First Assessment of 2016-2017 Eddy Covariance CO2 Fluxes at the Tambopata Tower Site in the Southwestern Amazon

The Amazon forest biome displays well-defined northwest (higher) to southeast precipitation and southwest (higher) to northeast soil fertility gradients that characterize their productivity and which may influence their present-day carbon fluxes and future resilience to anthropogenic global change. Research consortia such as RAINFOR or GEM provide extensive plot-based long-term monitoring of primary productivity and carbon fluxes for the Amazon through biometric/allometric methodologies across these gradients. However, alternative, eddy covariance monitoring towers, are mainly located in the eastern Amazon which has essentially the entire installed base in South America. Eddy covariance monitoring in the Amazon is thereby focused on one end of the precipitation and soil fertility gradient.

Here we provide a first assessment for two-year seasonal eddy covariance CO₂ fluxes for a forest on the more fertile soils of the southwestern reaches of the Amazon. Data was obtained from a 45 m permanent tower located in the Tambopata National Reserve in Peru (latitude 12° 49' 54.30'' S, longitude 69° 16' 52.37'' W). The catchment has an area of about 2 km² and is covered by 30-m tall primary evergreen forest on soils that vary from well-drained to swampy, classed as Haplic Cambisols. The tower has installed capabilities for eddy covariance measurements of CO_2, H₂O and CH₄* fluxes, calibrated CO₂ concentrations, forest canopy temperatures and aerosol and ozone concentrations. It also has RAINFOR plot TAM07 in its flux footprint. We intend to increase monitoring capabilities of this tower-associated plot to carry out the full biometric protocol of RAINFOR intensive plots at regular intervals.

*currently on standby