BIOMASS AND PRODUCTIVITY OF A TREE FERN ECOSYSTEM IN CHINA

doi:10.3773/j.issn.1005-264x.2008.06.010

Abstract

Abstract:

Aims A living fossil is the nearest extant equivalent of an extinct species. Our objective is to utilize the biomass and productivity of living-fossil ecosystems to estimate the evolutionary trend in carbon sequestration capacity of terrestrial ecosystems.

Methods We investigated biomass and productivity of a living-fossil tree fern (Alsophila spinulosa) ecosystem in Sichuan Province of China using standard tree sampling methods.

Important findings The biomass and productivity of this living-fossil ecosystem ((36.151 ± 8.159) Mg C·hm ^-2 and (2.535 ± 0.174) Mg C·hm ^-2·a^-1, respectively) were smaller than that in current gymnosperm- or angiosperm-dominated ecosystems. This provides insight into the evolutionary trend in paleo-ecosystem carbon sequestration capacity and, hence, into understanding global carbon balance.

Key words: living fossil, Alsophila spinulosa, carbon sequestration capacity

MA Yuan-Dan, JIANG Hong, YU Shu-Quan, ZHOU Guo-Mo, WANG Bin, PENG Shao-Lin, PENG Chang-Hui, CHANG Jie, WEI Xiao-Hua. BIOMASS AND PRODUCTIVITY OF A TREE FERN ECOSYSTEM IN CHINA[J]. Chin J Plant Ecol, 2008, 32(6): 1294-1300.

