| Abstract: | Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) originating in peatlands can be mineralized to carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4), two potent greenhouse gases. Knowledge of the dynamics of DOC export via run‐off is needed for a more robust quantification of C cycling in peatland ecosystems, a prerequisite for realistic predictions of future climate change. We studied dispersion pathways of DOC in a mountain‐top peat bog in the Czech Republic (Central Europe), using a dual isotope approach. Although δ13CDOC values made it possible to link exported DOC with its within‐bog source, δ18OH2O values of precipitation and run‐off helped to understand run‐off generation. Our 2‐year DOC–H2O isotope monitoring was complemented by a laboratory peat incubation study generating an experimental time series of δ13CDOC values. DOC concentrations in run‐off during high‐flow periods were 20–30 mg L?1. The top 2 cm of the peat profile, composed of decaying green moss, contained isotopically lighter C than deeper peat, and this isotopically light C was present in run‐off in high‐flow periods. In contrast, baseflow contained only 2–10 mg DOC L?1, and its more variable C isotope composition intermittently fingerprinted deeper peat. DOC in run‐off occasionally contained isotopically extremely light C whose source in solid peat substrate was not identified. Pre‐event water made up on average 60% of the water run‐off flux, whereas direct precipitation contributed 40%. Run‐off response to precipitation was relatively fast. A highly leached horizon was identified in shallow catotelm. This peat layer was likely affected by a lateral influx of precipitation. Within 36 days of laboratory incubation, isotopically heavy DOC that had been initially released from the peat was replaced by isotopically lighter DOC, whose δ13C values converged to the solid substrate and natural run‐off. We suggest that δ13C systematics can be useful in identification of vertically stratified within‐bog DOC sources for peatland run‐off. |
