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181 results for “tree communities.”
Data from: Disturbance intensity is a stronger driver of biomass recovery than remaining tree-community attributes in a managed Amazonian forest
1.Forest recovery following management interventions is important to maintain ecosystem functioning and the provision of ecosystem services. It remains, however, largely unclear how aboveground biomass (AGB) recovery of species-rich tropical forests is affected by disturbance intensity and post-disturbance (remaining) tree-community attributes, following logging and thinning interventions. 2.We investigated whether annual AGB increment (∆AGB) decreases with management-related disturbance intensity (disturbance hypothesis), and increases with the diversity (niche-complementarity hypothesis) and the community-weighted mean (CWM) of acquisitive traits of dominant species (biomass-ratio hypothesis) in the remaining tree community. 3.We analysed data from a long-term forest-management experiment in the Brazilian Amazon over two recovery periods: post-logging (1983-1989) and post-thinning (1995-2012). We computed the ∆AGB of surviving trees, recruit trees and of the total tree community. Disturbance intensity was quantified as basal area reduction and basal area remaining. Remaining diversity (taxonomic, functional and structural) and CWM of five functional traits linked to biomass productivity (specific leaf area, leaf nitrogen and phosphorous concentration, leaf toughness and wood density) were calculated for the post-intervention inventories. Predictors were related to response variables using multiple linear regressions and structural equation modelling. 4.We found support for the disturbance hypothesis in both recovery periods. AGB increment of survivors and of the total tree community increased with basal area remaining, indicating the importance of remaining growing stock for biomass recovery. Conversely, AGB increment of recruit trees increased with basal area reduction because changes in forest structure increased resource availability for young trees. We did not find consistent support for the niche-complementarity and biomass-ratio hypotheses, possibly because of a high redundancy in these extremely species-rich forests. 5.Synthesis and applications. The intensity of disturbance through management, expressed as basal area reduction and basal area remaining, was consistently more important for explaining forest biomass recovery following harvesting and thinning than remaining diversity or trait composition. This points to the importance of controlling logging and thinning intensity in forests of the eastern Amazon. Low to moderate harvesting intensities permitted by the current legislation for the Brazilian Amazon (30 m³ ha−1) will likely not impair biomass recovery in these forests.
Data from: Fungal communities influence decomposition rates of plant litter from two dominant trees species
The home-field advantage hypothesis (HFA) predicts that plant litter decomposes faster than expected underneath the plant from which it originates. We tested this hypothesis in a decomposition experiment where litters were incubated reciprocally in neighbouring European beech and Norway spruce forests. We analysed fungal communities in the litter through DNA metabarcoding and evaluated the effect of mesofauna (mites and springtails) on litter mass loss by using different litter-bag mesh sizes. Accounting for general differences in decomposition between litter and forest types, we found a significant home field advantage of 24%. Litter decomposed faster in the beech forest but spruce litter decomposed faster than beech litter. Fungal communities showed a clear dependency on both forest and litter type. Mesofauna did not affect litter mass loss rates or microbial species composition.
Data from: What shapes cerambycid beetle communities in a tropical forest mosaic? Assessing the effects of host tree identity, forest structure, and vertical stratification
Due to anthropogenic activities, tropical rain forests face many challenges in sustaining biodiversity and maintaining global climates. This study explores how forest successional stage, tree composition, and stratum affect communities of saproxylic cerambycid beetles—concealed feeders that play important roles in forest nutrient cycling. Forty trees in five families (Fabaceae, Lecythidaceae, Malvaceae, Moraceae, and Sapotaceae) were sampled in a mosaic of old-growth and secondary forest on the Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica. Bait branches yielded 3549 cerambycid individuals in 49 species. Species richness was almost identical in old-growth and secondary forest, and both yielded specialists, but abundance was higher in old-growth forest. Overall community structure was most strongly influenced by host plant species; within most plant families it was also impacted by forest successional status. Moraceae was the exception, presumably because the focal tree species was abundant in both old-growth and secondary forest. Several host and old-growth specialist species reached high densities within patches of old-growth forest, but seldom colonized apparently suitable trees within secondary forest. This suggests that even small areas of old-growth forest can act as refuges, but that secondary forest may act as a barrier to dispersal. The vulnerability of specialized saproxylic insects to land use change will be linked to the ability of their preferred hosts to disperse to and persist in successional habitats; rearing studies may provide the most accurate method to monitor community changes over time.
