Éditeur(s) : Elsevier
Résumé : The distribution and speciation of mercury (Hg) in the water column, the inputs (wet deposition and tributaries) and the outputs (atmospheric evasion and outlet) of an artificial partially anoxic tropical lake (Petit-Sa-Lit reservoir, French Guiana) were investigated oil a seasonal basis in order to appraise the cycling and transformations of this metal. The total mercury (HgT) concentrations in the oxygenated epilimnetic waters averaged 5 +/- 3 pmol L-1 in the unfiltered samples (HgTUNF) and 4 +/- 2 pmol L-1 in the dissolved (HgTD) phase (< 0.45 mu m). On average, the monomethylmercury (MMHg) constituted 8%, 40%, and 18% of the HgT in the dissolved phase, tile particulate suspended matter and in tile unfiltered samples, respectively. Covariant elevated concentrations of particulate MMHg and chlorophyll a in the epilimnion suggest that phytoplankton is ail active component for the MMHg transfer in tile lake. In the anoxic hypolimnion the HgTUNF averages 13 +/- 6 pmol L-1 and tile HgTD 8 +/- 4 pmol L-1. The averages of MMHgP and MMHgD in hypolimnetic waters were two and three times the corresponding values of the epilimnion, 170 +/- 90 pmol g(-1) and 0.9 +/- 0.5 pmol L-1, respectively. In the long dry and wet seasons, at the flooded forest and upstream dam sampling stations, the vertical profiles of MMHgD concentrations accounted for two distinct maxima: one just below the oxycline and the other near the benthic interface. Direct wet atmospheric deposition accounted for 14 moles yr(-1) HgTUNF, with 0.7 moles yr(-1) as MMHgUNF, while circa 76 moles yr(-1) of HgTUNF, with 4.7 moles yr(-1) as MMHgUNF, coming from tributaries. Circa 78 moles (similar to 17% as MMHg) are annually exported through tile dam, while 23 moles yr(-1) of Hg-0 evolve in the atmosphere. A mass balance calculation suggests that the endogenic production of MMHgUNF attained 8.1 moles yr(-1), corresponding to a methylation rate of 0.06% d(-1). As a result, tile Petit-Saut reservoir is a large man-made reactor that has extensively altered mercury speciation in favor of methylated species.
Applied Geochemistry (0883-2927) (Elsevier), 2008-05 , Vol. 23 , N. 5 , P. 1101-1126

Droits : 2008 Elsevier Ltd All rights reserved.
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/2008/publication-4198.pdf
DOI:10.1016/j.apgeochem.2007.11.006
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00000/4198/

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Springer Verlag
Résumé : Coarse woody debris (CWD, dead wood sections a parts per thousand yen10 cm diameter) represents a large store of carbon in tropical forests; however, estimates of the flux of carbon from CWD in these forests remain poorly constrained. The objective of this study was to resolve the dry/wet season response of respiration in CWD (R (cwd)), and investigate the importance of biotic and abiotic factors for predicting the seasonal change of R (cwd) at the ecosystem level. This study presents a 4-month time series of R (cwd) measurements conducted on 42 dead trees (26 species) at the Paracou Research Station in French Guiana. R (cwd) measurements were repeated 13 times on each CWD sample from July to November 2011, spanning the transition from wet to dry season, and then from dry season to the following wet season. Seasonal drought caused monthly R (cwd) to drop by 20.5 +/- A 5.1% over the wet-dry transition. Changes in woody tissue moisture content explained 41.9% of the measured seasonal variability in R (cwd), but 60% of the seasonal variability in mean forest R (cwd) rates could be modelled using surface soil water content. We estimate that R (cwd) is approximately 5% of annual ecosystem respiration (R (eco)) and that seasonal variations in R (cwd) contribute appreciably to seasonal variations of R (eco), and should be included in functional models simulating the response of tropical rainforest ecosystems to current and future climate.
ISSN: 1432-9840

hal-01032431
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032431
DOI : 10.1007/s10021-013-9684-x

