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2,078 results for “soil data”
Data from: Temporal carry-over effects in sequential plant–soil feedbacks
Plant-soil feedbacks (PSF) strongly influence plant performance. However, to what extent these PSF effects are persistent in the soil and how they are altered by species that subsequently condition the soil is unclear. Here we test how conspecific and heterospecific soil-conditioning effects interact across different soil-conditioning phases. We conducted a fully factorial glasshouse experiment where six plant species conditioned soils in two consecutive phases and measured the performance of Jacobaea vulgaris. The species that conditioned the soil during the second conditioning phase strongly determined the performance of J. vulgaris, but also the order and combination of species that conditioned the soil in the two phases accounted for a large part of the variance. For shoot biomass this interaction was the dominant variance component. We show that soil conditioning legacies carry-over and interact with the conditioning effects of succeeding plants. In the field, species replacements at the patch level often appear to be unpredictable and we suggest that sequential feedbacks may explain these apparently unpredictable transitions.
Data from: The interplay among intraspecific leaf trait variation, niche breadth and species abundance along light and soil nutrient gradients
It is assumed that widespread, generalist species have high phenotypic variation, but we know little about how intraspecific trait variation (ITV) relates to species abundance and niche breadth. In the temperate rainforest of southern Chile, we hypothesized that species with wide niche breadth would exhibit 1) high among-plot ITV, 2) a strong relationship between trait values and the environment, and 3) a close fit between traits and local environment trait optima. We measured leaf functional traits (leaf area, LMA, leaf N and P concentrations) of saplings in woody species, and compared the relative abundance of each species with its niche breadth, measured as the range of light, soil N and P availability. We used the slope of the linear regression of species' trait-environment relationships to assess the strength and direction of these relationships, and measured the degree to which species' trait values track the environmental optimum across plots. In some cases, species having wide niche breadth had high ITV in leaf N and also matched traits (LMA and leaf P) to local optima along the light gradient; they also had high ITV in general and matched leaf P to local optima along the soil P gradient. The relationship between species with wide niche breadth and the strength of intraspecific trait-environment relationships was generally weak and varied depending on the niche dimension and trait in question. Species varied considerably in the strength of trait-environment relationships and total magnitude of ITV, and this variation was not generally strongly related to species abundances or niche breadth patterns. In conclusion, trait variation at the community level is not driven by a few abundant, widely distributed species, but depends on the aggregate trait responses of both abundant and rare species. This makes it difficult to scale individual species trait responses up to the community level.
Data from: Plant species richness promotes soil carbon and nitrogen stocks in grasslands without legumes
1. The storage of carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) in soil are important ecosystem functions. Grassland biodiversity experiments have shown a positive effect of plant diversity on soil C and N storage. However, these experiments all included legumes, which constitute an important N input through N2-fixation. Indeed, the results of these experiments suggest that N2-fixation by legumes is a major driver of soil C and N storage. 2. We studied whether plant diversity affects soil C and N storage in the absence of legumes. In an 11-years grassland biodiversity experiment without legumes, we measured soil C and N stocks. We further determined above-ground biomass productivity, standing root biomass, soil organic matter decomposition and N mineralization rates to understand the mechanisms underlying the change in soil C and N stocks in relation to plant diversity and their feedbacks to plant productivity. 3. We found that soil C and N stocks increased by 18 and 16% in eight-species mixtures compared to the average of monocultures of the same species, respectively. Increased soil C and N stocks were mainly driven by increased C input and N retention, resulting from enhanced plant productivity, which surpassed enhanced C loss from decomposition. Importantly, higher soil C and N stocks were associated with enhanced soil N mineralization rates, which can explain the strengthening of the positive diversity-productivity relationship observed in the last years of the experiment. 4. Synthesis: We demonstrated that also in the absence of legumes plant species richness promotes soil carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) stocks via increased plant productivity. In turn, enhanced soil C and N stocks showed a positive feedback to plant productivity via enhanced N mineralization, which could further accelerate soil C and N storage in the long term.
