Estimation of Impact of Disturbances on Soil Respiration in Forest Ecosystems of Russia

Soil respiration (Rs) is a significant contributor to the global carbon cycle, with its two main sources—microbial (heterotrophic, Rh) and plant root (autotrophic, Ra) respiration—being sensitive to various environmental factors. This study investigates the impact of ecosystem disturbances (Ds), inc...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Forests Vol. 16; no. 6; p. 925
Main Authors: Schepaschenko, Dmitry, Mukhortova, Liudmila, Shvidenko, Anatoly
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Basel MDPI AG 01.06.2025
Subjects:
Analysis
Carbon
Carbon content
Carbon cycle
Carbon cycle (Biogeochemistry)
Case studies
Clearcutting
Decomposition
Disturbances
Ecosystem disturbance
Ecosystem recovery
Ecosystems
Environmental factors
Estimates
Forest & brush fires
Forest ecosystems
Forest reserves
Forest soils
Forests
Insects
Microorganisms
National forests
Nutrient availability
Nutrient dynamics
Pathogens
Permafrost
Plant roots
Productivity
Remote sensing
Respiration
Soil dynamics
Soil temperature
Soils
Terrestrial ecosystems
Trees
Vegetation
Wildfires
United States
Russia
United States > US
ISSN:1999-4907, 1999-4907
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Soil respiration (Rs) is a significant contributor to the global carbon cycle, with its two main sources—microbial (heterotrophic, Rh) and plant root (autotrophic, Ra) respiration—being sensitive to various environmental factors. This study investigates the impact of ecosystem disturbances (Ds), including fire, biogenic (insects and pathogens), and harvesting, on soil respiration in Russia’s forest ecosystems. We introduced response factors to account for the effects of these disturbances on Rh over three distinct stages of ecosystem recovery. Our analysis, based on data from case studies, remote sensing data, and the national forest inventory, revealed that Ds increase Rh by an average of 2.1 ± 3.2% during the restoration period. Biogenic disturbances showed the highest impacts, with average increases of 16.5 ± 3.2%, while the contributions of clearcuts and wildfires were, on average, less pronounced—2.0 ± 3.1% and 0.8 ± 3.3%, respectively. These disturbances modify forest soil dynamics by affecting soil temperature, moisture, and nutrient availability, influencing carbon fluxes over varying timescales. This research underscores the role of ecosystem disturbances in altering soil carbon dynamics and highlights the need for improved data and monitoring of forest disturbances to reduce uncertainty in soil carbon flux estimates.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-1
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
ObjectType-Feature-2
content type line 14
ISSN:1999-4907
1999-4907
DOI:10.3390/f16060925