Abstract
The transfer of organic carbon from the terrestrial biosphere to the oceans via erosion and riverine transport constitutes an important component of the global carbon cycle1,2,3,4. More than one third of this organic carbon flux comes from sediment-laden rivers that drain the mountains in the western Pacific region3,5. This region is prone to tropical cyclones, but their role in sourcing and transferring vegetation and soil is not well constrained. Here we measure particulate organic carbon load and composition in the LiWu River, Taiwan, during cyclone-triggered floods. We correct for fossil particulate organic carbon using radiocarbon, and find that the concentration of particulate organic carbon from vegetation and soils is positively correlated with water discharge. Floods have been shown to carry large amounts of clastic sediment6. Non-fossil particulate organic carbon transported at the same time may be buried offshore under high rates of sediment accumulation7,8,9. We estimate that on decadal timescales, 77–92% of non-fossil particulate organic carbon eroded from the LiWu catchment is transported during large, cyclone-induced floods. We suggest that tropical cyclones, which affect many forested mountains within the Intertropical Convergence Zone10, may provide optimum conditions for the delivery and burial of non-fossil particulate organic carbon in the ocean. This carbon transfer is moderated by the frequency, intensity and duration of tropical cyclones.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 12 print issues and online access
$259.00 per year
only $21.58 per issue
Rent or buy this article
Prices vary by article type
from$1.95
to$39.95
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Ittekkot, V. Global trends in the nature of organic-matter in river suspensions. Nature 332, 436–438 (1988).
Meybeck, M. Interactions of C, N, P and S Biogeochemical Cycles and Global Change 163–193 (Springer, 1993).
Schlünz, B. & Schneider, R. R. Transport of terrestrial organic carbon to the oceans by rivers: Re-estimating flux and burial rates. Int. J. Earth Sci. 88, 599–606 (2000).
Stallard, R. F. Terrestrial sedimentation and the carbon cycle: Coupling weathering and erosion to carbon burial. Glob. Biogeochem. Cycles 12, 231–257 (1998).
Lyons, W. B., Nezat, C. A., Carey, A. E. & Hicks, D. M. Organic carbon fluxes to the ocean from high-standing islands. Geology 30, 443–446 (2002).
Milliman, J. D. & Kao, S. J. Hyperpycnal discharge of fluvial sediment to the ocean: Impact of Super-Typhoon Herb (1996) on Taiwanese rivers. J. Geol. 113, 503–516 (2005).
Canfield, D. E. Factors influencing organic-carbon preservation in marine sediments. Chem. Geol. 114, 315–329 (1994).
Burdige, D. J. Burial of terrestrial organic matter in marine sediments: A reassessment. Glob. Biogeochem. Cycles 19, GB4011 (2005).
Galy, V. et al. Efficient organic carbon burial in the Bengal fan sustained by the Himalayan erosional system. Nature 450, 407–410 (2007).
Webster, P. J., Holland, G. J., Curry, J. A. & Chang, H. R. Changes in tropical cyclone number, duration, and intensity in a warming environment. Science 309, 1844–1846 (2005).
Burbank, D. W. et al. Bedrock incision, rock uplift, and threshold hillslopes in the northwestern Himalaya. Nature 379, 505–510 (1996).
Hilton, R. G., Galy, A. & Hovius, N. Riverine particulate organic carbon from an active mountain belt: The importance of landslides. Glob. Biogeochem. Cycles 22, GB1017 (2008).
Leithold, E. L., Blair, N. E. & Perkey, D. W. Geomorphologic controls on the age of particulate organic carbon from small mountainous and upland rivers. Glob. Biogeochem. Cycles 20, GB3022 (2006).
Hayes, J. M., Strauss, H. & Kaufman, A. J. The abundance of 13C in marine organic matter and isotopic fractionation in the global biogeochemical cycle of carbon during the past 800 Ma. Chem. Geol. 161, 103–125 (1999).
Blair, N. E. et al. The persistence of memory: The fate of ancient sedimentary organic carbon in a modern sedimentary system. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 67, 63–73 (2003).
Dadson, S. J. et al. Links between erosion, runoff variability and seismicity in the Taiwan orogen. Nature 426, 648–651 (2003).
Lin, K. C., Duh, C. T., Ma, F. C. & Wang, H. H. Biomass and nutrient content of woody debris in the Fu-shan subtropical broadleaf forest of northeastern Taiwan. Taiwan J. For. Sci. 18, 235–244 (2003).
Wu, C. C. & Kuo, Y. H. Typhoons affecting Taiwan: Current understanding and future challenges. Bull. Am. Meteorol. Soc. 80, 67–80 (1999).
