The eastern Amazon Basin may become drier as a result of less regional recirculation of water in a largely deforested landscape and because of increased frequency and intensity of El Niño events induced by global warming. Drier conditions may affect several plant and soil microbial processes, including soil emissions of CO2, CH4, NO, and N2O. We report here unanticipated results of a pilot study that was initiated to test the feasibility of a larger-scale throughfall exclusion experiment. In particular, soil drying caused a switch from net consumption of atmospheric CH4 by soils in the control plot to net CH4 emission from soils in the experimentally dried plot.
Science in support of Amazonian conservation in the 21st century: the case of Brazil
Science in support of Amazonian conservation in the 21st century: the case of Brazil
This article presents a 21st Century agenda for Amazonian conservation. The agenda calls for developing a system of refugia and a scientific methodology for predicting impacts of the infrastructure development vision for the region. It also calls for a...