Temporal dynamics of soil CO2 efflux in the Northern Pantanal of Mato Grosso, Brazil

To answer questions about the role of different ecosystems, especially wetlands, the carbon cycle, it is necessary to monitor the vertical fluxes of CO2, soil respiration, and all other parameters that can be correlated with them, so to quantify them and relate them. In this context we measured the soil CO2 efflux of a tree island (locally known as a cordilheira) in the Northern Pantanal, near Poconé, Mato Grosso and verified the influence of environmental parameters on the measurements. We also modeled values of Q10 (parameter used to characterize the dependence of the efflux of CO2 from the soil with the soil temperature) as a function of soil temperature and ground CO2 efflux a); as a comparison to our CO2 efflux measurements. The average soil CO2 efflux was 3.98×1.69 μmolm-2s-1. Soil temperature and O2 content significantly influenced CO2 efflux during inundation periods, high water and ebb, while soil moisture and soil CO2 concentration significantly influenced the CO2 efflux during periods of ebb and drought. The matric potential at 10 cm depth significantly influenced the CO2 efflux throughout the measurement period. The average value of the Q10 was 2.16, and did not differ statistically from the modeled Q10. The average value of the soil CO2 efflux estimated was 4.07×0.84 μmolm-2s-1, and was statistically similar to the average value measured.