Home – Home – Jornals – Flora and Vegetation of Asian Russia 2010 number 2

The carbon flux in grassland ecosystems of different bioclimatic zones within the Transbaikal region has been studied. The extra-arid steppe (Selenginskoye middle mountain area: sedge-grass-herbage community on meadow-chestnut soil), moderately arid forest-steppe (the Selenga River delta: herbage-grassy community on meadow-subsaline soil), cryoarid forest-steppe (Vitimskoye plateau: grass-herbage community on meadowchernozem cryosoils) were among them. NPP values in all ecosystems were low: 2404 g/m² per year in the forest-steppe zone, 1407 in the arid steppe zone, and 1540 in the cryoarid ecosystem. Prevalence of the below-ground part in the total biomass structure was revealed for all communities of continental territories. On account of short warm period the total CO₂ emission is low. It is maximal from the meadow-subsaline soil in moderately arid forest-steppe and evaluated as equal 1163 g C/m². The CO₂ emission from the meadow-chestnut soil is much lower (633 g C/m²), and falls to the minimal value (353 g C/m²) in the meadow-chernozem cryosoils. The soils appear as the significant depositary of the carbon.