Data from: Community trees: identifying codiversification in the páramo dipteran community
Groups of codistributed species that responded in a concerted manner to environmental events are expected to share patterns of evolutionary diversification. However, the identification of such groups has largely been based on qualitative, post hoc analyses. We develop here two methods (PPS, K-F ANOVA) for the analysis of codistributed species that, given a group of species with a shared pattern of diversification, allow empiricists to identify those taxa that do not codiversify (i.e., "outlier" species). The identification of outlier species makes it possible to jointly estimate the evolutionary history of co-diversifying taxa. To evaluate the approaches presented here, we collected data from Páramo dipterans, identified outlier species, and estimated a "community tree" from species that are identified as having co-diversified. Our results demonstrate that dipteran communities from different Páramo habitats in the same mountain range are more closely related than communities in other ranges. We also conduct simulation testing to evaluate this approach. Results suggest that our approach provides a useful addition to comparative phylogeographic methods, while identifying aspects of the analysis that require careful interpretation. In particular, both the PPS and K-F ANOVA perform acceptably when there are one or two outlier species, but less so as the number of outliers increase. This is likely a function of the corresponding degradation of the signal of community divergence; without a strong signal from a co-diversifying community, there is no dominant pattern from which to detect and outlier species. For this reason, both the magnitude of K-F distance distribution and outside knowledge about the phylogeographic history of each putative member of the community should be considered when interpreting results.
Data from: Are Cecropia trees ecosystem engineers? The effect of decomposing Cecropia leaves on arthropod communities
Ecosystem engineers structure species richness and the composition of biological communities. Although several studies have uncovered the importance of engineering environments, few studies have evaluated the effect of pioneering plants as ecosystem engineers, especially in tropical environments. When dead, Cecropia leaves become architecturally complex, acquiring a tridimensional shape due to desiccation, and may facilitate other organisms. Here we evaluate the role of these dead leaves in structuring species richness, abundance, biomass, and composition of macroinvertebrate communities on leaf litter in six protected areas of Brazilian Atlantic Rainforest. Predators were larger, more abundant, and presented higher standing stock in the presence of dead Cecropia leaves compared to soil debris (i.e., common leaf litter); however, detritivores had the opposite patterns. This resulted in shifts in body size structure of the assemblage, thus causing inversion of biomass pyramids to top-heavy in advanced stages of Cecropia leaves desiccation. Dead Cecropia leaves did not influence species richness and abundance of species, but they influenced the biomass of detritivores and predators in the communities. Our results demonstrated that pioneer trees can act as ecosystem engineers, by facilitating communities of invertebrate predators. In addition, our results suggest that the presence of Cecropia leaves can mediate trophic interactions and shape food web structure on the forest floor.
Data from: Neighborhood defense gene similarity effects on tree performance: a community transcriptomic approach
The structure and dynamics of ecological communities are ultimately the outcome of the differential demographic rates of individuals. Individual growth and mortality rates largely result from the interaction between an organism's phenotype and the abiotic and biotic environment. Functional traits have been used extensively over the past decade to elucidate links among phenotypes, demography and community dynamics. A fundamental weakness of most functional trait approaches is the use of 'soft' traits associated with resource acquisition to examine how neighbourhood similarity affects tree survival and growth. However, these 'soft' traits are unlikely to be good predictors of similarities among co-occurring species. Less easily measured aspects of organismal function – such as those related to defence – have frequently gone unmeasured. This is particularly problematic for testing important hypotheses in forest ecology, such as the Janzen–Connell hypothesis where focal trees are expected to be at a disadvantage if their neighbours share the same natural enemies. A potential alternative to functional trait approaches is to quantify the transcriptomic or functional genomic similarity of species. Such analyses are now possible in natural systems where de novo transciptome assemblies can be used to conduct functional phylogenomic analyses where homologous gene trees are produced. Using demographic plot data for 21 species from a North American forest dynamic plot, we conduct a community functional phylogenomic analysis of a plant community to elucidate the similarity in defence response genes across species. This similarity was then used to ask whether the similarity in defence genes of heterospecific species in the local neighbourhood of a focal individual tree influences its growth and mortality rates. The results show that individual growth rates are higher when surrounded by dissimilar heterospecific species for 16 of 27 defence genes analysed. Additionally, survival rates are increased when an individual is in a neighbourhood with dissimilar species for 4 of the 27 defence genes studied. Lastly, strong conspecific effects were found in all analyses, underscoring that future analyses investigating the genetic variation and differential expression of defence-related genes in neighbourhoods may prove important. Synthesis. In summary, this research leverages recent advances in RNA sequencing and bioinformatics to conduct community-wide transcriptomic analyses and analyses of defence-related gene similarity across a tree community. The results demonstrate that defence gene similarity in neighbourhoods often does have negative effects on individual demographic performance as predicted by the Janzen–Connell hypothesis.
