Mulga, a major tropical dry open forest of Australia: Recent insights to carbon and water fluxes

Eamus, D; Huete, A; Cleverly, J; Nolan, RH; Ma, X; Tarin, T; Santini, NS

Mulga, a major tropical dry open forest of Australia: Recent insights to carbon and water fluxes

Eamus, D

Huete, A

Cleverly, J

Nolan, RH

Ma, X

Tarin, T Santini, NS

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Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: Environmental Research Letters, 2016, 11 (12)
Issue Date:: 2016-12-16

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Eamus, D https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2765-8040	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Huete, A https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2809-2376	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Cleverly, J https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2731-7150	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Nolan, RH https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9277-5142	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Ma, X https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1499-8476	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Tarin, T	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Santini, NS https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8319-8862	en_US
dc.date.issued	2016-12-16	en_US
dc.identifier.citation	Environmental Research Letters, 2016, 11 (12)	en_US
dc.identifier.issn	1748-9318	en_US
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/68190
dc.description.abstract	© 2016 IOP Publishing Ltd. Mulga, comprised of a complex of closely related Acacia spp., grades from a low open forest to tall shrublands in tropical and sub-tropical arid and semi-arid regions of Australia and experiences warm-to-hot annual temperatures and a pronounced dry season. This short synthesis of current knowledge briefly outlines the causes of the extreme variability in rainfall characteristic of much of central Australia, and then discusses the patterns and drivers of variability in carbon and water fluxes of a central Australian low open Mulga forest. Variation in phenology and the impact of differences in the amount and timing of precipitation on vegetation function are then discussed. We use field observations, with particular emphasis on eddy covariance data, coupled with modelling and remote sensing products to interpret inter-seasonal and inter-annual patterns in the behaviour of this ecosystem. We show that Mulga can vary between periods of near carbon neutrality to periods of being a significant sink or source for carbon, depending on both the amount and timing of rainfall. Further, we demonstrate that Mulga contributed significantly to the 2011 global land sink anomaly, a result ascribed to the exceptional rainfall of 2010/2011. Finally, we compare and contrast the hydraulic traits of three tree species growing close to the Mulga and show how each species uses different combinations of trait strategies (for example, sapwood density, xylem vessel implosion resistance, phenological guild, access to groundwater and Huber value) to co-exist in this semi-arid environment. Understanding the inter-annual variability in functional behaviour of this important arid-zone biome and mechanisms underlying species co-existence will increase our ability to predict trajectories of carbon and water balances for future changing climates.	en_US
dc.relation	http://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/
dc.relation	http://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/DP140101150
dc.relation	http://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/DP140102698
dc.relation.ispartof	Environmental Research Letters	en_US
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1088/1748-9326/11/12/125011	en_US
dc.subject.classification	Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences	en_US
dc.title	Mulga, a major tropical dry open forest of Australia: Recent insights to carbon and water fluxes	en_US
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	12	en_US
utslib.citation.volume	11	en_US
utslib.for	0607 Plant Biology	en_US
utslib.for	0602 Ecology	en_US
pubs.embargo.period	Not known	en_US
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Science
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Science/School of Life Sciences
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Strength - CAMGIS - Centre for Advanced Modelling and Geospatial lnformation Systems
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Students
utslib.copyright.status	open_access
pubs.issue	12	en_US
pubs.publication-status	Published	en_US
pubs.volume	11	en_US

Abstract:

© 2016 IOP Publishing Ltd. Mulga, comprised of a complex of closely related Acacia spp., grades from a low open forest to tall shrublands in tropical and sub-tropical arid and semi-arid regions of Australia and experiences warm-to-hot annual temperatures and a pronounced dry season. This short synthesis of current knowledge briefly outlines the causes of the extreme variability in rainfall characteristic of much of central Australia, and then discusses the patterns and drivers of variability in carbon and water fluxes of a central Australian low open Mulga forest. Variation in phenology and the impact of differences in the amount and timing of precipitation on vegetation function are then discussed. We use field observations, with particular emphasis on eddy covariance data, coupled with modelling and remote sensing products to interpret inter-seasonal and inter-annual patterns in the behaviour of this ecosystem. We show that Mulga can vary between periods of near carbon neutrality to periods of being a significant sink or source for carbon, depending on both the amount and timing of rainfall. Further, we demonstrate that Mulga contributed significantly to the 2011 global land sink anomaly, a result ascribed to the exceptional rainfall of 2010/2011. Finally, we compare and contrast the hydraulic traits of three tree species growing close to the Mulga and show how each species uses different combinations of trait strategies (for example, sapwood density, xylem vessel implosion resistance, phenological guild, access to groundwater and Huber value) to co-exist in this semi-arid environment. Understanding the inter-annual variability in functional behaviour of this important arid-zone biome and mechanisms underlying species co-existence will increase our ability to predict trajectories of carbon and water balances for future changing climates.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/68190