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Lehmann MM, Diao H, Ouyang S, Gessler A. Different responses of oxygen and hydrogen isotopes in leaf and tree-ring organic matter to lethal soil drought. TREE PHYSIOLOGY 2024; 44:tpae043. [PMID: 38618738 DOI: 10.1093/treephys/tpae043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2023] [Revised: 03/02/2024] [Accepted: 03/23/2024] [Indexed: 04/16/2024]
Abstract
The oxygen and hydrogen isotopic composition (δ18O, δ2H) of plant tissues are key tools for the reconstruction of hydrological and plant physiological processes and may therefore be used to disentangle the reasons for tree mortality. However, how both elements respond to soil drought conditions before death has rarely been investigated. To test this, we performed a greenhouse study and determined predisposing fertilization and lethal soil drought effects on δ18O and δ2H values of organic matter in leaves and tree rings of living and dead saplings of five European tree species. For mechanistic insights, we additionally measured isotopic (i.e. δ18O and δ2H values of leaf and twig water), physiological (i.e. leaf water potential and gas-exchange) and metabolic traits (i.e. leaf and stem non-structural carbohydrate concentration, carbon-to-nitrogen ratios). Across all species, lethal soil drought generally caused a homogenous 2H-enrichment in leaf and tree-ring organic matter, but a low and heterogenous δ18O response in the same tissues. Unlike δ18O values, δ2H values of tree-ring organic matter were correlated with those of leaf and twig water and with plant physiological traits across treatments and species. The 2H-enrichment in plant organic matter also went along with a decrease in stem starch concentrations under soil drought compared with well-watered conditions. In contrast, the predisposing fertilization had generally no significant effect on any tested isotopic, physiological and metabolic traits. We propose that the 2H-enrichment in the dead trees is related to (i) the plant water isotopic composition, (ii) metabolic processes shaping leaf non-structural carbohydrates, (iii) the use of carbon reserves for growth and (iv) species-specific physiological adjustments. The homogenous stress imprint on δ2H but not on δ18O suggests that the former could be used as a proxy to reconstruct soil droughts and underlying processes of tree mortality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marco M Lehmann
- Forest Dynamics, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Zürcherstrasse 111, 8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland
- Forest Soils and Biogeochemistry, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Zürcherstrasse 111, 8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - Haoyu Diao
- Forest Dynamics, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Zürcherstrasse 111, 8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - Shengnan Ouyang
- Forest Dynamics, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Zürcherstrasse 111, 8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland
- Institute for Forest Resources and Environment of Guizhou, Guizhou University, Jiaxiu South Road, Huaxi District, Guiyang 550025, China
| | - Arthur Gessler
- Forest Dynamics, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Zürcherstrasse 111, 8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland
- Institute of Terrestrial Ecosystems, ETH Zurich, Universitätstrasse 16, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland
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Vitali V, Schuler P, Holloway-Phillips M, D'Odorico P, Guidi C, Klesse S, Lehmann MM, Meusburger K, Schaub M, Zweifel R, Gessler A, Saurer M. Finding balance: Tree-ring isotopes differentiate between acclimation and stress-induced imbalance in a long-term irrigation experiment. GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY 2024; 30:e17237. [PMID: 38488024 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.17237] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2023] [Revised: 02/05/2024] [Accepted: 02/09/2024] [Indexed: 03/19/2024]
Abstract
Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) is a common European tree species, and understanding its acclimation to the rapidly changing climate through physiological, biochemical or structural adjustments is vital for predicting future growth. We investigated a long-term irrigation experiment at a naturally dry forest in Switzerland, comparing Scots pine trees that have been continuously irrigated for 17 years (irrigated) with those for which irrigation was interrupted after 10 years (stop) and non-irrigated trees (control), using tree growth, xylogenesis, wood anatomy, and carbon, oxygen and hydrogen stable isotope measurements in the water, sugars and cellulose of plant tissues. The dendrochronological analyses highlighted three distinct acclimation phases to the treatments: irrigated trees experienced (i) a significant growth increase in the first 4 years of treatment, (ii) high growth rates but with a declining trend in the following 8 years and finally (iii) a regression to pre-irrigation growth rates, suggesting the development of a new growth limitation (i.e. acclimation). The introduction of the stop treatment resulted in further growth reductions to below-control levels during the third phase. Irrigated trees showed longer growth periods and lower tree-ring δ13 C values, reflecting lower stomatal restrictions than control trees. Their strong tree-ring δ18 O and δ2 H (O-H) relationship reflected the hydrological signature similarly to the control. On the contrary, the stop trees had lower growth rates, conservative wood anatomical traits, and a weak O-H relationship, indicating a physiological imbalance. Tree vitality (identified by crown transparency) significantly modulated growth, wood anatomical traits and tree-ring δ13 C, with low-vitality trees of all treatments performing similarly regardless of water availability. We thus provide quantitative indicators for assessing physiological imbalance and tree acclimation after environmental stresses. We also show that tree vitality is crucial in shaping such responses. These findings are fundamental for the early assessment of ecosystem imbalances and decline under climate change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valentina Vitali
- Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - Philipp Schuler
- Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | | | - Petra D'Odorico
- Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - Claudia Guidi
- Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - Stefan Klesse
- Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - Marco M Lehmann
- Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - Katrin Meusburger
- Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - Marcus Schaub
- Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - Roman Zweifel
- Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - Arthur Gessler
- Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Birmensdorf, Switzerland
- Institute of Terrestrial Ecosystems, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Matthias Saurer
- Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Birmensdorf, Switzerland
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Holloway-Phillips M, Cernusak LA, Nelson DB, Lehmann MM, Tcherkez G, Kahmen A. Covariation between oxygen and hydrogen stable isotopes declines along the path from xylem water to wood cellulose across an aridity gradient. THE NEW PHYTOLOGIST 2023; 240:1758-1773. [PMID: 37680025 DOI: 10.1111/nph.19248] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2023] [Accepted: 08/16/2023] [Indexed: 09/09/2023]
Abstract
Oxygen and hydrogen isotopes of cellulose in plant biology are commonly used to infer environmental conditions, often from time series measurements of tree rings. However, the covariation (or the lack thereof) between δ18 O and δ2 H in plant cellulose is still poorly understood. We compared plant water, and leaf and branch cellulose from dominant tree species across an aridity gradient in Northern Australia, to examine how δ18 O and δ2 H relate to each other and to mean annual precipitation (MAP). We identified a decline in covariation from xylem to leaf water, and onwards from leaf to branch wood cellulose. Covariation in leaf water isotopic enrichment (Δ) was partially preserved in leaf cellulose but not branch wood cellulose. Furthermore, whilst δ2 H was well-correlated between leaf and branch, there was an offset in δ18 O between organs that increased with decreasing MAP. Our findings strongly suggest that postphotosynthetic isotope exchange with water is more apparent for oxygen isotopes, whereas variable kinetic and nonequilibrium isotope effects add complexity to interpreting metabolic-induced δ2 H patterns. Varying oxygen isotope exchange in wood and leaf cellulose must be accounted for when δ18 O is used to reconstruct climatic scenarios. Conversely, comparing δ2 H and δ18 O patterns may reveal environmentally induced shifts in metabolism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meisha Holloway-Phillips
- Department of Environmental Sciences-Botany, University of Basel, 4056, Basel, Switzerland
- Research Unit of Forest Dynamics, Research Group of Ecosystem Ecology, Stable Isotope Research Centre, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, 8903, Birmendsorf, Switzerland
| | - Lucas A Cernusak
- College of Science and Engineering, James Cook University, Cairns, Qld, 4878, Australia
| | - Daniel B Nelson
- Department of Environmental Sciences-Botany, University of Basel, 4056, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Marco M Lehmann
- Research Unit of Forest Dynamics, Research Group of Ecosystem Ecology, Stable Isotope Research Centre, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, 8903, Birmendsorf, Switzerland
| | - Guillaume Tcherkez
- Research School of Biology, College of Science, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia
- Institut de Recherche en Horticulture et Semences, Université d'Angers, INRAe, 42 rue Georges Morel, 49070, Beaucouzé, France
| | - Ansgar Kahmen
- Department of Environmental Sciences-Botany, University of Basel, 4056, Basel, Switzerland
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Vitali V, Peters RL, Lehmann MM, Leuenberger M, Treydte K, Büntgen U, Schuler P, Saurer M. Tree-ring isotopes from the Swiss Alps reveal non-climatic fingerprints of cyclic insect population outbreaks over the past 700 years. TREE PHYSIOLOGY 2023; 43:706-721. [PMID: 36738262 PMCID: PMC10177004 DOI: 10.1093/treephys/tpad014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2022] [Accepted: 01/31/2023] [Indexed: 05/13/2023]
Abstract
