Great and fast increase in soil CH4 uptake after reforestation in karst cropland area is linked to the environmental and microbial factors

Fang Liu; Shilu Wang; Kerui Huang; Kevin M. Yeager; Yufeng Li; Lingling Lv; Guikang Jia; Bo Ma

doi:10.1016/j.agee.2023.108367

Great and fast increase in soil CH₄ uptake after reforestation in karst cropland area is linked to the environmental and microbial factors

Fang Liu, Shilu Wang, Kerui Huang, Kevin M. Yeager, Yufeng Li, Lingling Lv, Guikang Jia, Bo Ma

Earth and Environmental Sciences

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

1 Scopus citations

Abstract

Karst environments are an important but often overlooked global sink of atmospheric CH₄. Little is known about methanotrophic bacterial communities in karst soils; consequently, the effects of land use change (LUC) and soil management practices on them and how they function as part of the soil CH₄ sink are unclear. In this study, we compared net soil CH₄ fluxes, kinetic parameters (K_m and V_max) of CH₄ oxidation, and the pmoA gene of CH₄ oxidizers at five test soil plots in karst areas that have different soil types and land use types. The maximum atmospheric CH₄ uptake rate (−5.62 ± 3.14 kg ha^-1 y^-1) occurred in reverting scrublands just 10 years after they had been utilized for crop cultivation; followed by natural forest (−4.30 ± 4.02 kg ha^-1 y^-1) in limestone soils. The cultivated soils in the cropland emitted CH₄ into the atmosphere. The difference in net CH₄ fluxes (−8.21 kg ha^–1 y^–1) between soils in cropland and soils in reverting scrubland from cropland was 4–8 times higher than the global average values, suggesting that reforestation on limestone soils in karst cropland areas has much greater potential to enhance soil CH₄ oxidation than in non-karst areas. Soil moisture is the most likely environmental factor to trigger the enhancement effect of reforestation. The remarkable corresponding relationships between K_m, net soil CH₄ fluxes, and methanotrophic compositions in these plots suggest that bacteria play an essential role in regulating the effects of LUC on soil CH₄ oxidation rates. It is type Ⅰ methanotroph USCγ and JR3 (USCγ sensu lato), not type II methanotrophs USCα as in previous studies, that dominate in enhancing soil oxidation of atmospheric CH₄ since reforestation on limestone soils. The specific unstable habitats in karst settings favor USCγ who, as r-strategists, can change rapidly to adapt to new conditions formed from LUC and then grow presumably at an exponential rate. This coupling of environmental and microbial factors can well explain the great and fast response of CH₄ oxidation in limestone soils. Our study provides new insights that reforestation of cropland in karst areas may be a noticeably more efficient way to potentially mitigate atmospheric CH₄ build-up and thus should be strongly encouraged.

Original language	English
Article number	108367
Journal	Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment
Volume	347
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2023.108367
State	Published - May 1 2023

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant numbers 41877407, 92047204, U1802241, 41063007, and 31660171) and the Basic Ability Improvement Project of Middle-aged and Young Teachers in Guangxi Colleges and Universities 2020 (2020ky19019). Sequencing was performed at the Institute of Applied Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences. We are grateful to Dr. Shi Rongjiu for providing technical assistance and for reviewing this paper. We declare no competing financial interests.

Funding Information:
This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant numbers 41877407 , 92047204 , U1802241 , 41063007 , and 31660171 ) and the Basic Ability Improvement Project of Middle-aged and Young Teachers in Guangxi Colleges and Universities 2020 ( 2020ky19019 ). Sequencing was performed at the Institute of Applied Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences. We are grateful to Dr. Shi Rongjiu for providing technical assistance and for reviewing this paper.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 Elsevier B.V.

