Stable isotope analysis of water sources for Tamarix laxa in the mega-dunes of the Badain Jaran Desert, China

Zhang, Jinhu; Wang, Nai’ang; Niu, Zhenmin; Dong, Chunyu; Zhang, Lyulyu

doi:10.1007/s40333-018-0069-z

Cited by 13 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…Previous studies have demonstrated the enrichment of the heavy isotopes in the shallow soil water relative to the deep soil water and groundwater because of soil surface evaporation (Gat et al, 2007;Zhang et al, 2018). It should be noted that soil water was not extracted from the 0-80 cm soil depth in the Tazhong site and from the 0-20 cm soil depth in the Aral site due to the extreme low SWC in these soil layers.…”

Section: Figmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…Water is an indispensable factor for plant growth, vegetation distribution and community composition (Rosenthal et al, 2005;Zhou et al, 2013;Zhang et al, 2018). In the desert ecosystem, water is extraordinarily valuable and has a decisive impact on the survival and distribution of plants.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Likewise, desert plants are accompanied by high vulnerability to climatic change in the extreme habitats. Moreover, climate change and over-exploitation of groundwater could severely injure desert species and affect the frail ecosystem (Dai et al, 2015;Zhang et al, 2018). Therefore, it is critical to obtain a high level of comprehension about the water use strategies of plants in the desert environment.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Plant water sources can be identified by comparing the isotope ratios of plant xylem water to the isotope concentrations of all potential water sources (Dai et al, 2015;Wu et al, 2016;Tiemuerbieke et al, 2018). In China, the water sources and water use strategies of Tamarix ramosissima, Tamarix laxa and Tamarix chinensis have previously been explored in the Gurbantunggut Desert, Badain Jaran Desert, Heihe River Basin and Dunhuang Oasis by many researchers (Cui et al, 2015;Sun et al, 2016;Wu et al, 2016;Zhang et al, 2018), and their findings indicated that the growth of these plants relies on water sources from different soil depths (Wu et al, 2014;Cui et al, 2015;Zhang et al, 2018). However, previous studies on water use of T. ramosissima have mainly focused on the desert riparian belt, and the upper and lower reaches of the Tarim River Basin (Wang et al, 2017;Zhou et al, 2017).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Stable oxygen-hydrogen isotopes reveal water use strategies of Tamarix taklamakanensis in the Taklimakan Desert, China

Zhou

Zhao

et al. 2020

J. Arid Land

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Tamarix taklamakanensis, a dominant species in the Taklimakan Desert of China, plays a crucial role in stabilizing sand dunes and maintaining regional ecosystem stability. This study aimed to determine the water use strategies of T. taklamakanensis in the Taklimakan Desert under a falling groundwater depth. Four typical T. taklamakanensis nabkha habitats (sandy desert of Tazhong site, saline desert-alluvial plain of Qiemo site, desert-oasis ecotone of Qira site and desert-oasis ecotone of Aral site) were selected with different climate, soil, groundwater and plant cover conditions. Stable isotope values of hydrogen and oxygen were measured for plant xylem water, soil water (soil depths within 0-500 cm), snowmelt water and groundwater in the different habitats. Four potential water sources for T. taklamakanensis, defined as shallow, middle and deep soil water, as well as groundwater, were investigated using a Bayesian isotope mixing model. It was found that groundwater in the Taklimakan Desert was not completely recharged by precipitation, but through the river runoff from snowmelt water in the nearby mountain ranges. The surface soil water content was quickly depleted by strong evaporation, groundwater depth was relatively shallow and the height of T. taklamakanensis nabkha was relatively low, thus T. taklamakanensis primarily utilized the middle (23%±1%) and deep (31%±5%) soil water and groundwater (36%±2%) within the sandy desert habitat. T. taklamakanensis mainly used the deep soil water (55%±4%) and a small amount of groundwater (25%±2%) within the saline desert-alluvial plain habitat, where the soil water content was relatively high and the groundwater depth was shallow. In contrast, within the desert-oasis ecotone in the Qira and Aral sites, T. taklamakanensis primarily utilized the deep soil water (35%±1% and 38%±2%, respectively) and may also use groundwater because the height of T. taklamakanensis nabkha was relatively high in these habitats and the soil water content was relatively low, which is associated with the reduced groundwater depth due to excessive water resource exploitation and utilization by surrounding cities. Consequently, T. taklamakanensis showed distinct water use strategies among the different habitats and primarily depended on the relatively stable water sources (deep soil water and groundwater), reflecting its adaptations to the different habitats in the arid desert environment. These findings improve our understanding on determining the water sources and water use strategies of T. taklamakanensis in the Taklimakan Desert.

