Reactivity of litter DOM inputs and lateral subsurface flow DOM exports
Patterns of biological reactivity in DOM inputs in litter leachate between hillslopes matched those of DOM exports in subsurface flow. DOM inputs and exports on the second-growth hillslope had dissolved oxygen consumption rates more than twice those from old-growth, reflective of higher DOM reactivity (Fig 4). Similarly, the average respiratory quotient of DOM inputs from second-growth was 5 times higher than inputs to old-growth DOM (1.24, compared to 0.18 for old-growth, Table 2).