Recent experiments have underlined the potential of δ2H in tree-ring cellulose as a physiological indicator of shifts in autotrophic versus heterotrophic processes (i.e., the use of fresh versus stored non-structural carbohydrates). However, the impact of these processes has not yet been quantified under natural conditions. Defoliator outbreaks disrupt tree functioning and carbon assimilation, stimulating remobilization, therefore providing a unique opportunity to improve our understanding of changes in δ2H. By exploring a 700-year tree-ring isotope chronology from Switzerland, we assessed the impact of 79 larch budmoth (LBM, Zeiraphera griseana [Hübner]) outbreaks on the growth of its host tree species, Larix decidua [Mill]. The LBM outbreaks significantly altered the tree-ring isotopic signature, creating a 2H-enrichment and an 18O- and 13C-depletion. Changes in tree physiological functioning in outbreak years are shown by the decoupling of δ2H and δ18O (O-H relationship), in contrast to the positive correlation in non-outbreak years. Across the centuries, the O-H relationship in outbreak years was not significantly affected by temperature, indicating that non-climatic physiological processes dominate over climate in determining δ2H. We conclude that the combination of these isotopic parameters can serve as a metric for assessing changes in physiological mechanisms over time.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valentina Vitali
- Stable Isotope Research Centre (SIRC), Ecosystem Ecology, Forest Dynamics, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Birmensdorf CH-8903, Switzerland
| | - Richard L Peters
- Physiological Plant Ecology, Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Basel, Schönbeinstrasse 6, Basel CH-4056, Switzerland
| | - Marco M Lehmann
- Stable Isotope Research Centre (SIRC), Ecosystem Ecology, Forest Dynamics, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Birmensdorf CH-8903, Switzerland
| | - Markus Leuenberger
- Climate and Environmental Physics Division and Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research, University of Bern, Sidlerstrasse 5, Bern CH-3012, Switzerland
| | - Kerstin Treydte
- Department of Dendrosciences, Forest Dynamics, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Birmensdorf CH-8903, Switzerland
| | - Ulf Büntgen
- Department of Dendrosciences, Forest Dynamics, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Birmensdorf CH-8903, Switzerland
- Department of Geography, University of Cambridge, Downing Place, Cambridge CB2 3EN, UK
- Global Change Research Institute (CzechGlobe), Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno 603 00, Czech Republic
- Department of Geography, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno 611 37, Czech Republic
| | - Philipp Schuler
- Stable Isotope Research Centre (SIRC), Ecosystem Ecology, Forest Dynamics, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Birmensdorf CH-8903, Switzerland
| | - Matthias Saurer
- Stable Isotope Research Centre (SIRC), Ecosystem Ecology, Forest Dynamics, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Birmensdorf CH-8903, Switzerland
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Churakova Sidorova OV, Porter TJ, Zharkov MS, Fonti MV, Barinov VV, Taynik AV, Kirdyanov AV, Knorre AA, Wegmann M, Trushkina TV, Koshurnikova NN, Vaganov EA, Myglan VS, Siegwolf RTW, Saurer M. Climate impacts on tree-ring stable isotopes across the Northern Hemispheric boreal zone. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2023; 870:161644. [PMID: 36707005 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.161644] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2022] [Revised: 01/10/2023] [Accepted: 01/12/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Boreal regions are changing rapidly with anthropogenic global warming. In order to assess risks and impacts of this process, it is crucial to put these observed changes into a long-term perspective. Summer air temperature variability can be well reconstructed from conifer tree rings. While the application of stable isotopes can potentially provide complementary climatic information over different seasons. In this study, we developed new triple stable isotope chronologies in tree-ring cellulose (δ13Ctrc, δ18Otrc, δ2Htrc) from a study site in Canada. Additionally, we performed regional aggregated analysis of available stable isotope chronologies from 6 conifers' tree species across high-latitudinal (HL) and - altitudinal (HA) as well as Siberian (SIB) transects of the Northern Hemispheric boreal zone. Our results show that summer air temperature still plays an important role in determining tree-ring isotope variability at 11 out of 24 sites for δ13Ctrc, 6 out of 18 sites for δ18Otrc and 1 out of 6 sites for δ2Htrc. Precipitation, relative humidity and vapor pressure deficit are significantly and consistently recorded in both δ13Ctrc and δ18Otrc along HL. Summer sunshine duration is captured by all isotopes, mainly for HL and HA transects, indicating an indirect link with an increase in air and leaf temperature. A mixed temperature-precipitation signal is preserved in δ13Ctrc and δ18Otrc along SIB transect. The δ2Htrc data obtained for HL-transect provide information not only about growing seasonal moisture and temperature, but also capture autumn, winter and spring sunshine duration signals. We conclude that a combination of triple stable isotopes in tree-ring studies can provide a comprehensive description of climate variability across the boreal forest zone and improve ecohydrological reconstructions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Olga V Churakova Sidorova
- Siberian Federal University, 660041 Svobodny 79, Krasnoyarsk, Russian Federation; Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Zürcherstrasse 111, CH-8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland; Kasan Federal University, Institute of Geology and Petroleum Technology, Kremlyovskaya str. 18, Kazan 420008, Russian Federation.
