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The aim of this study was to systematically analyze the potential and limitations of using plant functional trait observations from global databases versus in situ data to improve our understanding of vegetation impacts on ecosystem functional properties ( EFPs). Using ecosystem photosynthetic capacity as an example, we first provide an objective approach to derive robust EFP estimates from gross primary productivity ( GPP) obtained from eddy covariance flux measurements. Second, we investigate the impact of synchronizing EFPs and plant functional traits in time and space to evaluate their relationships, and the extent to which we can benefit from global plant trait databases to explain the variability of ecosystem photosynthetic capacity. Finally, we identify a set of plant functional traits controlling ecosystem photosynthetic capacity at selected sites. Suitable estimates of the ecosystem photosynthetic capacity can be derived from light response curve of GPP responding to radiation (photosynthetically active radiation or absorbed photosynthetically active radiation). Although the effect of climate is minimized in these calculations, the estimates indicate substantial interannual variation of the photosynthetic capacity, even after removing site-years with confounding factors like disturbance such as fire events. The relationships between foliar nitrogen concentration and ecosystem photosynthetic capacity are tighter when both of the measurements are synchronized in space and time. When using multiple plant traits simultaneously as predictors for ecosystem photosynthetic capacity variation, the combination of leaf carbon to nitrogen ratio with leaf phosphorus content explains the variance of ecosystem photosynthetic capacity best (adjusted R2 = 0.55). Overall, this study provides an objective approach to identify links between leaf level traits and canopy level processes and highlights the relevance of the dynamic nature of ecosystems. Synchronizing measurements of eddy covariance fluxes and plant traits in time and space is shown to be highly relevant to better understand the importance of intra- and interspecific trait variation on ecosystem functioning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The magnitude of CO2 efflux pulses after rewetting a dry soil is highly variable and the factors regulating these pulses are poorly understood. In this field experiment, we aimed to study the C dynamics after simulated summer rainstorms in a Mediterranean open holm oak woodland (dehesa). We hypothesized that because the herbaceous cover is mostly dead during the summer in this ecosystem, the short-term CO2 efflux (SR) after rewetting could mainly be explained by different measurable soil C fractions: i) K2SO4-extracted soil C (EOC); ii) microbial biomass C (MBC); or iii) chloroform-fumigated extracted C (CFE). On both grazed and abandoned dehesa sites, we simulated three summer rain events at two-week intervals and we measured SR discontinuously in three plots under tree canopy and in another three plots in open grassland. In each plot, C fractions and water content were estimated before (2h) and after (36h) each irrigation event. Following rewettings, SR increased up to ten times compared with non-irrigated plots. The CFE actually increased after rewetting in the first two irrigations but not in the third event, suggesting that the capacity of the soil to release labile organic C from soil aggregates or litter was reduced after each irrigation event. Overall, the C released as CO2 in the first 24h was related to the CFE existing before rewetting, which may help to explain the spatial variability in SR. However, the explained variability decreased after each irrigation, suggesting a change to a less labile composition of the CFE fraction as a consequence of multiple drying-rewetting cycles. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]