Add to citation manager EndNote|Ris|BibTeX

URL: https://www.plant-ecology.com/EN/10.3773/j.issn.1005-264x.2008.06.010

https://www.plant-ecology.com/EN/Y2008/V32/I6/1294

Figures/Tables 3

References 52

[1]	Ackerly DD, Dudley SA, Sultan SE, Schmitt J, Coleman JS, Linder CR, Sandquist DR, Geber MA, Evans AS, Dawson TE, Lechowicz MJ (2000). The evolution of plant ecophysiological traits: recent advances and future directions. BioScience, 50,979-995.
[2]	Arens NC (1997). Responses of leaf anatomy to light environment in the tree fern Cyathea caracasana (Cyatheaceae) and its application to some ancient seed ferns. Palaios, 12,84-94.
[3]	Arens NC, Baracaldo PS (1998). Distribution of tree ferns (Cyatheaceae) across the successional mosaic in an Andean cloud forest, Narino, Colombia. American Fern Journal, 88,60-71.
[4]	Arens NC, Baracaldo PS (2000). Variation in tree fern stipe length with canopy height: tracking preferred habitat through morphological change. American Fern Journal, 90,1-15.
[5]	Arens NC, Smith AR (1998). Cyathea planadae, a remarkable new creeping tree fern from Colombia, South America. American Fern Journal, 88,49-59.
[6]	Arens NC (2001). Variation in performance of the tree fern Cyathea caracasana (Cyatheaceae) across a successional mosaic in an Andean cloud forest. American Journal of Botan, 88,545-551.
[7]	Baker RA, DiMichele WA (1997). Biomass allocation in late Pennsylvanian coal-swamp plants. PALAIOS, 12,127-132.
[8]	Bell PR (1992). Green Plants: Their Origin and Diversity. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
[9]	Berner RA (1997). The rise of plants and their effect on weathering and atmospheric CO ₂. Science, 276,544-546.
[10]	Berner RA (1998). Sensitivity of Phanerozoic atmospheric CO ₂to paleogeographically induced changes in land temperature and surface runoff. In: Crowley TJ, Burke KC eds. Tectonic Boundary Conditions for Climatic Reconstructions. Oxford University Press, Oxford, 251-261.
[11]	Beerling DJ, Woodward FI (1997). Changes in land plant function over the Phanerozoic: reconstructions based on the fossil record. Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 124,137-153.
[12]	Beerling DJ, Osborne CP, Chaloner WG (2001). Evolution of leaf-form in land plants linked to atmospheric CO ₂ decline in the Late Palaeozoic Era. Nature, 410,352-354. DOI URL PMID
[13]	Bittner J, Breckle SW (1995). The growth rate and age of tree fern trunks in relation to habitats. American Fern Journal, 85,37-42.
[14]	Brown S, Gillespie AJR, Lugo AE (1989). Biomass estimation methods for tropical forests with applications to forest inventory data. Forest Science, 35,881-902.
[15]	Chapin III FS, Matson PA, Mooney HA (2002). Principles of Terrestrial Ecosystem Ecology. Springer-Verlag, New York.
[16]	Chen QC (陈启瑺) (1992). Study on Productivity of Cyclobalanopsis glauca (青冈林生产力研究). Hangzhou University Press, Hangzhou. (in Chinese)
[17]	Dai ZF (代正福), Zhou ZB (周正邦) (2000). Kinds and ecological type of wild Cyatheaceae ornamental plants in China. Guizhou Agricultural Sciences (贵州农业科学), 28,47-49. (in Chinese with English abstract)
[18]	Dixon RK, Brown RA, Houghton RA (1994). Carbon pools and flux of global forest ecosystems. Science, 263,185-190. DOI URL PMID
[19]	Fang JY, Chen AP, Peng CH, Zhao SQ, Ci LJ (2001). Changes in forest biomass carbon storage in China between 1949 and 1998. Science, 292,2320-2322. DOI URL PMID
[20]	Feng ZW (冯宗炜), Wang XK (王效科), Wu G (吴刚) (1999). Forest Ecosystem’s Biomass and Productivity in China (中国森林生态系统的生物量和生产力). Science Press, Beijing. (in Chinese)
[21]	Gandolfo MA, Nixon KC, Crepet WL, Stevenson DW, Friis EM (1998). Oldest known fossils of monocotyledons. Nature, 394,532-533.
[22]	Gastony GJ (1979). Spore morphology in the Cyatheaceae. Ⅲ. The genus Trichipteris. American Journal of Botany, 66,1238-1260.
[23]	Gradstein FM, Ogg JG, Smith AG, Bleeker W, Lourens LJ (2004). A Geologic Time Scale 2004. Cambridge University Press, and the official website of the International Commission on Stratigraphy (IGS) under www.stratigraphy.org.
[24]	Han XG (韩兴国), Li LH (李凌浩), Huang JH (黄建辉) (1999). An Introduction to Biogeochemistry(生物地球化学概论). Higher Education Press, Beijing and Springer-Verlag, Heidelberg, 86-97. (in Chinese)
[25]	Houghton RA, Lawrence KT, Hackler JL, Brown S (2001). The spatial distribution of forest biomass in the Brazilian Amazon: a comparison of estimates. Global Change Biology, 7,731-746.
[26]	Houghton RA (2005). Aboveground forest biomass and the global carbon balance. Global Change Biology, 11,945-958.
[27]	IPCC (2001). Climate Change 2001: the Scientific Basis. Contribution of Working Group I to the Third Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
[28]	Jiang H (江洪) (1986). A study on the biomass and production of Picea purpurea forest communities. Acta Phytoecologica et Geobotanica Sinica (植物生态学与地植物学学报), 10,146-152. (in Chinese with English abstract)
[29]	Jiang H, Apps MJ, Zhang YL, Peng CH, Woodard PM (1999). Modeling the spatial pattern of net primary productivity in Chinese forests. Ecological Modeling, 122,275-288.
[30]	Jiang H, Apps MJ, Peng CH, Zhang YL, Liu JX (2002). Modeling the influence of harvesting on Chinese boreal forest carbon dynamics. Forest Ecology and Management, 169,65-82.
[31]	Krassilov VA (2003). Terrestrial Paleoecology and Global Change. PENSOFT Publishers,Bulgaria, 286-292.
[32]	Lucansky TW (1974). Comparative studies of the nodal and vascular anatomy in the neotropical Cyatheaceae.Ⅱ. Squamate genera. American Journal of Botany, 61,472-480.
[33]	Lucansky TW (1985). Anatomical studies of Sphaeropteris and Cnemidaria (Cyatheaceae). American Fern Journal 75, 80-91.
[34]	McElwain JC, Beerling DJ, Woodward FI (1999). Fossil plants and global warming at the Triassic-Jurassic boundary. Science, 285,1386-1390. DOI URL PMID
[35]	Myneni RB, Dong J, Tucker CJ, Kaufmann RK, Kauppl PE, Liski J, Zhou L, Alexeyev V, Hughes MK (2001). A large carbon sink in the woody biomass of Northern forests. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 98,14784-14789. DOI URL PMID
[36]	Nemani RR, Keeling CD, Hashimoto H, Jolly WM, Piper SC, Tucker CJ, Myneni RB, Running SW (2003). Climate driven increases in global terrestrial net primary production from 1982-1999. Science, 300,1560-1564. URL PMID
[37]	Raymond A (1987). Palaeogeographic distribution of Early Devonian plant traits. Palaios, 2,113-132.
[38]	Redondo-Brenes A, Montagnini F (2006). Growth, productivity, aboveground biomass, and carbon sequestration of pure and mixed native tree plantations in the Caribbean lowlands of Costa Rica. Forest Ecology and Management, 232,168-178.
[39]	Royer DL, Hickey LJ, Wing SL (2003). Ecological conservatism in the ‘living fossil’ Ginkgo. Paleobiology, 29,84-104.
[40]	Royer DL (2002). Estimating Latest Cretaceous and Tertiary Atmospheric CO ₂ Concentration from Stomatal Indices. PhD dissertation, Yale University, New Haven, USA, 40.
[41]	Shugart HH (1998). Terrestrial Ecosystems in Changing Environments. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
[42]	Sun BN, Dilcher DL, Beerling DJ, Zhang CJ, Yan DF, Kowalski E (2003). Variation in Ginkgo biloba L. leaf characters across a climatic gradient in China. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 100,7141-7146. DOI URL PMID
[43]	Tryon RM (1970). The classification of the Cyatheaceae. Contr. Gray Herb, 200,3-53.
[44]	Tryon RM (1972). Endemic areas and geographic speciation in tropical American ferns. Biotropica, 4,121-131.
[45]	Tryon RM, Tryon AF (1982). Ferns and Allied Plants with Special Reference to Tropical America. Springer-Verlag, New York, 138-212.
[46]	Uri V, Lбhmus K, Ostonen I, Tullus H, Lastik R, Vildo M (2007). Biomass production, foliar and root characteristics and nutrient accumulation in young silver birch ( Betula pendula Roth.) stand growing on abandoned agricultural land. European Journal of Forest Research, online first, doi: 10.1007/s10342-007-0171-9.
[47]	Whittaker RH, Marks PL (1975). Methods of assessing terrestrial productivity. In: Lieth H, Whittaker RH eds. Primary Productivity of the Biosphere, Springer-Verlag, New York, 55-118.
[48]	Willis KJ, McElwain JC (2002). The Evolution of Plants. Oxford Universty Press, New York, 107-110.
[49]	Williams CJ, Johnson AH, LePage BA, Vann DR, Sweda T (2003). Reconstruction of Tertiary Metasequoia forests. II. Structure, biomass, and productivity of Eocene floodplain forests in the Canadian Arctic. Paleobiology, 29, 2,271-292.
[50]	Zhang XC (张宪春), Zhang LB (张丽兵) (2004). Flora Reipublicae Popularis Sinicae (Vol.6, No.3)(中国植物志·3卷6期). Science Press, Beijing, 313. (in Chinese)
[51]	Zheng YS (郑郁善), Hong W (洪伟) (1998). Management of Moso Bamboo. Xiamen University Press, China, 314-322. (in Chinese)
[52]	Zhou ZQ (周志琼), Su ZX (苏智先), Liao YM (廖永梅), Su RJ (苏瑞军), Li YX (黎云祥) (2004). Advance of biological study on Alsophila spinulosa. Journal of Guizhou Normal University (贵州师范大学学报), 22,100-103. (in Chinese with English abstract)