| | - Trevor J Porter
- Department of Geography, Geomatics and Environment, University of Toronto Mississauga, 3359 Mississauga Road, Mississauga, ON L5L 1C6, Canada
| | - Mikhail S Zharkov
- Siberian Federal University, 660041 Svobodny 79, Krasnoyarsk, Russian Federation
| | - Marina V Fonti
- Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Zürcherstrasse 111, CH-8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - Valentin V Barinov
- Siberian Federal University, 660041 Svobodny 79, Krasnoyarsk, Russian Federation
| | - Anna V Taynik
- Siberian Federal University, 660041 Svobodny 79, Krasnoyarsk, Russian Federation
| | - Alexander V Kirdyanov
- Siberian Federal University, 660041 Svobodny 79, Krasnoyarsk, Russian Federation; Sukachev Institute of Forest SB RAS, Federal Research Center 'Krasnoyarsk Science Center SB RAS', 660036 Krasnoyarsk, Akademgorodok, Russian Federation
| | - Anastasya A Knorre
- Siberian Federal University, 660041 Svobodny 79, Krasnoyarsk, Russian Federation; Science Department, National Park "Krasnoyarsk Stolby", 660006 Krasnoyarsk, Russian Federation
| | - Martin Wegmann
- École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne EPFL, Limnology center, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Tatyana V Trushkina
- Reshetnev Siberian State University of Science and Technology, Krasnoyarsky Rabochy 31, 660037 Krasnoyarsk, Russian Federation
| | | | - Eugene A Vaganov
- Siberian Federal University, 660041 Svobodny 79, Krasnoyarsk, Russian Federation; Sukachev Institute of Forest SB RAS, Federal Research Center 'Krasnoyarsk Science Center SB RAS', 660036 Krasnoyarsk, Akademgorodok, Russian Federation
| | - Vladimir S Myglan
- Siberian Federal University, 660041 Svobodny 79, Krasnoyarsk, Russian Federation
| | - Rolf T W Siegwolf
- Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Zürcherstrasse 111, CH-8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - Matthias Saurer
- Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Zürcherstrasse 111, CH-8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland.
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Towards the Third Millennium Changes in Siberian Triple Tree-Ring Stable Isotopes. FORESTS 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/f13060934] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
Significant air temperature and precipitation changes have occurred since the 2000s in vulnerable Siberian subarctic regions and urged updates of available chronologies towards the third millennium. It is important to better understand recent climatic changes compared to the past decades, centuries and even millennia. In this study, we present the first annually resolved triple tree-ring isotope dataset (δ13C, δ18O and δ2H) for the eastern part of the Taimyr Peninsula (TAY) and northeastern Yakutia (YAK) from 1900 to 2021. We found that the novel and largely unexplored δ2H of larch tree-ring cellulose was linked significantly with δ18O for the YAK site, which was affected by averaged April–June air temperatures and evaporation. Simulated by the Land Surface Processes and Exchanges (LPX-Bern 1.0) model, the water fraction per year for soil depths at 0–20 and 20–30 cm was significantly linked with the new eco-hydrological tree-ring δ2H data. Our results suggest increasing evapotranspiration and response of trees’ water relation to rising thaw water uptake from lower (20–30 cm) soil depth. A positive effect of July air temperature on tree-ring δ18O and a negative impact of July precipitation were found, indicating dry conditions. The δ13C in larch tree-ring cellulose for both sites showed negative correlations with July precipitation and relative humidity, confirming dry environmental conditions towards the third millennium.
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