little variability based on rotation, however, in soils with legumes, indications that higher temperatures will lead to more N2O emission were seen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We investigated effects of fire in combination with summer warming in arctic tundra. • Fire increased soil organic P concentrations at least four years after the burning. • Summer warming reduced post-fire CO 2 losses by promoting vegetation recovery. • Soil heating at temperatures ≤ 55 °C had no immediate effects on soil GHG fluxes. The frequency and extent of wildfires in the Arctic has been increasing due to climate change. However, there is a lack of understanding about long-term impacts of climate warming on post-fire carbon dioxide (CO 2) exchange in arctic tundra ecosystems. To investigate this, we conducted an experimental low-intensity fire in combination with summer warming (using open top chambers) in a dry heath tundra ecosystem in West Greenland. We report here on the impact four and five years after the fire. We also examined immediate effects of soil heating to three temperature levels (35, 55 and 80 °C), as a simulation of heat transfer during a typical tundra fire. Fire increased soil organic phosphorus concentrations up to at least four years after the burning. The burned areas remained a net CO 2 source five years after the fire, mainly due to the lower aboveground vegetation biomass and reduced gross ecosystem production (GEP). However, with four to five years of summer warming, the GEP, ecosystem respiration and soil respiration significantly increased, and burned areas turned into a net CO 2 sink. Ex-situ soil heating to the temperature of 55 °C, reaching the heat load comparable with in-situ burning, had minor effects on soil GHG fluxes. This suggests that soil GHG activities are not immediately affected by heat transfer and associated soil temperature increases during a typical low-intensity wildfire in arctic dry tundra. Overall, our results reveal that in a future warmer climate, vegetation is likely to recover more quickly from fires, resulting in a reduction in post-fire CO 2 losses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Colonies of mammals and sea birds are known hotspots for biogeochemical cycles with potentially large element stocks and fast turnover in the soil. Although penguin and seal colonies are sites with potentially extremely fast biogeochemical turnover, these sites as potential sources of GHG have largely been neglected. This study aims to quantify magnitudes and environmental drivers of GHG fluxes effected by the activity of Antarctic fur seal (Arctocephalus gazella) and King penguin (Aptenodytes patagonicus) in South Georgia, sub-Antarctica. In-situ CO 2 and CH 4 gas flux measurements were combined with laboratory incubations of intact soil cores collected from sites along two transects away from a seal and a penguin colony. Variations in laboratory incubations were consistent with the in-situ fluxes measured in February 2017, and showed high ecosystem respiration rates at colonies (mean 44.3 μg CO 2 cm−3 h−1 for seal colony, and 52.9–159 μg CO 2 cm−3 h−1 for penguin colony) and a marked decrease away from these hotspots. Moderate methane production rates were found within the colonies (mean 0.1 ng CH 4 cm−3 h−1 for seal colony, 44–145.5 ng CH 4 cm−3 h−1 for penguin colony), while relatively high consumption rates (mean −1.8 ng CH 4 cm−3 h−1) occurred outside the colonies. Incubations also included N 2 O production rates, which were highly variable within the colonies (1.1–293 ng N 2 O cm−3 h−1 for seal colony, 0.8–594.7 ng N 2 O cm−3 h−1 for penguin colony) and decreased markedly to near zero away from the colonies. Bacterial and pmoA communities and drivers of GHG turnover and microbe community along both transects varied according to the sea animal activity intensity gradient. This is the first study at these latitudes to quantify the overall capacity of in-situ soil methane uptake at hot spots linked to sea animal colonies versus ambient conditions. All colony sites in this study were net sources of N 2 O, while sites beyond colonies, which dominate the ice-free areas in South Georgia, were sinks of methane. Highlights • High CH 4 uptake rates are observed in bare soil areas but decreased towarsds seal and penguin colonies. • Colonies were hotspots for CO 2 , CH 4 and N 2 O emissions due to large excreta deposits. • Spatial trends in gas rates were correlated to microbial community distribution. • Dominate methanotrophs differed between sites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rising atmospheric CO 2 concentrations accompanied by global warming and altered precipitation patterns calls for assessment of long-term effects of these global changes on carbon (C) dynamics in terrestrial ecosystems, as changes in net C exchange between soil and atmosphere will impact the atmospheric CO 2 concentration profoundly. In many ecosystems, including the heath/grassland system studied here, increased plant production at elevated CO 2 increase fresh C input from litter and root exudates to the soil and concurrently decrease soil N availability. Supply of labile C to the soil may accelerate the decomposition of soil organic C (SOC), a phenomenon termed ‘the priming effect’, and the priming effect is most pronounced at low soil N availability. Hence, we hypothesized that priming of SOC decomposition in response to labile C addition would increase in soil exposed to long-term elevated CO 2 exposure. Further, we hypothesized that long-term warming would enhance SOC