Data from: Unraveling the mechanisms underlying pulse dynamics of soil respiration in tropical dry forests
Tropical dry forests are already undergoing changes in the quantity and timing of rainfall, but there is great uncertainty over how these shifts will affect belowground carbon (C) cycling. While it has long been known that dry soils quickly release carbon dioxide (CO2) upon rewetting, the mechanisms underlying the so-called 'Birch effect' are still debated. Here, we quantified soil respiration pulses and their biotic predictors in response to simulated precipitation events in a regenerating tropical dry forest in Costa Rica. We also simulated the observed rewetting CO2 pulses with two soil carbon models: a conventional model assuming first-order decay rates of soil organic matter, and an enzyme- catalyzed model with Michaelis–Menten kinetics. We found that rewetting of dry soils produced an immediate and dramatic pulse of CO2, accompanied by rapid immobilization of nitrogen into the microbial biomass. However, the magnitude of the rewetting CO2 pulse was highly variable at fine spatial scales, and was well correlated with the size of the dissolved organic C pool prior to rewetting. Both the enzyme-catalyzed and conventional models were able to reproduce the Birch effect when respiration was coupled directly to microbial C uptake, although models differed in their ability to yield realistic estimates of SOC and microbial biomass pool sizes and dynamics. Our results suggest that changes in the timing and intensity of rainfall events in tropical dry forests will exert strong influence on ecosystem C balance by affecting the dynamics of microbial biomass growth.
Data from: Plant and soil microbe responses to light, warming and nitrogen addition in a temperate forest
1. Temperate forests across Europe and eastern North America have become denser since the 1950s due to less intensive forest management and global environmental changes such as nitrogen deposition and climate warming. Denser tree canopies result in lower light availability at the forest floor. This shade may buffer the effects of nitrogen deposition and climate warming on understorey plant communities. 2. We conducted an innovative in-situ field experiment to study the responses of co-occurring soil microbial and understorey plant communities to nitrogen addition, enhanced light availability, and experimental warming in a full-factorial design. 3. We determined the effects of multiple environmental drivers and their interactions on the soil microbial and understorey plant communities, and assessed to what extent the soil microbial and understorey plant communities co-vary. 4. High light led to lower biomass of the soil microbes (analysed by phospholipid fatty acids), but the soil microbial structure, i.e., the ratio of fungal biomass to bacterial biomass, was not affected by light availability. The composition of the soil bacterial community (analysed by high-throughput sequencing) was affected by both light availability and warming (and their interaction), but not by nitrogen addition. Yet, the number of unique operational taxonomic units was high in plots with nitrogen addition, and there were significant interactive effects of light and nitrogen addition. Light availability also determined the composition of the plant community; no effects of nitrogen addition and warming were observed. The soil bacterial and plant communities were co-structured, and light availability explained most variance of this co-structure. 5. We provide robust evidence for the key role of light in affecting both the soil microbial and plant communities in forest understoreys. Our results advocate for more multifactor global-change experiments that investigate the mechanism underlying the (in)direct effects of light on the plant–soil continuum in forests.
