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Mobilization of optically invisible dissolved organic matter in response to rainstorm events in a tropical forest headwater river

Pereira, Ryan; Bovolo, C. Isabella; Spencer, Robert G.M.; Hernes, Peter J.; Tipping, Edward; Vieth-Hillebrand, Andrea; Pedentchouk, Nikolai; Chappell, Nick A.; Parkin, Geoff; Wagner, Thomas

Mobilization of optically invisible dissolved organic matter in response to rainstorm events in a tropical forest headwater river Thumbnail


Authors

Ryan Pereira

Robert G.M. Spencer

Peter J. Hernes

Edward Tipping

Andrea Vieth-Hillebrand

Nikolai Pedentchouk

Nick A. Chappell

Geoff Parkin

Thomas Wagner



Abstract

This study emphasizes the importance of rainstorm events in mobilizing carbon at the soil‐stream interface from tropical rainforests. Half‐hourly geochemical/isotopic records over a 13.5 h period from a 20 km2 tropical rainforest headwater in Guyana show an order of magnitude increase in dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentration in less than 30 mins (10.6–114 mg/L). The composition of DOC varies significantly and includes optically invisible dissolved organic matter (iDOM) that accounts for a large proportion (4–89%) of the total DOC, quantified using size exclusion chromatography (SEC). SEC suggests that iDOM is comprised of low molecular weight organic moieties, which are likely sourced from fresh leaf litter and/or topsoil, as shown in soils from the surrounding environment. Although poorly constrained at present, the presence of iDOM further downstream during the wet season suggests that this organic matter fraction may represent an unquantified source of riverine CO2 outgassing in tropical headwaters, requiring further consideration.

Citation

Pereira, R., Bovolo, C. I., Spencer, R. G., Hernes, P. J., Tipping, E., Vieth-Hillebrand, A., …Wagner, T. (2014). Mobilization of optically invisible dissolved organic matter in response to rainstorm events in a tropical forest headwater river. Geophysical Research Letters, 41(4), 1202-1208. https://doi.org/10.1002/2013gl058658

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Jan 16, 2014
Online Publication Date Feb 19, 2014
Publication Date Feb 28, 2014
Deposit Date Mar 22, 2016
Publicly Available Date Mar 29, 2024
Journal Geophysical Research Letters
Print ISSN 0094-8276
Electronic ISSN 1944-8007
Publisher Wiley
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 41
Issue 4
Pages 1202-1208
DOI https://doi.org/10.1002/2013gl058658

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Publisher Licence URL
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/

Copyright Statement
© 2014. American Geophysical Union. All Rights Reserved. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution‐NonCommercial‐NoDerivs License, which permits use and distribution in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, the use is non‐commercial and no modifications or adaptations are made.





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