Quantifying photosynthetic capacity and its relationship to leaf nitrogen content for global‐scale terrestrial biosphere models

Abstract Photosynthetic capacity and its relationship to leaf nitrogen content are two of the most sensitive parameters of terrestrial biosphere models (TBM) whose representation in global‐scale simulations has been severely hampered by a lack of systematic analyses using a sufficiently broad database. Here, we use data of qualitative traits, climate and soil to subdivide the terrestrial vegetation into functional types (PFT), and then assimilate observations of carboxylation capacity, V max (723 data points), and maximum photosynthesis rates, A max (776 data points), into the C 3 photosynthesis model proposed by Farquhar et al. to constrain the relationship of ( V max normalised to 25 °C) to leaf nitrogen…

• SR
  Sight Research UK

  Award: quest010001
• NE
  Natural Environment Research Council

  Award: quest010001