Data from: The Automated Root Exudate System (ARES): a method to apply solutes at regular intervals to soils in the field
1) Root exudation is a key component of nutrient and carbon dynamics in terrestrial ecosystems. Exudation rates vary widely by plant species and environmental conditions but our understanding of how root exudates affect soil functioning is incomplete, in part because there are few viable methods to manipulate root exudates in situ. To address this, we devised the Automated Root Exudate System (ARES), which simulates increased root exudation by applying small amounts of labile solutes at regular intervals in the field. 2) The ARES is a gravity-fed drip irrigation system comprising a reservoir bottle connected via a timer to a micro-hose irrigation grid covering c. 1 m2; 24 drip-tips are inserted into the soil to 4-cm depth to apply solutions into the rooting zone. We installed two ARES subplots within existing litter removal and control plots in a temperate deciduous woodland. We applied either an artificial root exudate solution (RE) or a procedural control solution (CP) to each subplot for 1 min d-1 during two growing seasons. To investigate the influence of root exudation on soil carbon dynamics, we measured soil respiration monthly and soil microbial biomass at the end of each growing season. 3) The ARES applied the solutions at a rate of c. 2 L m-2 wk-1 without significantly increasing soil water content. The application of RE solution had a clear effect on soil carbon dynamics but the response varied by litter treatment. Across two growing seasons, soil respiration was 25% higher in RE compared to CP subplots in the litter removal treatment, but not in the control plots. By contrast, we observed a significant increase in microbial biomass carbon (33%) and nitrogen (26%) in RE subplots in the control litter treatment. 4) The ARES is an effective, low-cost method to apply experimental solutions directly into the rooting zone in the field. The installation of the systems entails minimal disturbance to the soil and little maintenance is required. Although we used ARES to apply root exudate solution, the method can be used to apply many other treatments involving solute inputs at regular intervals in a wide range of ecosystems.
Data from: Dissecting the hydrological niche: soil moisture, space and lifespan
Questions: Are communities structured on a hydrological (soil moisture) gradient? Is there spatial segregation into hydrological niches? What is the shape of the hydrological niches of individual species? Controlling for spatial autocorrelation, how much of the spatial structure in the community is due to variation in hydrology? Do annuals and perennials behave alike with respect to the above questions? Locations: La Mina in Moscosa Farm, Salamanca, western Spain (dehesa community) and Laguna Larga in the Urbión Peaks, Soria, central-northern Spain (alpine grassland). Methods: The presence of plant species was sampled in two contrasting field sites, for which we also built hydrological models. First, we reduced the dimensionality of the plant distribution data (non-metric multidimensional scaling) and measured the correlation between the resulting ordination and the hydrological gradient. Then we defined hydrological niches and tested niche segregation of plant species against null models (Pianka metrics). Finally, we characterized the hydrological niche of each species using generalised additive mixed models and partitioned the species distribution variance into (1) a hydrological component, (2) a linear trend component and (3) and a spatial component, defined through sets of spatial variables (Moran's eigenvector maps). Results: Both plant communities were primarily structured along hydrological gradients, and spatial segregation into hydrological niches occurred among perennial species, although not among annuals in the dehesa community. Dehesa annuals were spatially aggregated in the driest niches. Hydrological variation shaped the responses of 60% of the annual and about 70% of the perennial species in both the dehesa meadow and the alpine community. Most responses were either monotonic or hump-shaped. Finally, spatially structured hydrological variation proved to be the main driver of spatially structured species composition in all cases. Conclusions: Linearly (gradient of slope) and topographically (at a fine scale) structured variation in hydrology is the main driver of spatially structured species composition in both communities. Our results support the ecological hypothesis that spatial niche segregation on soil moisture gradients is an important mechanism of co-existence for perennials in both test communities, although not for the species-rich sub-community of annuals in the dehesa meadow.
Data from: Surface and subsurface phosphorus discharge from a clay soil in a 9-year study comparing no-till and plowing
No-till as a water protection measure is highly efficient in controlling erosion and particulate phosphorus (PP) loss, but tends to increase dissolved reactive P (DRP) concentrations in runoff water. In a 9-year field study on a clay soil in SW Finland, the effects of no-till and autumn plowing on surface runoff and subsurface drainage water quality were compared. The site had 2% slope and was under spring cereal cropping, with approximately replacement fertilizer P rates. Vertical stratification of soil test P that had developed during a preceding 6-year grass ley was undone by plowing, but continued to develop under no-till. During the 9-yr study period, no-till soil had 27% lower cumulative total P losses than plowed soil (10.0 vs. 13.7 kg TP ha-1). Concentrations and losses of PP were clearly lower under no-till than plowing (5.6 vs. 12.3 kg PP ha-1), but DRP loss showed the opposite trend (4.3 vs. 1.4 kg DRP ha-1). There was an increasing trend in subsurface drainflow DRP concentration under no-till, possibly because of development of a conductive pore structure from soil surface to drain depth. The potential benefit of no-till in water protection depends on how much of the PP transported to water is transformed into a bioavailable form and used by aquatic organisms. The beneficial effect of no-till in controlling P induced eutrophication at the study site would only be realized if the bioavailable share of PP exceeds 43%. Otherwise no-till would not be an efficient eutrophication control measure at this site.
