Asset Details
Do you wish to reserve the book?
Contribution of cryptogamic covers to the global cycles of carbon and nitrogen
Hey, we have placed the reservation for you!
By the way, why not check out events that you can attend while you pick your title.
Oops! Something went wrong.
Looks like we were not able to place the reservation. Kindly try again later.
Are you sure you want to remove the book from the shelf?
Contribution of cryptogamic covers to the global cycles of carbon and nitrogen
Do you wish to request the book?
Contribution of cryptogamic covers to the global cycles of carbon and nitrogen
Please be aware that the book you have requested cannot be checked out. If you would like to checkout this book, you can reserve another copy
We have requested the book for you!
Your request is successful and it will be processed during the Library working hours. Please check the status of your request in My Requests.
Oops! Something went wrong.
Looks like we were not able to place your request. Kindly try again later.
Journal Article
Contribution of cryptogamic covers to the global cycles of carbon and nitrogen
2012
Overview
Many terrestrial surfaces are covered by photoautotrophic communities, which are capable of synthesizing their own food from inorganic substances using sunlight. According to an analysis of previously published data, these communities account for nearly half of the biological nitrogen fixation on land.
Many terrestrial surfaces, including soils, rocks and plants, are covered by photoautotrophic communities, capable of synthesizing their own food from inorganic substances using sunlight as an energy source
1
,
2
. These communities, known as cryptogamic covers, comprise variable proportions of cyanobacteria, algae, fungi, lichens and bryophytes, and are able to fix carbon dioxide and nitrogen from the atmosphere
3
. However, their influence on global and regional biogeochemical cycling of carbon and nitrogen has not yet been assessed. Here, we analyse previously published data on the spatial coverage of cryptogamic communities, and the associated fluxes of carbon and nitrogen, in different types of ecosystem across the globe. We estimate that globally, cryptogamic covers take up around 3.9 Pg carbon per year, corresponding to around 7% of net primary production by terrestrial vegetation. We derive a nitrogen uptake by cryptogamic covers of around 49 Tg per year, suggesting that cryptogamic covers account for nearly half of the biological nitrogen fixation on land. We suggest that nitrogen fixation by cryptogamic covers may be crucial for carbon sequestration by plants.
Publisher
Nature Publishing Group UK,Nature Publishing Group
