Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Effects of two common macrophytes on methane dynamics in freshwater sediments

  • Published:
Biogeochemistry Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The methane cycle in constructed wetlands without plants and withPhragmites australis (reed) and Scirpus lacustris (bulrush) wasinvestigated. Variations in CH4production largely determined variations in CH4 emission among the systems, rather than variations inCH4 storage and oxidation. Twofoldlower CH4 production rates in theScirpus system (5.6–13 mmol m-2 d-1) relative to the control (16.7–17.6 mmolm-2 d-1) were accompanied by a lower contribution ofmethanogenesis to organic carbon metabolism (∼20% for Scirpus vs.∼80% for control). Sedimentary iron(II) reservoirs were smallerin the Scirpus than control sediment (∼300 vs. ∼485 mmol.m-2) and a shuttle role for iron asan intermediate between root O2release and carbon oxidation, attenuating the availability of substrate formethanogens, is suggested. Differences in CH4 production among the Phragmites and Scirpus systemswere controlled by the interspecific variation in sediment oxidationcapacities of both plant species. Comparatively, in the Phragmites sediment,dissolved iron reservoirs were larger (∼340 mmol.m-2) and methanogenesis was a more importantpathway (∼80%). Methane transport was mainly plant mediated inthe Phragmites and Scirpus systems, but ebullition dominated in thenon-vegetated control systems as well as in the vegetated systems when plantbiomass was low.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Achtnich CF & Rude PD (1988) Competition for electron donors among nitrate reducers, ferric iron reducers, sulfate reducers, and methanogens in anoxic paddy soil. Biol. Fertil. Soils 19: 65–72

    Google Scholar 

  • Aller RC (1994) The sedimentary Mn cycle in Long Island Sound: Its role as intermediate oxidant and the influence of bioturbation, O2, and C org flux on diagenetic reaction balances. J. Mar. Res. 52: 259–295

    Google Scholar 

  • Armstrong W (1967) The oxidising activity of roots in waterlogged soils. Physiol. Plant. 20: 920–926

    Google Scholar 

  • Armstrong W, Brandle R & Jackson MB (1994) Mechanisms of flood tolerance in plants. Acta Botanica Neerlandica 43: 307–358

    Google Scholar 

  • Aselmann I & Crutzen PJ (1989) Global distribution of natural freshwater wetlands and rice paddies, their net primary productivity, seasonality and possible methane emissions. J. Atmos. Chem. 8: 307–358

    Google Scholar 

  • Bartlett KB, Bartlett DS, Harriss RC & Sebacher DI (1987) Methane emissions along a salt march salinity gradient. Biogeochemistry 4: 183–202

    Google Scholar 

  • Bedford BL, Bouldin DR & Beliveau BD (1991) Net oxygen and carbon-dioxide balances in solutions bathing roots of wetland plants. J. Ecol. 79: 943–959

    Google Scholar 

  • Berner RA (1980) Early Diagenesis – A Theoretical Approach. Princeton Univ. Press, Princeton

    Google Scholar 

  • de Bont JAM, Lee KK & Bouldin DF (1978) Bacterial oxidation of methane in a rice paddy. Ecol. Bull. 26: 91–96

    Google Scholar 

  • Boon PI & Mitchell A (1995) Methanogenesis in the sediments of an Australian freshwater wetland: Comparison with aerobic decay, and factors controlling methanogenesis. FEMS Microbiol. Ecol. 18: 175–190

    Google Scholar 

  • Burdige DJ (1993) The biogeochemistry of manganese and iron reduction in marine sediments. Earth-Science Reviews 35: 249–284

    Google Scholar 

  • Calhoun A & King GM (1997) Regulation of root-associated methanotrophy by oxygen availability in the rhizosphere of two aquatic macrophythes. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 63: 3,051–3,058

    Google Scholar 

  • Canfield DE, Thamdrup EB & Hansen JW (1993) The anaerobic degradation of organic matter in Danish coastal sediments: Fe reduction, Mn reduction, and sulfate reduction. Geochim. Cosmochim. Ac. 57: 3,867–3,884

    Google Scholar 

  • Capone DG & Kiene RP (1988) Comparison of microbial dynamics in marine and freshwater sediments: Contrasts in anaerobic carbon metabolism. Limnol. Oceanogr. 33: 725–749

    Google Scholar 

  • Chanton JP & Dacey JWH (1991) Effects of vegetation on methane flux, reservoirs, and carbon isotopic composition. In: Sharkey T, Holland E & Mooney H (Eds) Trace Gas Emissions by Plants (pp 65–92). Academic Press, San Diego

    Google Scholar 

  • Chanton JP, Martens CS & Kelley CA (1989) Gas transport from methane-saturated, tidal freshwater and wetland sediments. Limnol. Oceanogr. 34: 807–819