Data from: Soil fertility shapes belowground food webs across a regional climate gradient
Changes in soil fertility during pedogenesis affect the quantity and quality of resources entering the belowground subsystem. Climate governs pedogenesis, yet how climate modulates responses of soil food webs to soil ageing remains unexplored because of the paucity of appropriate model systems. We characterised soil food webs along each of four retrogressive soil chronosequences situated across a strong regional climate gradient to show that belowground communities are predominantly shaped by changes in fertility rather than climate. Basal consumers showed hump-shaped responses to soil ageing, which were propagated to higher-order consumers. There was a shift in dominance from bacterial to fungal energy channels with increasing soil age, while the root energy channel was most important in intermediate-aged soils. Our study highlights the overarching importance of soil fertility in regulating soil food webs, and indicates that belowground food webs will respond more strongly to shifts in soil resources than climate change.
Data from: Global effects of soil and climate on leaf photosynthetic traits and rates
Aim: The influence of soil properties on photosynthetic traits in higher plants is poorly quantified in comparison with that of climate. We address this situation by quantifying the unique and joint contributions to global leaf-trait variation from soils and climate. Location: Terrestrial ecosystems world-wide. Methods: Using a trait dataset comprising 1509 species from 288 sites, with climate and soil data derived from global datasets, we quantified the effects of 20 soil and 26 climate variables on light-saturated photosynthetic rate (Aarea), stomatal conductance (gs), leaf nitrogen and phosphorus (Narea and Parea) and specific leaf area (SLA) using mixed regression models and multivariate analyses. Results: Soil variables were stronger predictors of leaf traits than climatic variables, except for SLA. On average, Narea, Parea and Aarea increased and SLA decreased with increasing soil pH and with increasing site aridity. gs declined and Parea increased with soil available P (Pavail). Narea was unrelated to total soil N. Joint effects of soil and climate dominated over their unique effects on Narea and Parea, while unique effects of soils dominated for Aarea and gs. Path analysis indicated that variation in Aarea reflected the combined independent influences of Narea and gs, the former promoted by high pH and aridity and the latter by low Pavail. Main conclusions: Three environmental variables were key for explaining variation in leaf traits: soil pH and Pavail, and the climatic moisture index (the ratio of precipitation to potential evapotranspiration). Although the reliability of global soil datasets lags behind that of climate datasets, our results nonetheless provide compelling evidence that both can be jointly used in broad-scale analyses, and that effects uniquely attributable to soil properties are important determinants of leaf photosynthetic traits and rates. A significant future challenge is to better disentangle the covarying physiological, ecological and evolutionary mechanisms that underpin trait–environment relationships.
