Above and belowground carbon pools are affected by dominant floral species in hyper-arid environments

Abstract

Introduction: Carbon (C) pools in desert ecosystems have not been well investigated, especially in relation to quantitative assessment for different compartments. In many ecosystems C uptake may increase, which leads to accelerated C cycling belowground. Methods: Therefore there is a strong need for C storage in compartments such as phytomass and/or within soils. In the present study we assessed C pools of different soil/vegetation associations as affected by the dominant tree and shrub species. Results: Mountain valleys had the highest C pool in the phytomass compartment with an average of 3.6 tons per hectare, of which 1.32 tons per hectare were contained aboveground. The introduced Prosopis juliflora had by far the highest average contribution of 3.47 tons of C per hectare. Most of which is in the above ground parts (83.3%) and the remaining is sequestered below ground. Halopeplis perfoliata, however, contributed the least C to the desert systems of the UAE. Some land forms, such as mountain valleys, were shown to sequester more C than others, which constitute a good reason to improve their conditions. Conclusions: Few shrub/tree species, such as P. juliflora, were also reported to have high potentials as a C pool in the hyper-arid environment of the UAE.