The enduring mystery of differences between eddy covariance and biometric measurements for ecosystem respiration and net carbon storage in forests

Abstract

This article is a Commentary on Marshall et al. (2023), 239: 2166-2179. Both eddy covariance (EC) and ground-based (biometric) estimates of carbon (C) stocks and fluxes are used to understand current stocks and fluxes of C, their future trajectories, and responses to changing climates. EC measures C fluxes by quantifying the covariance between fluctuations in vertical wind velocity and CO2 concentrations (Baldocchi, 2003). EC measurements are continuous over a large area (c. 0.5km2 ), nondestructive, use a more standardized methodology, and are made at hundreds of locations across different ecosystem types globally. Biometric techniques use chambers to measure respiration fluxes, along with repeated measurements of soil and vegetation C pools, to estimate changes in those pools through time. Biometric measurements in forests have been made at thousands of sites across the globe, though typically only focusing on vegetation change.

Citation

Ryan, Michael G. 2023. The enduring mystery of differences between eddy covariance and biometric measurements for ecosystem respiration and net carbon storage in forests. New Phytologist. 239(6): 2060-2063.