Data from: Vertical distribution of the soil microbiota along a successional gradient in a glacier forefield
Spatial patterns of microbial communities have been extensively surveyed in well-developed soils, but few studies investigated the vertical distribution of microorganisms in newly developed soils after glacier retreat. We used 454-pyrosequencing to assess whether bacterial and fungal community structures differed between stages of soil development (SSD) characterized by an increasing vegetation cover from barren (vegetation cover: 0%/ age: 10 years), sparsely-vegetated (13%/ 60 years), transient (60%/ 80 years) to vegetated (95%/ 110 years) and depths (surface, 5 and 20 cm) along the Damma glacier forefield (Switzerland). Stage of soil development significantly influenced the bacterial and fungal communities. Based on indicator species analyses, metabolically versatile bacteria (e.g. Geobacter) and psychrophilic yeasts (e.g. Mrakia) characterized the barren soils. Vegetated soils with higher C, N and root biomass consisted of bacteria able to degrade complex organic compounds (e.g. Candidatus Solibacter), ligno-cellulolytic Ascomycota (e.g. Geoglossum) and ectomycorrhizal Basidiomycota (e.g. Laccaria). Soil depth only influenced bacterial and fungal communities in barren and sparsely-vegetated soils. These changes were partly due to more silt and higher soil moisture in the surface. In both soil ages, the surface was characterized by OTUs affiliated to Phormidium and Sphingobacteriales. In lower depths, however, bacterial and fungal communities differed between both SSDs. Lower depths of sparsely-vegetated soils consisted of OTUs affiliated to Acidobacteria and Geoglossum whereas depths of barren soils were characterized by OTUs related to Gemmatimonadetes. Overall, plant establishment drives the soil microbiota along the successional gradient but does not influence the vertical distribution of microbiota in recently deglaciated soils.
Data from: The influence of topography and soil phosphorus on the vegetation of Korup Forest Reserve, Cameroun
All living trees (≥ 30 cm gbh) were enumerated in 135 80×80 m plots, each subdivided into four 40×40 m subplots, and arranged along four 5 km transect lines in the Korup Forest Reserve, Cameroun. For each plot altitude, slope and the extent of permanent and seasonal swamps were recorded. Four hundred and eleven taxa were recognized of which 66% were identified to species. Mean tree density was 471 ha−1, basal area 27.6 m2 ha−1 and number of species per plot 75. The subfamily Caesalpinioideae (Leguminosae) was the most abundant family/subfamily in terms of basal area, but the Scytopetalaceae the most frequently represented, mainly on account ofOubanguia alata. Ten plots had at least three quarters of their area permanently swamped, and three, to a similar extent, were seasonally swamped. The ranges in sand, silt and clay content were 60–91, 0–24 and 4–20% respectively. The pH value, organic carbon content and nitrate-nitrogen concentration ranged between 4.0–5.8, 1.3–5.7% and 0–35 ppm respectively. The largest soil variations were in available phosphorus, range 2–29 ppm, and potassium, 38–375 ppm. Correspondence analysis ordination of all plots showed a major indirect floristic gradient correlated with increasing altitude, slope and soil phosphorus and potassium. Removal of the topographic effect by separate re-ordinations of four groups of plots at low, middle (2) and high altitude/slopes highlighted a strong correlation of the main floristic gradients of the middle altitude/slope groups with the concentration of available soil phosphorus. Direct gradient analysis using all plots with respect to available soil phosphorus concentration confirmed the indirect analyses. Individual species response to phosphorus were also shown by direct comparisons in the vegetation on plots of high and low available soil phosphorus concentration. Low available phosphorus soils (≤ 5 ppm) are strongly associated with species of the subfamily Caesalpinioideae, especially of the tribes Amherstieae and Detarieae. It is suggested that this result is probably due to the ability of these particular legume tribes to form associations with ectotrophic mycorrhizae.
Data from: Belowground community responses to fire: meta-analysis reveals contrasting responses of soil microorganisms and mesofauna
Global fire regimes are shifting due to climate and land use changes. Understanding the responses of belowground communities to fire is key to predicting changes in the ecosystem processes they regulate. We conducted a comprehensive meta-analysis of 1634 observations from 131 empirical studies to investigate the effect of fire on soil microorganisms and mesofauna. Fire had a strong negative effect on soil biota biomass, abundance, richness, evenness, and diversity. Fire reduced microorganism biomass and abundance by up to 96%. Bacteria were more resistant to fire than fungi. Fire reduced nematode abundance by 88% but had no significant effect on soil arthropods. Fire reduced richness, evenness and diversity of soil microorganisms and mesofauna by up to 99%. We found little evidence of temporal trends towards recovery within 10 years post-disturbance suggesting little resilience of the soil community to fire. Interactions between biome, fire type, and depth explained few of these negative trends. Future research at the intersection of fire ecology and soil biology should aim to integrate soil community structure with the ecosystem processes they mediate under changing global fire regimes.
