资源环境科技发展态势分析平台

The isomer distribution of branched glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraethers (brGDGTs) in soils has been shown to correlate to the local mean annual temperature. Here, we explore the use of brGDGT distributions as proxy for the elevation at which soil organic carbon is preferentially mobilized in the Central Himalaya. Soil BrGDGT distributions collected along an altitudinal profile, spanning elevations from 200 to 4450 m asl, are linearly correlated to elevation. We use this calibration to trace the provenance of soil organic matter in suspended sediments of rivers draining the Himalaya. BrGDGT distributions of fluvial sediments reflect the mean elevation of the soil‐cover in most catchments. Inverse modelling of the brGDGT dataset suggests similar relative contribution to soil organic carbon mobilization from different land‐covers within a factor two. We conclude that riverine soil organic carbon export in the Himalaya mostly occurs pervasively and is at the catchment scale insensitive to anthropogenic perturbations.