Keywords

CH oxidation kinetics
Karst landscape
Net soil CH fluxes
Reforestation
USCγ methanotrophs

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Ecology
Animal Science and Zoology
Agronomy and Crop Science

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Access to Document

10.1016/j.agee.2023.108367

Cite this

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title = "Great and fast increase in soil CH4 uptake after reforestation in karst cropland area is linked to the environmental and microbial factors",

abstract = "Karst environments are an important but often overlooked global sink of atmospheric CH4. Little is known about methanotrophic bacterial communities in karst soils; consequently, the effects of land use change (LUC) and soil management practices on them and how they function as part of the soil CH4 sink are unclear. In this study, we compared net soil CH4 fluxes, kinetic parameters (Km and Vmax) of CH4 oxidation, and the pmoA gene of CH4 oxidizers at five test soil plots in karst areas that have different soil types and land use types. The maximum atmospheric CH4 uptake rate (−5.62 ± 3.14 kg ha-1 y-1) occurred in reverting scrublands just 10 years after they had been utilized for crop cultivation; followed by natural forest (−4.30 ± 4.02 kg ha-1 y-1) in limestone soils. The cultivated soils in the cropland emitted CH4 into the atmosphere. The difference in net CH4 fluxes (−8.21 kg ha–1 y–1) between soils in cropland and soils in reverting scrubland from cropland was 4–8 times higher than the global average values, suggesting that reforestation on limestone soils in karst cropland areas has much greater potential to enhance soil CH4 oxidation than in non-karst areas. Soil moisture is the most likely environmental factor to trigger the enhancement effect of reforestation. The remarkable corresponding relationships between Km, net soil CH4 fluxes, and methanotrophic compositions in these plots suggest that bacteria play an essential role in regulating the effects of LUC on soil CH4 oxidation rates. It is type Ⅰ methanotroph USCγ and JR3 (USCγ sensu lato), not type II methanotrophs USCα as in previous studies, that dominate in enhancing soil oxidation of atmospheric CH4 since reforestation on limestone soils. The specific unstable habitats in karst settings favor USCγ who, as r-strategists, can change rapidly to adapt to new conditions formed from LUC and then grow presumably at an exponential rate. This coupling of environmental and microbial factors can well explain the great and fast response of CH4 oxidation in limestone soils. Our study provides new insights that reforestation of cropland in karst areas may be a noticeably more efficient way to potentially mitigate atmospheric CH4 build-up and thus should be strongly encouraged.",

keywords = "CH oxidation kinetics, Karst landscape, Net soil CH fluxes, Reforestation, USCγ methanotrophs",

author = "Fang Liu and Shilu Wang and Kerui Huang and Yeager, {Kevin M.} and Yufeng Li and Lingling Lv and Guikang Jia and Bo Ma",

note = "Funding Information: This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant numbers 41877407, 92047204, U1802241, 41063007, and 31660171) and the Basic Ability Improvement Project of Middle-aged and Young Teachers in Guangxi Colleges and Universities 2020 (2020ky19019). Sequencing was performed at the Institute of Applied Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences. We are grateful to Dr. Shi Rongjiu for providing technical assistance and for reviewing this paper. We declare no competing financial interests. Funding Information: This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant numbers 41877407 , 92047204 , U1802241 , 41063007 , and 31660171 ) and the Basic Ability Improvement Project of Middle-aged and Young Teachers in Guangxi Colleges and Universities 2020 ( 2020ky19019 ). Sequencing was performed at the Institute of Applied Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences. We are grateful to Dr. Shi Rongjiu for providing technical assistance and for reviewing this paper. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2023 Elsevier B.V.",

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T1 - Great and fast increase in soil CH4 uptake after reforestation in karst cropland area is linked to the environmental and microbial factors

AU - Liu, Fang

AU - Wang, Shilu

AU - Huang, Kerui

AU - Yeager, Kevin M.

AU - Li, Yufeng

AU - Lv, Lingling

AU - Jia, Guikang

AU - Ma, Bo

N1 - Funding Information: This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant numbers 41877407, 92047204, U1802241, 41063007, and 31660171) and the Basic Ability Improvement Project of Middle-aged and Young Teachers in Guangxi Colleges and Universities 2020 (2020ky19019). Sequencing was performed at the Institute of Applied Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences. We are grateful to Dr. Shi Rongjiu for providing technical assistance and for reviewing this paper. We declare no competing financial interests. Funding Information: This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant numbers 41877407 , 92047204 , U1802241 , 41063007 , and 31660171 ) and the Basic Ability Improvement Project of Middle-aged and Young Teachers in Guangxi Colleges and Universities 2020 ( 2020ky19019 ). Sequencing was performed at the Institute of Applied Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences. We are grateful to Dr. Shi Rongjiu for providing technical assistance and for reviewing this paper. Publisher Copyright: © 2023 Elsevier B.V.