Data from: Soil-mediated effects of invasive ungulates on native tree seedlings
1. Invasive browsing ungulates can have strong impacts on the structure and composition of forest ecosystems, particularly where ungulates are not native ecosystem components as in New Zealand. Ungulate impacts on plant communities have been considered mostly from an above-ground perspective. However, understanding below-ground effects of these invasive herbivores is critical as they may drive feedbacks to above-ground ecosystem components. 2. We measured growth responses of seedlings of five common tree species in a greenhouse experiment in soils collected from 26 plots fenced to exclude invasive ungulates for at least 17 years and from paired, unfenced-control plots. We then further investigated soil-mediated effects of ungulates on one tree species, Melicytus ramiflorus, by partitioning these effects into soil abiotic and biotic components, as well as measuring arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal (AMF) root infection. 3. Biomass of seedlings of all five species was greater in soils from within exclosures, although this was only significant for two species. These soil-mediated effects were partially driven by changes in soil physical and chemical properties; soil bulk densities were lower inside exclosures than in controls. 4. Effects of invasive ungulates on seedling biomass of M. ramiflorus were positively related to effects on percent AMF root infection. The biomass of M. ramiflorus seedlings was positively related to the AMF infection of its roots, which in turn was related to greater organic matter content and lower bulk density of soils from within exclosures. Results for M. ramiflorus indicated that soil-mediated effects of ungulates on seedling biomass were of abiotic origin, but were mediated by the biotic soil component, i.e., through effects on AMF. 5. Synthesis Invasive herbivores may potentially impact on plant performance and community structure not only directly but also indirectly through influencing soil abiotic and biotic properties. Our results show that shifts in plant–soil interactions and feedbacks represent important but understudied pathways by which invasive ungulates can have wide-ranging impacts on forest ecosystems. Future studies should consider the importance of soil-mediated effects of invasive ungulates relative to direct effects of herbivory.
Data from: CO2 enrichment and soil type additively regulate grassland productivity
Atmospheric CO2 enrichment usually increases aboveground productivity (ANPP) of grassland vegetation, but the magnitude of the ANPP-CO2 response differs among ecosystems. Soil properties affect ANPP via multiple mechanisms and vary over topographic to geographic gradients, but have received little attention as potential modifiers of the ANPP-CO2 response. We assessed effects of three soil types, sandy loam, silty clay, and clay, on the ANPP response of perennial C3/C4 grassland communities to a subambient to elevated CO2 gradient over 10 years in Texas, USA. We predicted an interactive, rather than additive, effect of CO2 and soil type on ANPP. Contrary to prediction, CO2 and soil additively influenced grassland ANPP. Increasing CO2 by 250 μL L-1 increased ANPP by 170 g m-2 across soil types. Increased clay content from 10% to 50% among soils reduced ANPP by 50 g m-2. CO2 enrichment increased ANPP via a predominant direct effect accompanied by a smaller indirect effect mediated by successional shift to increased dominance of the C4 tallgrass Sorghastrum nutans. Our results indicate a large, positive influence of CO2 enrichment on grassland productivity that resulted from direct physiological benefits of CO2 augmented by species succession and was expressed similarly across soils of differing physical properties.
