Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Variability In Soil Respiration Across Riparian-Hillslope Transitions, Vincent J. Pacific, Brian L. Mcglynn, Diego Andrés Riveros-Iregui, Daniel L. Welsch, Howard E. Epstein

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

The spatial and temporal controls on soil CO₂ production and surface CO₂ efflux have been identified as outstanding gaps in our understanding of carbon cycling. We investigated both across two riparian-hillslope transitions in a subalpine catchment, northern Rocky Mountains, Montana. Riparian-hillslope transitions provide ideal locations for investigating the controls on soil CO₂ dynamics due to strong, natural gradients in the factors driving respiration, including soil water content (SWC) and soil temperature. We measured soil air CO₂ concentrations (20 and 50 cm), surface CO₂ efflux, soil temperature, and SWC at eight locations. We investigated (1) how …