Spatial Variability of Carbon Dioxide Emission by Soils in the Main Types of Forest Ecosystems at the Zvenigorod Biological Station of Moscow State University

Carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emission from the soil surface in forest biogeocenoses of the Zvenigorod Biological Station of Moscow State University in summer varies on average from 120 to 350 mg C–CO 2 /(m 2 h) and depends on the hydrothermal conditions (soil moisture and temperature) and the type of phytocenosis. The intensity of CO 2 emission in the biogeocenosis does not depend on its parcel structure and varies with respect to plant microgroups: it is maximum in oxalis pine–spruce and maple–lime forests and bracken spruce–birch forests and minimum in areas of forest fall without vegetation. The upper (from 0 to 20 cm thick) soil layer provides up to 50% of the total soil CO 2 emission. The role of microbial respiration in the total CO 2 emission from soils is determined by weather conditions and varies from 9–33% in a dry summer to 55–75% in a summer with favorable temperature and moisture.