Data from: Wild boar (Sus scrofa) increases species diversity of semi-dry grassland: field experiment with simulated soil disturbances
Background Foraging activities of wild boar (Sus scrofa) create small-scale soil disturbances in many different vegetation types. Rooting alters species composition by opening niches for less-competitive plants and as a recurrent factor becomes a part of the community disturbance regime. Vegetation responses to wild boar disturbance have mostly been studied in the boar's non-native range or in native forest, rather than in open habitats in the native range. We investigate the response of open European semi-dry grassland vegetation dominated by (Brachypodium pinnatum) to native wild boar pressure in an abandoned agricultural landscape. Methods To describe the disturbance regime, we repeatedly mapped rooted patches during a 5-year period. Additionally, to study the vegetation response, we performed an artificial disturbance experiment by creating 30 pairs of simulated disturbances and undisturbed plots. The vegetation composition of the paired plots was repeatedly sampled five times in eight years of the study. Results Based on repeated mapping of disturbances, we predict that if the disturbance regime we observed during the 5-year period were maintained over the long term, it would yield a stable vegetation ratio consisting of 98.7 % of the grassland undisturbed, 0.4 % with fresh disturbance and 0.9 % in older successional stages. Vegetation composition on the artificially disturbed plots was continuously converging to that of undisturbed vegetation, but these disturbed plots still differed significantly in composition and had higher species number, even after eight years of succession. Synthesis Our results thus show that wild boar disturbance regime in its native range increases heterogeneity and species diversity of semi-dry grassland vegetation.
Data from: Predators in the plant-soil feedback loop: aboveground plant-associated predators may alter the outcome of plant-soil interactions
Plant-soil feedback (PSF) can structure plant communities, promoting coexistence (negative PSF) or monodominance (positive PSF). At higher trophic levels, predators can alter plant community structure by re-allocating resources within habitats. When predator and plant species are spatially associated, predators may alter the outcome of PSF. Here, I explore the influence of plant-associated predators on PSF using a generalized cellular automaton model that tracks nutrients, plants, herbivores, and predators. I explore key contingencies in plant-predator associations such as whether predators associate with live vs. senesced vegetation. Results indicate that plant-associated predators shift PSF to favor the host plant when predators colonize live vegetation, but the outcome of PSF will depend upon plant dispersal distance when predators colonize dead vegetation. I apply the model to two spider-associated invasive plants, finding that spider predators should shift PSF dynamics in a way that inhibits invasion by one forest invader, but exacerbates invasion by another.
Data from: Subordinate plants mitigate drought effects on soil ecosystem processes by stimulating fungi
The subordinate insurance hypothesis suggests that highly diverse communities contain greater numbers of subordinate species than less diverse communities. It has previously been reported that subordinate species can improve grassland productivity during drought, but the underlying mechanisms remain undetermined. Using a combination of subordinate species removal and summer drought, we show that soil processes play a critical role in community resistance to drought. Interestingly, subordinate species drive soil microbial community structure and largely mitigate the effect of drought on grassland soil functioning. Our results highlight subordinate species in shifting the balance within the phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) microbial community towards more fungal dominance. Fungal communities promoted by subordinate species were more resistant to drought and maintained higher rates of litter decomposition and soil respiration. These results emphasize the important role of subordinate species in mitigating drought effects on soil ecosystem functions. Reciprocal effects between fungi and subordinate species explain also how subordinate species better resisted to drought conditions. Our results point to a delayed plant–soil feedback following environmental perturbation. Additionally, they extend the diversity insurance hypothesis by showing that more diverse communities not only contain species well adapted to perturbations, but also species with higher impacts on soil microbial communities and related ecosystem functions.