PY - 2023/5/1

Y1 - 2023/5/1

N2 - Karst environments are an important but often overlooked global sink of atmospheric CH4. Little is known about methanotrophic bacterial communities in karst soils; consequently, the effects of land use change (LUC) and soil management practices on them and how they function as part of the soil CH4 sink are unclear. In this study, we compared net soil CH4 fluxes, kinetic parameters (Km and Vmax) of CH4 oxidation, and the pmoA gene of CH4 oxidizers at five test soil plots in karst areas that have different soil types and land use types. The maximum atmospheric CH4 uptake rate (−5.62 ± 3.14 kg ha-1 y-1) occurred in reverting scrublands just 10 years after they had been utilized for crop cultivation; followed by natural forest (−4.30 ± 4.02 kg ha-1 y-1) in limestone soils. The cultivated soils in the cropland emitted CH4 into the atmosphere. The difference in net CH4 fluxes (−8.21 kg ha–1 y–1) between soils in cropland and soils in reverting scrubland from cropland was 4–8 times higher than the global average values, suggesting that reforestation on limestone soils in karst cropland areas has much greater potential to enhance soil CH4 oxidation than in non-karst areas. Soil moisture is the most likely environmental factor to trigger the enhancement effect of reforestation. The remarkable corresponding relationships between Km, net soil CH4 fluxes, and methanotrophic compositions in these plots suggest that bacteria play an essential role in regulating the effects of LUC on soil CH4 oxidation rates. It is type Ⅰ methanotroph USCγ and JR3 (USCγ sensu lato), not type II methanotrophs USCα as in previous studies, that dominate in enhancing soil oxidation of atmospheric CH4 since reforestation on limestone soils. The specific unstable habitats in karst settings favor USCγ who, as r-strategists, can change rapidly to adapt to new conditions formed from LUC and then grow presumably at an exponential rate. This coupling of environmental and microbial factors can well explain the great and fast response of CH4 oxidation in limestone soils. Our study provides new insights that reforestation of cropland in karst areas may be a noticeably more efficient way to potentially mitigate atmospheric CH4 build-up and thus should be strongly encouraged.

AB - Karst environments are an important but often overlooked global sink of atmospheric CH4. Little is known about methanotrophic bacterial communities in karst soils; consequently, the effects of land use change (LUC) and soil management practices on them and how they function as part of the soil CH4 sink are unclear. In this study, we compared net soil CH4 fluxes, kinetic parameters (Km and Vmax) of CH4 oxidation, and the pmoA gene of CH4 oxidizers at five test soil plots in karst areas that have different soil types and land use types. The maximum atmospheric CH4 uptake rate (−5.62 ± 3.14 kg ha-1 y-1) occurred in reverting scrublands just 10 years after they had been utilized for crop cultivation; followed by natural forest (−4.30 ± 4.02 kg ha-1 y-1) in limestone soils. The cultivated soils in the cropland emitted CH4 into the atmosphere. The difference in net CH4 fluxes (−8.21 kg ha–1 y–1) between soils in cropland and soils in reverting scrubland from cropland was 4–8 times higher than the global average values, suggesting that reforestation on limestone soils in karst cropland areas has much greater potential to enhance soil CH4 oxidation than in non-karst areas. Soil moisture is the most likely environmental factor to trigger the enhancement effect of reforestation. The remarkable corresponding relationships between Km, net soil CH4 fluxes, and methanotrophic compositions in these plots suggest that bacteria play an essential role in regulating the effects of LUC on soil CH4 oxidation rates. It is type Ⅰ methanotroph USCγ and JR3 (USCγ sensu lato), not type II methanotrophs USCα as in previous studies, that dominate in enhancing soil oxidation of atmospheric CH4 since reforestation on limestone soils. The specific unstable habitats in karst settings favor USCγ who, as r-strategists, can change rapidly to adapt to new conditions formed from LUC and then grow presumably at an exponential rate. This coupling of environmental and microbial factors can well explain the great and fast response of CH4 oxidation in limestone soils. Our study provides new insights that reforestation of cropland in karst areas may be a noticeably more efficient way to potentially mitigate atmospheric CH4 build-up and thus should be strongly encouraged.

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KW - Karst landscape

KW - Net soil CH fluxes

KW - Reforestation

KW - USCγ methanotrophs

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