@article{1d86a342c82d4a8ba6dd5fec60680234,
title = "Latitude, Elevation, and Mean Annual Temperature Predict Peat Organic Matter Chemistry at a Global Scale",
abstract = "Peatlands contain a significant fraction of global soil carbon, but how these reservoirs will respond to the changing climate is still relatively unknown. A global picture of the variations in peat organic matter chemistry will aid our ability to gauge peatland soil response to climate. The goal of this research is to test the hypotheses that (a) peat carbohydrate content, an indicator of soil organic matter reactivity, will increase with latitude and decrease with mean annual temperatures, (b) while peat aromatic content, an indicator of recalcitrance, will vary inversely, and (c) elevation will have a similar effect to latitude. We used Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy to examine variations in the organic matter functional groups of 1034 peat samples collected from 10 to 20, 30–40, and 60–70 cm depths at 165 individual sites across a latitudinal gradient of 79°N–65°S and from elevations of 0–4,773 m. Carbohydrate contents of high latitude peat were significantly greater than peat originating near the equator, while aromatic content showed the opposite trend. For peat from similar latitudes but different elevations, the carbohydrate content was greater and aromatic content was lower at higher elevations. Higher carbohydrate content at higher latitudes indicates a greater potential for mineralization, whereas the chemical composition of low latitude peat is consistent with their apparent relative stability in the face of warmer temperatures. The combination of low carbohydrates and high aromatics at warmer locations near the equator suggests the mineralization of high latitude peat until reaching recalcitrance under a new temperature regime.",
keywords = "0428 carbon cycling (4806), 0486 soils/pedology (1865), 0497 wetlands (1890), 1030 geochemical cycles (0330), 1055 organic and biogenic geochemistry, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), aromatics, carbohydrate, o-alkyl carbon, peatlands, soil carbon",
author = "Verbeke, {Brittany A.} and Lamit, {Louis J.} and Lilleskov, {Erik A.} and Hodgkins, {Suzanne B.} and Nathan Basiliko and Kane, {Evan S.} and Roxane Andersen and Artz, {Rebekka R.E.} and Benavides, {Juan C.} and Benscoter, {Brian W.} and Werner Borken and Luca Bragazza and Brandt, {Stefani M.} and Br{\"a}uer, {Suzanna L.} and Carson, {Michael A.} and Dan Charman and Xin Chen and Clarkson, {Beverley R.} and Cobb, {Alexander R.} and Peter Convey and Pasquel, {Jhon del {\'A}guila} and Enriquez, {Andrea S.} and Howard Griffiths and Grover, {Samantha P.} and Harvey, {Charles F.} and Harris, {Lorna I.} and Christina Hazard and Dominic Hodgson and Hoyt, {Alison M.} and John Hribljan and Jyrki Jauhiainen and Sari Juutinen and Knorr, {Klaus Holger} and Kolka, {Randall K.} and Mari K{\"o}n{\"o}nen and Tuula Larmola and McCalley, {Carmody K.} and James McLaughlin and Moore, {Tim R.} and Nadia Mykytczuk and Normand, {Anna E.} and Virginia Rich and Nigel Roulet and Jessica Royles and Jasmine Rutherford and Smith, {David S.} and Svenning, {Mette M.} and Leho Tedersoo and Thu, {Pham Q.} and Trettin, {Carl C.} and Tuittila, {Eeva Stiina} and Zuzana Urbanov{\'a} and Varner, {Ruth K.} and Meng Wang and Zheng Wang and Matt Warren and Wiedermann, {Magdalena M.} and Shanay Williams and Yavitt, {Joseph B.} and Yu, {Zhi Guo} and Zicheng Yu and Chanton, {Jeffrey P.}",
note = "Funding Information: Funding was provided by the USDA Forest Service Northern Research Station Climate Change Program, the US National Science Foundation (grant number DEB‐1146149) to E.S. Kane and E.A. Lilleskov. This study was funded in part by the Office of Biological and Environmental Research, Terrestrial Ecosystem Science Program, under United States DOE contracts DE‐SC0007144 and DE‐SC0012088. We also acknowledge funding from the National Science Foundation for the EMERGE Biology Integration Institute, NSF Award # 2022070. Funding Information: Funding was provided by the USDA Forest Service Northern Research Station Climate Change Program, the US National Science Foundation (grant number DEB-1146149) to E.S. Kane and E.A. Lilleskov. This study was funded in part by the Office of Biological and Environmental Research, Terrestrial Ecosystem Science Program, under United States DOE contracts DE-SC0007144 and DE-SC0012088. We also acknowledge funding from the National Science Foundation for the EMERGE Biology Integration Institute, NSF Award # 2022070. For sample collection we thank Ian A. Dickie and the Biological Sciences, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand; the Cass Field Station, University of Canterbury; Geoff Zahn of Utah Valley University, Orem, UT, USA; Christopher W. Schadt, Biosciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, USA; and Mark. P. Waldrop, Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center, USGS Menlo Park, CA, USA. We thank two anonymous reviewers for helpful comments on the manuscript. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2022. American Geophysical Union. All Rights Reserved.",
year = "2022",
month = feb,
doi = "10.1029/2021GB007057",
language = "English (US)",
volume = "36",
journal = "Global Biogeochemical Cycles",
issn = "0886-6236",
publisher = "American Geophysical Union",
number = "2",
}