    Google Scholar 

  • Chanton JP, Whiting GJ, Happell JD & Gerard G (1993) Contrasting rates and diurnal patterns of methane emission from emergent macrophytes. Aquat. Bot. 46: 111–128

    Google Scholar 

  • Cicerone RJ & Oremland RS (1988) Biogeochemical aspects of atmospheric methane. Global Biogeochem. Cycles 2: 299–327

    Google Scholar 

  • DeLaune RD, Smith CJ & Patrick Jr WH (1983) Methane release from Gulf coast wetlands. Tellus 35B: 8–15

    Google Scholar 

  • Dunfield P, Knowles R, Dumont R & Moore TR (1993) Methane production and consumption in temperate and subarctic peat soils: Response to temperate and pH. Soil. Biol. Biochem. 25: 321–326

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Epp MA & Chanton JP (1994) Rhizospheric methane oxidation determined via the methyl fluoride inhibition technique. J. Geophys. Res. 98: 18,413–18,422

    Google Scholar 

  • Green MS & Etherington JR (1977) Oxidation of ferrous iron by rice (Oryza sativa L.) roots: A mechanism for waterlogging tolerance? J. Exp. Bot. 28: 678–690

    Google Scholar 

  • Hesslein RH (1976) An in situ sampler for close interval pore water studies. Limnol. Oceanogr. 21: 912–914

    Google Scholar 

  • Holzapfel-Pschorn A, Conrad R & Seiler W (1986) Effects of vegetation on the emission of methane from submerged paddy soil. Plant and soil 92: 223–233

    Google Scholar 

  • Holzapfel-Pschorn A & Seiler W (1986) Methane emission during a cultivation period from an Italian rice paddy. J. Geophys. Res. 91: 11,803–11,814

    Google Scholar 

  • Jähne B, Heinz G & Dietrich W (1987) Measurement of the diffusion coefficients of sparingly soluble gases in water. J. Geophys. Res. 92: 10,767–10,776

    Google Scholar 

  • Keller M & Stallard RF (1994) Methane emission by bubbling from Gatun Lake, Panama. J. Geophys. Res. 99: 8,307–8,319

    Google Scholar 

  • Kelley CA, Martens CS & Ussler III W (1995) Methane dynamics across a tidally flooded riverbank margin. Limnol. Oceanogr. 40: 1,112–1,129

    Google Scholar 

  • Kimura M, Murakami H & Wada H (1991) CO2, H2, and CH4 production in rice rhizosphere. Soil Sci. Plant Nutr. 37: 55–60

    Google Scholar 

  • King GM (1990) Regulation by light of methane emissions from a wetland. Nature 345: 513–515

    Google Scholar 

  • King GM (1994) Associations of methantrophs with the roots and rhizomes of aquatic vegetation. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 60: 3,220–3,227

    Google Scholar 

  • Knapp AK & Yavitt JB (1992) Evaluation of a closed-chamber method for estimating methane emissions from aquatic plants. Tellus 44B: 63–71

    Google Scholar 

  • Lovley DR & Klug MJ (1986) Model for the distribution of sulfate reduction and methanogenesis in freshwater sediments. Geochim. Cosmochim. Ac. 50: 11–18

    Google Scholar 

  • Lovley DR & Phillips EJP (1986) Availability of ferric iron for microbial reduction in bottom sediments of the freshwater tidal Potomac river. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 52: 751–757

    Google Scholar 

  • Matthews E & Fung I (1987) Methane emission from natural wetlands: Global distribution, area, and environmental characteristics of sources. Global Biogeochem. Cycles 1: 61–86

    Google Scholar 

  • Mayer HP & Conrad R (1990) Factors influencing the population of methanogenic bacteria and the initiation of methane production upon flooding of paddy soil. FEMS Microbiol. Ecol. 73: 103–112

    Google Scholar 

  • McAullife C (1971) GC determination of solutes by multiple phase equilibration. Chem. Technol. 1: 46–51

    Google Scholar 

  • Middelburg JJ, Klaver G, Nieuwenhuize J, Wielemaker A, Haas W, Vlug T & Nat van der F.J.W.A (1996) Organic matter mineralization in intertidal sediments along an estuarine gradient. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 132: 157–168

    Google Scholar 

  • Minoda T & Kimura M (1994) Contribution of photosynthesized carbon to the methane emitted from paddy fields. Geophys. Res. Lett. 21: 2,007–2,010

    Google Scholar 

  • Minoda T & Kimura M (1996) Photosynthates as dominant source of CH4 and CO2 in soil water and CH4 emitted to the atmosphere from paddy fields. J. Geophys. Res. 101: 21,091–21,097

