Observed high and persistent carbon uptake by Moso bamboo forests and its response to environmental drivers

- The mean annual NEP of Moso bamboo forests was 602.7 gC m−2.
- The NEP of China's Moso bamboo forests was roughly estimated to be 0.027 PgC yr−1.
- The total NEP of Moso bamboo forests accounts for 15%-36% of China forest NEP.
- Extreme summer drought reduced 60-78% of NEP of Moso bamboo forests.

Moso bamboo (Phyllostachys edulis) is widely distributed in subtropical regions, especially in China. However, the capacity of Moso bamboo forests to sequester carbon remains poorly quantified at the ecosystem level. To our knowledge, this study reports the first use of the eddy covariance technique to measure and quantify the net ecosystem production (NEP) of Moso bamboo forests from 2011 to 2015. The mean annual NEP was 602.7 ± 59.7 g C m−2, which is far higher than that of the other forest types in subtropical China. The total NEP of China's Moso bamboo forests was roughly estimated at 0.027 Pg C yr−1, which accounts for 15-36% of the NEP of all forests of China. In Moso bamboo, the explosive growth pattern, high photosynthetic rate, and sufficient and synchronous water and heat availability, coupled with high atmospheric deposition of nitrogen and phosphorus contribute to the regulation of NEP dynamics and its carbon sequestration efficiency. An extreme drought that occurred in the July and August of 2013 significantly reduced the NEP of Moso bamboo forest by 60-78%. Our findings suggest that the carbon uptake of Moso bamboo forests is much higher than previously thought and that the large potential of these forests in mitigating climate change should not be ignored.