priming rates, whereas drought would decrease the priming response. We incubated soil from a long-term, full-factorial climate change field experiment, with the factors elevated atmospheric CO 2 concentration, warming and prolonged summer drought with either labile C (sucrose) or water to assess the impact of labile C on SOC dynamics. We used sucrose with a 13 C/ 12 C signature that is distinct from that of the native SOC, which allowed us to assess the contribution of these two C sources to the CO 2 evolved. Sucrose induced priming of SOC, and the priming response was higher in soil exposed to long-term elevated CO 2 treatment. Drought tended to decrease the priming response, whereas long-term warming did not affect the level of priming significantly. We were also able to assess whether SOC-derived primed C in elevated CO 2 soil was assimilated before or after the initiation of the CO 2 treatment 8 years prior to sampling, because CO 2 concentrations were raised by fumigating the experimental plots with pure CO 2 that was 13 C-depleted compared to ambient CO 2 . Surprisingly, we conclude that sucrose addition primed decomposition of relatively old SOC fractions, i.e. SOC assimilated more than 8 years before sampling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Anaerobic digestion of animal manure and crop residues may be employed to produce biogas as a climate-neutral source of energy and to recycle plant nutrients as fertilizers. However, especially organic farmers are concerned that fertilizing with the digestates may impact the soil microbiota and fertility because they contain more mineral nitrogen (N) and less organic carbon (C) than the non-digested input materials (e.g. raw animal slurry or fresh plant residues). Hence, an incubation study was performed where (1) water, (2) raw cattle slurry, (3) anaerobically digested cattle slurry/maize, (4) anaerobically digested cattle slurry/grass-clover, or (5) fresh grass-clover was applied to soil at arable realistic rates. Experimental unites were sequentially sampled destructively after 1, 3 and 9 days of incubation and the soil assayed for content of mineral N, available organic C, emission of CO2 and N2O, microbial phospholipid fatty acids (biomass and community composition) and catabolic response profiling (functional diversity). Fertilizing with the anaerobically digested materials increased the soil concentration of NO3 − ca. 30–40% compared to when raw cattle slurry was applied. Grass-clover contributed with four times more readily degradable organic C than the other materials, causing an increased microbial biomass which depleted the soil for mineral N and probably also O2. Consequently, grass-clover also caused a ∼10 times increase in emissions of CO2 and N2O greenhouse gasses compared to any of the other treatments during the 9 days. Regarding microbial community composition, grass-clover induced the largest changes in microbial diversity measures compared to the controls, where raw cattle slurry and the two anaerobically digested materials (cattle slurry/maize, cattle slurry/grass-clover) only induced minor and transient changes. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

• Exposure time since glacier retreat enhanced soil development, CO 2 production and CH 4 consumption. • Soil labile C and moisture were key limiting factors for CO 2 production. • Fresh penguin guano deposition stimulated CO 2 and N 2 O production and decreased CH 4 consumption. • N 2 O production was not influenced by exposure time but increased strongly due to penguin activity. The effects of soil succession after glacial retreat and fertilisation by marine animals are known to have major impacts on soil greenhouse gas (GHG) fluxes in polar terrestrial ecosystems. While in many polar coastal areas retreating glaciers open up new ground for marine animals to colonise, little is known about the combination of both factors on the local GHG budget. We studied the magnitude of GHG fluxes (CO 2 , CH 4 and N 2 O) on the combined effect of glacial retreat and penguin-induced fertilisation along a transect protruding into the world's largest King Penguin (Aptenodytes patagonicus) colony at Saint Andrews Bay on sub-Antarctic South Georgia. GHG production and consumption rates were assessed based on laboratory incubations of intact soil cores and nutrients and water additional experimental incubations. The oldest soils along the transect show significant higher contents of soil carbon, nutrients and moisture and were strongly influenced by penguin activity. We found a net CH 4 consumption along the entire transect with a marked decrease within the penguin colony. CO 2 production strongly increased along the transect, while N 2 O production rates were low near the glacier front and increased markedly within the penguin colony. Controlled applications of guano resulted in a significant increase in CO 2 and N 2 O production, and decrease in CH 4 consumption, except for sites already strongly influenced by penguin activity. The results show that soil microbial activity promptly catalyses a turnover of soil C and atmospheric methane oxidation in de-glaciated forelands. The methane oxidizers, however, may increase relatively slowly in their capacity to oxidise atmospheric CH 4. Results show also that the increase of nutrients by penguins reduces CH 4 oxidation whereas N 2 O production is greatly increased. A future expansion of penguins into newly available ice-free polar coastal areas may therefore markedly increase the local GHG budget. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]