Global patterns and drivers of ecosystem functioning in rivers and riparian zones

TIEGS, SCOTT D.; COSTELLO, DAVID M.; ISKEN, MARK W.; WOODWARD, GUY; MCINTYRE, PETER B.; GESSNER, MARK O.; CHAUVET, ERIC; GRIFFITHS, NATALIE A.; FLECKER, ALEX S.; ACUÑA, VICENÇ; ALBARIÑO, RICARDO; ALLEN, DANIEL C.; ALONSO, CECILIA; ANDINO, PATRICIO; ARANGO, CLAY; AROVIITA, JUKKA; BARBOSA, MARCUS V. M.; BARMUTA, LEON A.; BAXTER, COLDEN V.; BELL, THOMAS D. C.; BELLINGER, BRENT; BOYERO, LUZ; BROWN, LEE E.; BRUDER, ANDREAS; BRUESEWITZ, DENISE A.; BURDON, FRANCIS J.; CALLISTO, MARCOS; CANHOTO, CRISTINA; CAPPS, KRISTA A.; CASTILLO, MARÍA M.; CLAPCOTT, JOANNE; COLAS, FANNY; COLÓN-GAUD, CHECO; CORNUT, JULIEN; CRESPO-PÉREZ, VERÓNICA; CROSS, WYATT F.; CULP, JOSEPH M.; DANGER, MICHAEL; DANGLES, OLIVIER; DE EYTO, ELVIRA; DERRY, ALISON M.; VILLANUEVA, VERONICA DÍAZ; DOUGLAS, MICHAEL M.; ELOSEGI, ARTURO; ENCALADA, ANDREA C.; ENTREKIN, SALLY; ESPINOSA, RODRIGO; ETHAIYA, DIANA; FERREIRA, VERÓNICA; FERRIOL, CARMEN; FLANAGAN, KYLA M.; FLEITUCH, TADEUSZ; FOLLSTAD SHAH, JENNIFER J.; FRAINER BARBOSA, ANDRÉ; FRIBERG, NIKOLAI; FROST

Science Advances

American Association for the Advancement of Science

Año: 2019 vol. 5

River ecosystems receive and process vast quantities of terrestrial organic carbon, the fate of which dependsstrongly on microbial activity. Variation in and controls of processing rates, however, are poorly characterized atthe global scale. In response, we used a peer-sourced research network and a highly standardized carbon processingassay to conduct a global-scale field experiment in greater than 1000 river and riparian sites. We found that Earth?sbiomes have distinct carbon processing signatures. Slow processing is evident across latitudes, whereas rapid ratesare restricted to lower latitudes. Both the mean rate and variability decline with latitude, suggesting temperatureconstraints toward the poles and greater roles for other environmental drivers (e.g., nutrient loading) toward theequator. These results and data set the stage for unprecedented ?next-generation biomonitoring? by establishingbaselines to help quantify environmental impacts to the functioning of ecosystems at a global scale