Data from: Forest management intensity affects aquatic communities in artificial tree holes
Forest management could potentially affect organisms in all forest habitats. However, aquatic communities in water-filled tree-holes may be especially sensitive because of small population sizes, the risk of drought and potential dispersal limitation. We set up artificial tree holes in forest stands subject to different management intensities in two regions in Germany and assessed the influence of local environmental properties (tree-hole opening type, tree diameter, water volume and water temperature) as well as regional drivers (forest management intensity, tree-hole density) on tree-hole insect communities (not considering other organisms such as nematodes or rotifers), detritus content, oxygen and nutrient concentrations. In addition, we compared data from artificial tree holes with data from natural tree holes in the same area to evaluate the methodological approach of using tree-hole analogues. We found that forest management had strong effects on communities in artificial tree holes in both regions and across the season. Abundance and species richness declined, community composition shifted and detritus content declined with increasing forest management intensity. Environmental variables, such as tree-hole density and tree diameter partly explained these changes. However, dispersal limitation, indicated by effects of tree-hole density, generally showed rather weak impacts on communities. Artificial tree holes had higher water temperatures (on average 2°C higher) and oxygen concentrations (on average 25% higher) than natural tree holes. The abundance of organisms was higher but species richness was lower in artificial tree holes. Community composition differed between artificial and natural tree holes. Negative management effects were detectable in both tree-hole systems, despite their abiotic and biotic differences. Our results indicate that forest management has substantial and pervasive effects on tree-hole communities and may alter their structure and functioning. We furthermore conclude that artificial tree-hole analogues represent a useful experimental alternative to test effects of changes in forest management on natural communities.
Effects of tree species identity on soil microbial communities in Juglans nigra and Quercus rubra plantations.
<p>Black walnut (<i>Juglans nigra </i>L.) forestry within the Central Hardwoods Region (CHR) has progressed primarily based on studies of trial and error among plantations. Although <i>J. nigra</i> wood has been used for everything from gunstocks in the Revolutionary War to the artfully crafted furniture of today, gaps exist in our knowledge base regarding the impact of this hardwood species on the soil. We aim to evaluate and analyze how <i>J. nigra</i> modified soil bacterial and fungal structure in conjunction with soil properties after 10 years of establishment. Additionally, we used another hardwood tree Northern red oak (<i>Quercus rubra </i>L.) for contrast. Our results showed soil microbial structure is influenced primarily by plant species; then by season, and lastly depth. The alpha-diversity index was increased in <i>J. nigra</i> compared to bulk soil values, whereas <i>Q. rubra</i> decreased the index. The most significant disparities in microbiomes were observed between plant species with <i>J. nigra</i> displaying greater enrichment in <i>Nitrospira</i>, <i>Geobacter</i>, <i>Steroidobacter</i>, <i>Bacillus</i>, and <i>Perlucidibaca</i> while<i> Q. rubra </i>more enriched in <i>Acidobacteria</i> (<i>GP1</i>, <i>GP2</i>, and <i>GP3</i>) and ectomycorrhizal fungi (<i>Tuber</i>, <i>Inocybe</i>, <i>Amanita</i>, and <i>Russula</i>). Finally, the co-occurrence networks showed that <i>J. nigra</i> increased node numbers while <i>Q. rubra</i> increased connection (edge) numbers. Additionally, the<i> Q. rubra </i>network displayed the highest mean degree, density, and clustering coefficient while <i>J. nigra</i> exhibited the highest modularity and average connectivity. In conclusion, our findings highlight the intricate interplay between CHR tree species and soil microbiota.</p>
Riparian cottonwood trees and adjacent river sediments have different microbial communities and produce methane with contrasting carbon isotope compositions
<p class="Abstract">Rivers and their adjacent riparian forests are intimately linked by the exchange of water, nutrients, and organic matter. Both riparian cottonwood trees and adjacent river sediments host microbial communities including archaeal methanogens, supporting methane production and emission to the atmosphere. Here we combine microbial community and stable isotope analyses to characterize the drivers of methane cycling in distinct anoxic habitats (river sediments versus riparian cottonwood stems) in the Oldman River, southern Alberta (Canada). We demonstrate that, differences in the chemical characteristics of organic matter support divergent microbial communities that generate methane from distinct metabolic pathways. Organic matter in river sediments had C/N ratios approximately 50-fold lower than in tree stems and had more diverse dissolved organic components. Contrasting substrate