    Google Scholar 

  • Moore TR & Roulet NT (1993) Methane flux: Water table relations in northern wetlands. Geophys. Res. Lett. 20: 587–590

    Google Scholar 

  • Nouchi I, Hosono T, Aoki K & Minami K (1994) Seasonal variation in methane flux from rice paddies associated with methane concentration in soil water, rice biomass and temperature, and its modelling. Plant and soil 161: 195–208

    Google Scholar 

  • Roden EE & Wetzel RG (1996) Organic carbon oxidation and suppression of methane production by microbial Fe(III) oxide reduction in vegetated and unvegetated freshwater wetland sediments. Limnol. Oceanogr. 41: 1,733–1,748

    Google Scholar 

  • Schütz H, Holzapfel-Pschorn A, Conrad R, Rennenberg H & Seiler W (1989a) A 3-year continous record on the influence of daytime, season, and fertilizer treatment on methane emission rates from an Italian rice paddy. J. Geophys. Res. 94: 16,405–16,416

    Google Scholar 

  • Schütz H, Seiler W & Conrad R (1989b) Processes involved in formation and emission of methane in rice paddies. Biogeochemistry 7: 33–53

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sebacher DI, Harriss RC & Bartlett KB (1983) Methane flux across the air-water interface: Air velocity effects. Tellus 35B: 103–109

    Google Scholar 

  • Sebacher D, Harriss RC & Bartlett KB (1985) Methane emissions to the atmosphere through aquatic plants. J. Environ. Qual. 14: 40–46

    Google Scholar 

  • Shannon RD, White JR, Lawson JE & Gilmour BS (1996) Methane efflux from emergent vegetation in peatlands. J. Ecol. 84: 239–246

    Google Scholar 

  • Sigren LK, Byrd GT, Fisher FM & Sass RL (1997) Comparison of soil acetate concentrations and methane production, transport, and emission in two rice cultivars. Global Biogeochem. Cycles 11: 1–14

    Google Scholar 

  • Sundby B, Vale C, Cacador I, Catarino F, Madureira M-J & Caetano M (1997) Metal-rich concretions on the roots of salt-marsh plants: mechanisms and rate of formation. Limnol. Oceanogr.: in press

  • van der Nat, FJWA & JJ Middelburg (1998) Seasonal variation in methane oxidation by the rhizosphere of Phragmites australis and Scirpus lacustris. Aquatic Botany (in press)

  • van der Nat, FJWA, de Brouwer, JFC, Middelburg, JJ & HJ Laanbroek (1997) Spatial distribution and inhibition by ammonium of methane oxidation in intertidal freshwater marshes. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 63: 4,734–4,740

    Google Scholar 

  • van der Nat, FJWA, Middelburg JJ, van Meteren D & A Wielemakers (1998) Diel methane emission patterns from Scirpus lacustris and Phragmites australis. Biogeochem. 41: 1–22

    Google Scholar 

  • Whiting GJ & Chanton JP (1992) Plant-dependent CH4 emission in a subartic canadian fen. Global Biogeochem. Cycles 6: 225–231

    Google Scholar 

  • Whiting GJ & Chanton JP (1993) Primary production control of methane emission from wetlands. Nature 364: 794–795

    Google Scholar 

  • Whiting GJ, Chanton JP, Bartlett DS & Hapell JD (1991) Relationships between CH4 emission, biomass, and CO2 exchange in a subtropical grassland. J. Geophys. Res. 96: 13,067–13,071

    Google Scholar 

  • Wiesenburg DA & NL Guinasso (1979) Equilibrium solubilities of methane, carbon monoxide and hydrogen in water and seawater. J. Chem. Eng. Data 24(4): 356–360

    Google Scholar 

  • Wigand C (1997) Effects of different submersed macrophytes on sediment biogeochemistry. Aquat. Bot. 56: 233–244

    Google Scholar 

  • Yavitt JB, Lang GE & Downey DM (1988) Potential methane production and methane oxidation rates in peatland ecosystems of the Appalachian mountains, United states. Global Biogeochem. Cycles 2: 253–268.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Estuarine and Coastal Ecology, Korringaweg 7, Netherlands Institute of Ecology, 4401, NT Yerseke, The Netherlands

    Frans-Jaco W.A. Van Der Nat & Jack J. Middelburg

Authors
  1. Frans-Jaco W.A. Van Der Nat
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Jack J. Middelburg
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jack J. Middelburg.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Van Der Nat, FJ.W., Middelburg, J.J. Effects of two common macrophytes on methane dynamics in freshwater sediments. Biogeochemistry 43, 79–104 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1006076527187

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1006076527187

Search

Navigation