Response of net reduction rate in vegetation carbon uptake to climate change across a unique gradient zone on the Tibetan Plateau

Abstract

The Tibetan Plateau (TP) has a variety of vegetation types that range from alpine tundra to tropic evergreen forest, which play an important role in the global carbon (C) cycle and is extremely vulnerable to climate change. The vegetation C uptake is crucial to the ecosystem C sequestration. Moreover, net reduction in vegetation C uptake (NRVCU) will strongly affect the C balance of terrestrial ecosystem. Until now, there is limited knowledge on the recovery process of vegetation net C uptake and the spatial-temporal patterns of NRVCU after the disturbance that caused by climate change and human activities. Here, we used the MODIS-derived net primary production to characterize the spatial-temporal patterns of NRVCU. We further explored the influence factors of the net reduction rate in vegetation C uptake (NRRVCU) and recovery processes of vegetation net C uptake across a unique gradient zone on the TP. Results showed that the total net reduction amount of vegetation C uptake gradually decreased from 2000 to 2015 on the TP (Slope = -0.002, P < 0.05). Specifically, an increasing gradient zone of multi-year average of net reduction rate in vegetation carbon uptake (MYANRRVCU) from east to west was observed. In addition, we found that the recovery of vegetation net C uptake after the disturbance caused by climate change and anthropogenic disturbance in the gradient zone were primarily dominated by precipitation and temperature. The findings revealed that the effects of climate change on MYANRRVCU and vegetation net C uptake recovery differed significantly across geographical space and vegetation types. Our results highlight that the biogeographic characteristics of the TP should be considered for combating future climate change.

Keywords: Climate change; Gradient zone; Net reduction rate; Tibetan plateau; Vegetation C uptake.