Spatiotemporal Patterns and Driving Factors of Soil Organic Carbon Content: A Case Study from a Montane Region
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A comprehensive grasp of the vertical distribution profiles of soil organic carbon (SOC) and its underlying governing mechanisms is fundamental to assessing terrestrial carbon stocks. Research efforts in mountain ecosystems, however, frequently fall short in providing depth-resolved analysis. This study investigated the spatial patterns and dominant drivers of SOC content across the full 0–200 cm soil profile in the Dabie Mountain Area (DMA), a subtropical montane region in central China. By utilizing high-resolution (250 m) SOC data and multi-source environmental variables for topography, climate, and soil properties, we employed hots pot analysis (Getis-Ord Gi*) and the geographical detector model to quantify spatial clustering and identify key influencing factors across six depth intervals in the DMA. The results showed that SOC content decreases exponentially with depth, with the surface 0–5 cm layer containing the highest concentration. A distinct shift in spatial organization occurred at an approximate depth of 60 cm: surface layers (0–60 cm) exhibited strong, clustered patterns (hot spots and cold spots), whereas deeper layers (>60 cm) transitioned to a more dispersed and spatially homogeneous distribution. Factor detection identified elevation and soil bulk density (SBD) as the most influential factors overall. More importantly, interaction detection revealed a depth-dependent transition in the dominant controlling complexes. In surface soils (0–15 cm), SOC heterogeneity was primarily governed by the interaction between topography (elevation) and soil properties (pH and SBD). In contrast, within the subsoil (15–200 cm), the interaction between climatic factors (temperature, precipitation) and soil properties (pH, SBD) became dominant. These findings demonstrated a fundamental shift from a topo-edaphic control regime in surface layers to a climate-edaphic control regime in deeper layers. This study provided a novel, three-dimensional perspective on SOC storage in mountains, highlighting the necessity of depth-resolved analyses for accurate carbon accounting and for formulating stratified land management strategies aimed at soil carbon conservation.
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