Precipitation determines the magnitude and direction of interannual responses of soil respiration to experimental warming

• Published in: Plant and soil Vol. 458; no. 1/2; pp. 75 - 91
• Main Authors: Wang, Yonghui, Song, Chao, Liu, Huiying, Wang, Shiping, Zeng, Hui, Luo, Caiyun, He, Jin-Sheng
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cham Springer Science + Business Media 01.01.2021; Springer International Publishing; Springer; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: alpine grasslands; Analysis; Atmospheric carbon dioxide; Biomedical and Life Sciences; climate; Climate change; Ecology; Empirical analysis; Environmental factors; Experiments; Feedback; field experimentation; Global warming; Grasslands; growing season; Influence; Life Sciences; meta-analysis; Plant Physiology; Plant Sciences; Precipitation; Precipitation (Meteorology); Regular Article; REGULAR ARTICLES; Respiration; Seasons; Soil investigations; Soil moisture; soil respiration; Soil Science & Conservation; soil water; uncertainty; China; Heterotrophic respiration; Tibetan plateau; Climate changes; Autotrophic respiration; Grassland ecosystems; Climate-carbon model
• ISSN: 0032-079X; 1573-5036
• DOI: 10.1007/s11104-020-04438-y

Background and aims Soil respiration (R s ) is expected to positively feedback to climate warming. The strength of this feedback is uncertain as numerous environmental factors, such as precipitation and soil moisture, can moderate the warming response of R s . Methods We combined seven-year R s measurements in a warming experiment in the Tibetan alpine grassland with a meta-analysis on grassland warming experiments globally to investigate how precipitation and soil moisture influences the warming response of R s . We further analyzed the warming responses of heterotrophic (R h ) and autotrophic (R a ) components of R s . Results Warming enhanced growing-season R s in the wet years but decreased it in the dry years in the field experiment at the Tibetan grassland. Precipitation modulated the warming responses of growing-season R s via R h , but not R a . Consistent with the field experiment, a positive relationship between precipitation and the warming response of growing-season R s was also observed in the global-scale meta-analysis on grassland warming experiments. Conclusions Precipitation influences the warming effects on R s and could result in variation in warming response of R s across years and experimental systems. Empirical functions provided by this study could be used to reduce the uncertainty in predicting R s in a warmer future.