Mulder, T. & Syvitski, J. P. M. Turbidity currents generated at river mouths during exceptional discharges to the world oceans. J. Geol. 103, 285–299 (1995).
Hicks, D. M., Gomez, B. & Trustrum, N. A. Event suspended sediment characteristics and the generation of hyperpycnal plumes at river mouths: East coast continental margin, North Island, New Zealand. J. Geol 112, 471–485 (2004).
Dadson, S. et al. Hyperpycnal river flows from an active mountain belt. J. Geophys. Res. 110, F04016 (2005).
Larsen, M. C., Torres-Sanchez, A. J. & Concepcion, I. M. Slopewash, surface runoff and fine litter transport in forest and landslide scars in humid tropical steeplands, Luquillo experimental forest, Puerto Rico. Earth Surf. Proc. Land. 24, 481–502 (1999).
Ludwig, W., Probst, J. L. & Kempe, S. Predicting the oceanic input of organic carbon by continental erosion. Glob. Biogeochem. Cycles 10, 23–41 (1996).
Chang, Y. F., Lin, S. T. & Tsai, C. C. Estimation of soil organic carbon storage in a Cryptomeria plantation forest of northeastern Taiwan. Taiwan J. For. Sci. 21, 383–393 (2006).
Zaks, D. P. M., Ramankutty, N., Barford, C. C. & Foley, J. A. From Miami to Madison: Investigating the relationship between climate and terrestrial net primary production. Glob. Biogeochem. Cycles 21, GB3004 (2007).
Hedges, J. I., Keil, R. G. & Benner, R. What happens to terrestrial organic matter in the ocean? Org. Geochem. 27, 195–212 (1997).
Nakajima, T. Hyperpycnites deposited 700 km away from river mouths in the central Japan Sea. J. Sedim. Res. 76, 60–73 (2006).
Saller, A., Lin, R. & Dunham, J. Leaves in turbidite sands: The main source of oil and gas in the deep-water Kutei Basin, Indonesia. AAPG Bull. 90, 1585–1608 (2006).
Emanuel, K. Increasing destructiveness of tropical cyclones over the past 30 years. Nature 436, 686–688 (2005).
Elsner, J. B., Kossin, J. P. & Jagger, T. H. The increasing intensity of the strongest tropical cyclones. Nature 455, 92–95 (2008).
Water Resources Agency (WRA), Ministry of Economic Affairs, Taiwan, <http://gweb.wra.gov.tw> Lushui Gauging Station 2460H005 (2008).
Gomez, B., Trustrum, N. A., Hicks, D. M., Rogers, K. M., Page, M. J. & Tate, K. R. Production, storage, and output of particulate organic carbon: Waipaoa River basin, New Zealand. Wat. Resour. Res. 39, 1161 (2003).
Levin, I. & Hesshaimer, V. Radiocarbon—A unique tracer of global carbon cycle dynamics. Radiocarbon 42, 69–80 (2000).
Acknowledgements
This work was supported by the UK Natural Environmental Research Council (NERC) and The Cambridge Trusts. Radiocarbon analyses were carried out on NERC allocation numbers 1203.1006 and 1228.0407. We thank Taroko National Park for access to research sites.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Contributions
R.G.H., A.G. and N.H. wrote the manuscript. M.C.C. collected the suspended load samples and R.G.H. and A.G collected soil samples. M.J.H. and H.C. provided hydrological data.
Corresponding author
Supplementary information
Supplementary Information
Supplementary Information (PDF 151 kb)
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Hilton, R., Galy, A., Hovius, N. et al. Tropical-cyclone-driven erosion of the terrestrial biosphere from mountains. Nature Geosci 1, 759–762 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1038/ngeo333
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/ngeo333
This article is cited by
-
The role of wood harvest from sustainably managed forests in the carbon cycle
Annals of Forest Science (2022)
-
Extreme rainstorms drive exceptional organic carbon export from forested humid-tropical rivers in Puerto Rico
Nature Communications (2022)
-
Carbon budget and balance critical processes of the regional land-water-air interface: Indicating the earth system’s carbon neutrality
Science China Earth Sciences (2022)
-
Tritium and 14C dependencies upon particulate organic matter within the nuclearized Rhone River (France)
Journal of Soils and Sediments (2022)
-
Estimating submarine groundwater discharge in Jeju volcanic island (Korea) during a typhoon (Kong-rey) using humic-fluorescent dissolved organic matter-Si mass balance
Scientific Reports (2021)