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD
Résumé : Biogenic volatile organic compound (BVOCs) emissions play an important role in regional air quality and global atmospheric chemistry. In addition, these natural VOC emissions serve important biological functions including attracting and repelling pollinators and herbivores. Some biological organisms use ambient air as a communication medium and the oxidation of these compounds brings about the concentration gradients sensed by insects and other organisms. Isoprene is the predominant BVOC emitted by vegetation and tropical forests are the dominant global source. This compound is very reactive in the atmosphere and contributes to the reactions that control tropospheric oxidant concentrations and thus the concentrations and lifetimes of longer-lived species. This paper presents a study on the seasonal variations in isoprene and some other significant BVOCs such as µ-pinene, µ-pinene, limonene, e-µ ocimene and longifolene, measured at the Guyaflux Tower located in a wet tropical forest in Paracou French Guiana (5o16´54´´N, 52o54´44´´W), during the year of 2011, using the Relaxed Eddy Accumulation technique at approximately 20 meters high above the canopy. The results show a lower concentration of isoprene during the month of February and March which correspond to the wet season with an average of 0,545 µg/m3 and 0,341 µg/m3, respectively followed by a slight increase in middle April (still wet season) and a higher concentration later in mid-June. The same behavior was observed for µ-pinene with higher concentrations for the same periods as isoprene however with a smaller increase. All the other compounds had concentrations below 1 µg/m3during the whole year: The monoterpene, e-µ ocimene, was observed and is known as a stress compound but the vegetation at the site did not face any known severe stress condition such as excessive drought or flooding. Concerning the fluxes, the results showed that just a small amount of BVOCs were deposited by wet or dry process and the majority of them were released in the atmosphere. Isoprene was by far the biogenic volatile organic compound with the highest concentration and flux, followed by alpha-pinene. The lowest concentration and flux rate for all the studied compounds was observed during the months of March and late July and beginning of August indicating a lower production of those BVOCs by vegetation during those periods. Previous limited studies in Amazonia and the Congo suggested that a higher concentration and flux rate of isoprene and µ-pinene should be expected during the dry season with lower emissions during the wet season, which is in relative agreement with what was observed at this tropical forest site in French Guiana. The exceptions were observed in April and June which correspond to a long wet period in which the concentration of isoprene and µ-pinene increased more than it was expected for this time of the year. The observations will be compared to output from the global chemistry transport model CAM-chem, which includes the MEGAN biogenic emissions model.
10th EGU General Assembly
vienne, Austria

hal-01204214
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01204214
PRODINRA : 276525

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Public Library of Science
Résumé : Climate models predict a range of changes in tropical forest regions, including increased average temperatures, decreased total precipitation, reduced soil moisture and alterations in seasonal climate variations. These changes are directly related to the increase in anthropogenic greenhouse gas concentrations, primarily CO2. Assessing seasonal forest growth responses to climate is of utmost importance because woody tissues, produced by photosynthesis from atmospheric CO2, water and light, constitute the main component of carbon sequestration in the forest ecosystem. In this paper, we combine intra-annual tree growth measurements from published tree growth data and the corresponding monthly climate data for 25 pan-tropical forest sites. This meta-analysis is designed to find the shared climate drivers of tree growth and their relative importance across pan-tropical forests in order to improve carbon uptake models in a global change context. Tree growth reveals significant intra-annual seasonality at seasonally dry sites or in wet tropical forests. Of the overall variation in tree growth, 28.7% was explained by the site effect, i.e. the tree growth average per site. The best predictive model included four climate variables: precipitation, solar radiation (estimated with extrasolar radiation reaching the atmosphere), temperature amplitude and relative soil water content. This model explained more than 50% of the tree growth variations across tropical forests. Precipitation and solar radiation are the main seasonal drivers of tree growth, causing 19.8% and 16.3% of the tree growth variations. Both have a significant positive association with tree growth. These findings suggest that forest productivity due to tropical tree growth will be reduced in the future if climate extremes, such as droughts, become more frequent.
ISSN: 1932-6203

hal-01268529
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01268529
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01268529/document
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01268529/file/journal.pone.0092337.PDF
DOI : 10.1371/journal.pone.0092337

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Résumé :  
Large seasonal variation in the rate of change in girth of tropical rain-forest tree species has been described, but its origin is still under debate. We tested whether this variation might be related to variation in atmospheric relative humidity through its influence on bark water content and thickness. Variation in trunk circumference of 182 adult trees was measured about twice a month in an undisturbed tropical rain forest over 18mo using dendrometers. Furthermore, a laboratory experiment was conducted to test the direct influence of relative air humidity on bark water content and thickness. In the field, most trees displayed highly positive rates of change in girth at the onset of the wet season, while a quarter of the trees displayed negative changes during long dry seasons, whatever their total annual growth. This variation was correlated with environmental conditions, particularly with atmospheric relative humidity. Trees with high bark water content and thickness displayed a stronger decrease in girth during the dry season. In the chamber experiment, desiccation induced a decrease in the diameter of the trunk sections in tandem with a decrease in bark water content. As a result, seasonal variation in the rate of change in girth of tropical rain-forest trees reflects variation in trunk biophysical properties, through the influence of relative humidity on bark properties, but not directly variation in secondary growth.
ISSN: 0266-4674

hal-01032186
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032186
DOI : 10.1017/S0266467410000155