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Section: Figmentioning

confidence: 97%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Stable oxygen-hydrogen isotopes reveal water use strategies of Tamarix taklamakanensis in the Taklimakan Desert, China

Zhou

Zhao

et al. 2020

J. Arid Land

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“…Based on the δ 13 C value, which is often used to distinguish carbon assimilation or water use strategy, T. ramosissima is traditionally regarded as a C 3 plant ( Zhang et al 2017 ). However, variations in the δ 13 C value caused by the influence of temperature, wind speed, precipitation and relative humidity (RH) ( Zhang et al 2018 ) also reflect conversion of water use strategy. In addition, a complete set of core genes of C 4 carbon fixation were found not only in the two Tamarix species, namely, T. ramosissima and Tamarix chinensis ( Swaminathan et al 2020 ), but also in Reaumuria soongorica , which belongs to the same family as Tamarix spp.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transcriptome profiling reveals that foliar water uptake occurs with C3 and crassulacean acid metabolism facultative photosynthesis inTamarix ramosissimaunder extreme drought

et al. 2022

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Tamarix ramosissima is a typical desert plant species that is widely distributed in the desert areas of Northwest China. It plays a significant role in sand fixation and soil water conservation. In particular, how it uses water to survive in the desert plays an important role in plant growth and ecosystem function. Previous studies have revealed that T. ramosissima can alleviate drought by absorbing water from its leaves under extreme drought conditions. To date, there is no clear molecular regulation mechanism to explain foliar water uptake (FWU). In the present study, we correlated diurnal meteorological data, sap flow and photosynthetic parameters to determine the physical and biological characteristics of FWU. Our results suggested that the lesser the groundwater, the easier it is for T. ramosissima to absorb water via the leaves. Gene ontology annotation and Kyoto Encyclopaedia of Genes and Genomes pathway analysis of the transcriptome profile of plants subjected to high humidity suggested that FWU was highly correlated to carbohydrate metabolism, energy transfer, pyruvate metabolism, hormone signal transduction and plant–pathogen interaction. Interestingly, as a C3 plant, genes such as PEPC, PPDK, MDH and RuBP, which are involved in crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM) photosynthesis, were highly upregulated and accompanied by FWU. Therefore, we proposed that in the case of sufficient water supply, C3 photosynthesis is used in T. ramosissima, whereas in cases of extreme drought, starch is degraded to provide CO2 for CAM photosynthesis to make full use of the water obtained via FWU and the water that was transported or stored to assimilating branches and stems. This study may provide not only an important theoretical foundation for FWU and conversion from C3 plants to CAM plants but also for engineering improved photosynthesis in high-yield drought-tolerant plants and mitigation of climate change-driven drought.

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Analyses of water dependency of Haloxylon ammodendron in arid regions of Iran using stable isotope technique

Dehghan Rahimabadi,

Azarnivand,

Faghihi

et al. 2024

Environ Monit Assess

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Stable isotope analysis of water sources for Tamarix laxa in the mega-dunes of the Badain Jaran Desert, China

Cited by 13 publications

References 28 publications

Stable oxygen-hydrogen isotopes reveal water use strategies of Tamarix taklamakanensis in the Taklimakan Desert, China

Stable oxygen-hydrogen isotopes reveal water use strategies of Tamarix taklamakanensis in the Taklimakan Desert, China

Transcriptome profiling reveals that foliar water uptake occurs with C3 and crassulacean acid metabolism facultative photosynthesis inTamarix ramosissimaunder extreme drought

Analyses of water dependency of Haloxylon ammodendron in arid regions of Iran using stable isotope technique

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