Seasonal variations of leaf wax n-alkane distributions and δ²H values in peat-forming vascular plants from the Dajiuhu peatland, central China

Abstract

Leaf wax n-alkane compositions have been widely applied to reconstruct paleoclimate histories in peat deposits, yet understanding of how the n-alkanes vary during seasonal plant growth remains limited. Here we report variations in the molecular and wax-derived n-alkane hydrogen isotope (δ²H_alk) in the three dominant vascular plant species (Sanguisorba officinalis, Carex argyi, Euphorbia esula) and surface peat deposits nearby from the Dajiuhu peatland over a growing season. All three species show a relatively high carbon preference index (CPI) in the beginning of the growing season, with the CPI values reaching as high as 50 in two of the three species. Two species (S. officinalis, E. esula) display relatively stable average chain length (ACL) values over the four sampling intervals, with standard derivations of 0.2–0.3. In contrast, C. argyi exhibits a significant fluctuation of ACL values (averaging 28.1±1.4) over the growing season. The δ²H_alk in all three species decreased during leaf growth. In the final stage of growth, the δ²H_alk values of the three species are similar to those in the surface peats collected from the peatland. Combining the results of our measurements of alkane concentration and δ²H values, it is likely that de novo synthesis of leaf wax n-alkanes in the peat-forming plant species is mainly at the early stage of leaf development. In the following months, the removal process exceeds renewal, resulting in a general decrease of the concentration of the total n-alkanes and the integrated δ²H_alk values. Thus the δ²H_alk values probably integrate the environmental variations at the end of the plant growth period rather than the whole period or the early growth period. These results are significant and have the potential to improve the utility of δ²H_alk values in paleoenvironmental reconstructions.

Graphical abstract

Keywords

peat-forming vascular plants / n-alkanes / δ²H ratio / seasonal variations / central China

References

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the National Natural Foundation of China (Grant No. 41903066) and the scientific research funds for universities (No. X19G028). Xianyu Huang, Philip A. Meyers and Haoxin Fan are thanked for their useful comments and English modification that improved the early version of the manuscript. Jinxiang Zhang and Weichao Wu are thanked for helping in the sample collection and lipid treatments. Dr. Yangmin Qin, Xinxin Wang and Prof. Hongmei Wang are acknowledged for their help during the field trips.

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