	生物量 Biomass (Mg C·hm^-2)	百分比 Percentage (%)	年均生物量增量MAI (Mg C·hm^-2 a^-1)	百分比 Percentage (%)
茎干Stem	23.874 (± 1.786)	79.31	0.296 (± 0.010)	13.67
当年生叶片Current year’s foliage	0.913 (± 0.065)	3.03
去年生叶片Last year’s foliage	1.826 (± 0.130)	6.07	1.826 (± 0.130)	84.39
老叶片Old foliage	0.088 (± 0.006)	0.29
根Root	3.400 (± 0.229)	11.29	0.042 (± 0.002)	1.95
总计Total	30.101 (± 2.216)	100	2.164 (± 0.118)	100

	生物量 Biomass (Mg C·hm^-2)	百分比 Percentage (%)	年均生物量增量MAI (Mg C·hm^-2 a^-1)	百分比 Percentage (%)
茎干Stem	23.874 (± 1.786)	79.31	0.296 (± 0.010)	13.67
当年生叶片Current year’s foliage	0.913 (± 0.065)	3.03
去年生叶片Last year’s foliage	1.826 (± 0.130)	6.07	1.826 (± 0.130)	84.39
老叶片Old foliage	0.088 (± 0.006)	0.29
根Root	3.400 (± 0.229)	11.29	0.042 (± 0.002)	1.95
总计Total	30.101 (± 2.216)	100	2.164 (± 0.118)	100

	生物量 Biomass (Mg C·hm^-2)	百分比 Percentage (%)	年均生物量增量MAI (Mg C·hm^-2 a^-1)	百分比 Percentage (%)
乔木Tree	35.257 (± 8.784)	97.53	2.164 (± 0.118)	85.37
灌木Shrub	0.252 (± 0.072)	0.70	0.050 (± 0.014)	1.99
草本Herb	0.641 (± 0.554)	1.77	0.321 (± 0.277)	12.56
群落Community	36.151 (± 8.159)	100	2.535 (± 0.174)	100

	生物量 Biomass (Mg C·hm^-2)	百分比 Percentage (%)	年均生物量增量MAI (Mg C·hm^-2 a^-1)	百分比 Percentage (%)
乔木Tree	35.257 (± 8.784)	97.53	2.164 (± 0.118)	85.37
灌木Shrub	0.252 (± 0.072)	0.70	0.050 (± 0.014)	1.99
草本Herb	0.641 (± 0.554)	1.77	0.321 (± 0.277)	12.56
群落Community	36.151 (± 8.159)	100	2.535 (± 0.174)	100