Impact of plant succession on greenhouse gas fluxes during the transition of a flooded fen peatland
Abstract It remains uncertain whether and when rewetting of drained fen peatlands contributes to climate change mitigation by reducing carbon dioxide and methane emissions. Recolonization by emergent macrophytes is considered a key factor in this process. We present 5 years of carbon dioxide and met...
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Nature Portfolio
2025-07-01
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| Series: | Communications Earth & Environment |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-025-02607-4 |
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| Summary: | Abstract It remains uncertain whether and when rewetting of drained fen peatlands contributes to climate change mitigation by reducing carbon dioxide and methane emissions. Recolonization by emergent macrophytes is considered a key factor in this process. We present 5 years of carbon dioxide and methane emission data from a rewetted fen peatland in northeast Germany. Four automatic chambers were installed along a transect perpendicular to the shoreline of a lake formed after rewetting, capturing three stages of plant succession: open water (1), initial recolonization by emergent macrophytes (2), and a stable emergent macrophyte community (3). Net carbon dioxide fluxes decreased progressively throughout the successional stages, while methane emissions exhibited a wave-like pattern, with a pronounced short-term increase during stage 2. Excluding this emission peak can lead to considerable underestimation of net emissions. Our findings highlight the importance of accounting for all successional stages to accurately assess the climate effects of rewetting. |
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| ISSN: | 2662-4435 |