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
Résumé : International audience
We investigated infection of rodents and shrews by Leptospira spp. in two localities of Cambodia (Veal Renh, Kaev Seima) and in four types of habitat (forests, non-flooded lands, lowland rain-fed paddy fields, houses) during the wet and the dry seasons. Habitat preference was common, and rodent and shrew species were found only in houses or in rain-fed paddy fields or in forests. Among 649 small mammals trapped belonging to 12 rodent species and 1 shrew species, 71 of 642 animals tested were carriers of Leptospira according to the 16S ribosomal RNA marker used. Rodent infection was higher in low-slope locations, corresponding to rain-fed paddy fields, especially in the rainy season and in Kaev Seima. Rodents (Rattus exulans) and shrews (Suncus murinus) inhabiting households showed significantly low levels of infections, whereas rodents living in and near to forests (shrubby wasteland, orchards) showed high levels of infection.
American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene

pasteur-00808144
https://hal-riip.archives-ouvertes.fr/pasteur-00808144
DOI : 10.4269/ajtmh.2012.11-0349
PUBMED : 22665613

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Public Library of Science
Résumé : Climate models for the coming century predict rainfall reduction in the Amazonian region, including change in water availability for tropical rainforests. Here, we test the extent to which climate variables related to water regime, temperature and irradiance shape the growth trajectories of neotropical trees. . We developed a diameter growth model explicitly designed to work with asynchronous climate and growth data. Growth trajectories of 205 individual trees from 54 neotropical species censused every 2 months over a 4-year period were used to rank 9 climate variables and find the best predictive model. . About 9% of the individual variation in tree growth was imputable to the seasonal variation of climate. Relative extractable water was the main predictor and alone explained more than 60% of the climate effect on tree growth, i.e. 5.4% of the individual variation in tree growth. Furthermore, the global annual tree growth was more dependent on the diameter increment at the onset of the rain season than on the duration of dry season. . The best predictive model included 3 climate variables: relative extractable water, minimum temperature and irradiance. The root mean squared error of prediction (0.035 mm.d(-1)) was slightly above the mean value of the growth (0.026 mm.d(-1)). . Amongst climate variables, we highlight the predominant role of water availability in determining seasonal variation in tree growth of neotropical forest trees and the need to include these relationships in forest simulators to test, in silico, the impact of different climate scenarios on the future dynamics of the rainforest.
ISSN: 1932-6203

hal-01268350
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01268350
DOI : 10.1371/journal.pone.0034074
PRODINRA : 215438
PUBMED : 22506012

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
Lateritic surface processes have shaped large platform and cratons of the tropical belt. Constraining the timing of such processes is crucial to decipher their role in cratonic morphogenesis and their response to long-term climatic change and lithospheric deformation. Weathering histories have been documented for South America, Africa and Australia, but precise time constraints of the lateritic weathering processes in South India are still lacking. We present 40Ar/39Ar ages of supergene cryptomelane (K-Mn oxide) formed in the Sandur Mn ore deposits exposed on the highest lateritic paleolandsurface that once covered the Mysore plateau and the adjacent Deccan Traps. Significant 40Ar/39Ar ages are estimated between ~ 36 and ~ 26 Ma from well-defined plateaus in step heating 39Ar release spectra and from best-fitted inverse isochrones. These ages constitute firm time constraints that document intense late Eocene-Oligocene lateritic weathering over Peninsular India under the influence of warm and wet climate comparable to that prevailing in tropical humid forests. These results imply that Southern India was weathered between ~ 36 and 26 Ma and may have been dissected mostly in the Neogene.
ISSN: 0012-821X

Droits : info:eu-repo/semantics/OpenAccess
hal-01097320
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01097320
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01097320/document
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01097320/file/EPSL-D-13-00742R1_HAL.pdf
DOI : 10.1016/j.epsl.2013.11.002