Data from: The role of plant-soil feedbacks in stabilizing a reindeer-induced vegetation shift in subarctic tundra
1.Herbivory can drive vegetation into different states of productivity and community composition, and these changes may be stable over time due to historical contingency effects. Interactions with abiotic and biotic soil components can contribute to such long‐term legacies in plant communities through stabilizing positive feedbacks. 2.We studied the role of plant‐soil feedbacks in maintaining vegetation changes caused by historical (~1350‐1900 AD) reindeer herding in northern Sweden. These historical milking grounds (HMGs) consist of meadow plant communities formed in naturally nutrient poor heath or naturally nutrient rich shrub‐dominated vegetation, and are still clearly visible in the landscape, a century after active use ceased. 3.We selected two phytometer species: the forb Potentilla crantzii as representative of HMG vegetation, and the dwarf shrub Betula nana, as representative of control vegetation. We grew both species under glasshouse conditions on soils derived from replicated HMG and paired control plots, using live soils and sterilized (γ‐radiation)‐inoculated soils, to separate between biotic and abiotic soil effects. 4.A net negative plant‐soil feedback for B. nana biomass in its home (i.e., control) soil and a net positive feedback for P. crantzii in its home (i.e., HMG) soil in heath habitat was partly driven by the soil biotic community. However, abiotic differences in mineral nitrogen (N) concentrations between control and HMG soils were a stronger driver of differences in plant growth. Positive feedbacks maintaining a high mineral nutrient availability are thus important, especially in nutrient poor habitats. 5.The positive plant responses to higher soil mineral N concentrations, combined with positive biotic plant‐soil feedbacks, might shift the competitive balance in favour of typical HMG plant species, thereby contributing to stability of HMG plant communities. Our data indicate that herbivore‐driven changes in the interactions between plants and both biotic and abiotic components of the soil persist over long temporal scales.
Data from: Maintenance of soil ecotypes of Solidago virgaurea in close parapatry via divergent flowering time and selection against immigrants
1. The often patchy distribution of serpentine geology can lead to abrupt changes in soil and microclimates. Thus, serpentine areas provide an ideal natural laboratory to understand how divergent selection drives the process of local adaptation in edaphically endemic plant species. In case where the serpentine ecotype is surrounded by related non-soil specialists, a balance of natural selection and potential gene flow should be a key factor to maintain the different ecotypes over very short distances. We aimed to reveal the mechanisms to enable soil ecotypes of a goldenrod species to occur almost sympatric situations in Japan. 2. We performed field surveys to characterize microenvironments and reproductive timings of each ecotype, common garden and reciprocal transplant experiments, artificial crossing, and population genetic analysis. 3. Growth chamber experiments show that serpentine plants showed higher leaf mass per area and greater resource allocation to their root systems than did their non-serpentine counterparts, a potential adaptation to drier soil condition in serpentine habitats. Reciprocal transplants demonstrated a clear pattern of local adaptation in the plant growth rate. Importantly, serpentine populations completed flowering by mid-summer versus late summer in non-serpentine plants. This pattern is consistent with the hypothesis that early flowering ensures reproductive success, before the microclimatic conditions becomes severest in open habitats. Although prezygotic isolation was a strong barrier to gene flow, genetic differentiation was very low, indicating a recent origin for the serpentine ecotypes and/or gene flow at low frequencies. 4. Synthesis. The findings indicate that the early-flowering times of serpentine ecotypes, which would have been selected for by microclimates in serpentine areas, can play roles in local adaptation, but also population isolation via a by-product of diverged reproductive timings. This study contributes to general understanding of the initial stages of plant ecological speciation under potential gene flow in very small geographic scales.
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Allen Brain Atlas
Allen Brain Atlas is an Allen Institute collection of brain map atlases, datasets, APIs, and analysis tools covering mouse, human, and non-human primate brain resources.
Annotated Behaviour and Observability Dataset (ABODe)
ABODe is a University of Edinburgh DataShare dataset for behavior classification in group-housed mice using home-cage video, identities, bounding boxes, ground-plate positions, and annotator labels.
DANDI Archive for NWB datasets
DANDI is a BRAIN Initiative archive for publishing and sharing neurophysiology data, including electrophysiology, optophysiology, and behavioral data packaged as NWB and related standards.
International Brain Laboratory public data
The International Brain Laboratory public data releases expose standardized mouse decision-making experiments, including Neuropixels recordings, widefield calcium imaging, behavior, and session metadata accessed through the ONE API.
OpenNeuro
OpenNeuro is a free, open platform for sharing neuroimaging datasets, with public search, dataset pages, and download paths for web, S3, DataLad, and the OpenNeuro CLI.