availability between river sediment and tree stems was likely the primary mechanism for the observed differences in bacterial and methanogen community compositions, and greater microbial diversity in river sediments than in tree stems. The methane carbon isotope composition (δ<sup>13</sup>C values) differed for the tree stem (-103.6 to -70.6‰) and river sediment (-55.1 to -48.4‰) environments, suggesting that methane was primarily produced via CO<sub>2</sub>-reduction in tree stems by Methanobacteriales, while river sediments produced more methane through acetate fermentation primarily by Methanosarcinales. This study demonstrates the importance of organic matter quality and microbial community composition in driving metabolic processes contributing to methane production and emission in rivers and adjacent riparian forests.</p>
Data from: The influence of historical dispersal on the phylogenetic structure of tree communities in the tropical Andes
We test for evidence of the Tropical Niche Conservatism or the Out of The Tropics hypotheses in structuring patterns of tree community composition along a 2000+ meter elevational gradient in the northern tropical Andes. By collecting and integrating data on the presence-absence of tree species within plots with phylogenetic information, we analyzed: 1) patterns of phylogenetic dispersion and species diversity along the elevational gradient based on indexes of net relatedness, nearest taxon relatedness, and species richness (α-diversity); and 2) the replacement of lineages along the gradient using the PhyloSorensen metric (β-diversity). More specifically, we established 20 0.25-ha permanent tree inventory plots between 750 and 2802 m asl where all individuals with Diameter at Breast Height (DBH) ≥ 10 cm were measured and identified. We then used a series of linear models to test for changes in α and β diversity between plots in relation to elevation. Neither the net relatedness index nor the nearest taxon index showed a significant relationship with elevation. However, there was greater phylogenetic over-dispersion at intermediate elevations; this likely reflects the mixing of species with contrasting origins from tropical and temperate lineages. β-diversity between plots was negatively related to the corresponding difference in elevation, indicating that closely related lineages occupy similar ranges of elevation and temperature. We conclude that the immigration of lineages from extra-tropical regions have significant effects in determining the phylogenetic structure of tree communities in tropical Andean forests.
Data for: Sun, Ogushi, Tseng -Lepidoptera species richness and community composition in urban street trees
<p>The triple threats of climate change, habitat loss, and environmental pollution have stimulated discussion on how urban areas can be modified to both mitigate heat increases and provide habitat for wildlife such as insects. The strategy of using trees to reduce temperatures has been adopted by numerous cities. However, the majority of street trees planted around the world are non-native. Studies conducted in non-urban areas have demonstrated in comparison to native plants, non-native plants are less likely to support native insect diversity. Here we use a database approach to quantify the number of native Lepidoptera species associated with 76 of the most common street tree species planted in Vancouver, Canada. We tested the prediction that compared to non-native trees, native street trees will support a higher diversity and unique community of native Lepidoptera. As predicted, native street trees were associated with five times as many native Lepidoptera species, and the Lepidoptera communities supported by native vs. non-native street trees were distinct. There was no difference in native Lepidoptera associations between broadleaf vs. coniferous street trees. These results are consistent with studies that have used active sampling techniques to investigate insect richness on a smaller subset of native and non-native tree species. Collectively, these data provide good evidence that the planting native instead of non-native trees will help stem the loss of insect diversity in urban areas.</p>
Data from: Climate interacts with the functional trait structure of tree communities to influence forest productivity
<p>Tree functional diversity can increase forest productivity by enhancing species interactions and providing greater growth stability. However, very few studies have examined the influence of tree community trait structure on survivor growth, recruitment, and mortality simultaneously, which are the main drivers of forest population dynamics. Here we explore the interactions among functional diversity, productivity, and climate to investigate the role of the trait structure of communities on forest productivity and to determine under what circumstances functional diversity should be promoted to ensure forest adaptive capacity under future climate. Using random-forest modeling and a network of permanent sample plots covering a broad gradient of climatic conditions, we isolated the effects of functional diversity—described as the distribution of trait values in a community—and climate variables on net forest productivity (NFP), survivor growth, recruitment, and mortality. Based on our findings, community-level trait structure affects forest productivity in different ways. NFP was influenced by three traits from three different plant strategy dimensions, whereas survivor growth and recruitment were strongly correlated with leaf and resource acquisition traits, and tree mortality with a mix of traits reflecting various plant strategies. We also observed climate interactions with the functional trait structure of tree communities. For instance, we observed an interaction between drought tolerance and mean annual temperature: at low temperatures, NFP biomass accumulation increased with the value of the drought tolerance trait; however, at higher temperatures, the opposite pattern was observed. However, we found contrasting patterns of population response to climate variability, depending on their functional diversity. Greater functional diversity does not necessarily increase biomass accumulation under different climatic conditions.</p> <p><em>Synthesis</em>. As all components of forest productivity contribute to NFP, studies on forest productivity should not only consider survivor growth but also recruitment and mortality. Each component responds differently in terms of biomass changes to climatic variation, according to the trait structure of tree communities. This study provides a framework to identify the trait structure that should be targeted under different climate scenarios to anticipate change and help strengthen forest response capacity to climate change.</p>
Data from: Forest plant community as a driver of soil biodiversity: experimental evidence from collembolan assemblages through large-scale and long-term removal of oak canopy trees Quercus petraea
Plant–soil interactions are increasingly recognized to play a major role in terrestrial ecosystems functioning. However, few studies to date have focused on slow dynamic ecosystems such as forests. As they are vertically stratified by multiple vegetation strata, canopy tree removal by thinning operations could alter forest plant community through tree canopy opening. Very little is known about cascading effects on soil biodiversity. We conducted a large-scale, multi-site assessment of collembolan assemblage response to long-term canopy tree removal in sessile oak Quercus petraea temperate forests. A total of 33 experimental plots were studied covering a large gradient of canopy tree basal area, stand age and local abiotic contexts. Collembolan abundance strongly declined with canopy tree removal in early forest successional stage and this was mediated by negative effect of understory plant community composition changes, i.e. shift from moss and forb to tree seedling, fern, shrub and grass species. Negative effect of this composition shift on collembolan species richness was largely offset by positive effect of the increase in understory plant species richness. This gives support to both the plant mass-ratio and functional diversity hypotheses. Collembolan functional groups had contrasting response patterns, which were mediated by different ecological factors. Epedaphic (r-strategist) abundance and species richness increased with canopy tree removal in relation with the increase in understory plant species richness. In contrast, euedaphic (K-strategist) abundance and species richness declined with canopy tree removal in early forest successional stage in relation with changes in understory plant community composition and species richness, as well as microclimatic conditions. Overall, our study provides experimental evidence that forest plant community can be a strong driver of collembolan assemblages. It also emphasizes the role of trees as foundation species of forest ecosystems that can shape soil biodiversity through their regulation of understory plant community and ecosystem abiotic conditions.
Invasive tree cover covaries with environmental factors to explain the functional composition of riparian plant communities
<p>Invasive species are a major cause of biodiversity loss worldwide, but their impact on communities and the mechanisms driving those impacts are varied and not well understood. This study employs functional diversity metrics and guilds - suites of species with similar traits - to assess the influence of an invasive tree (<em>Tamarix</em> spp.) on riparian plant communities in the southwestern United States. We asked: 1) What traits define riparian plant guilds in this system? 2) How do the abundances of guilds vary along gradients of <em>Tamarix </em>cover and abiotic conditions? 3) How does the functional diversity of the plant community respond to the gradients of <em>Tamarix </em>cover and abiotic conditions? We found nine distinct guilds primarily defined by reproductive strategy, as well as height, seed weight, specific leaf area, drought and anaerobic tolerance. Guild abundance varied along a covarying gradient of local and regional environmental factors and <em>Tamarix </em>cover. Guilds relying on sexual reproduction, in particular those producing many light seeds over a long period of time were more strongly associated with drier sites and higher <em>Tamarix </em>cover. <em>Tamarix </em>itself appeared to facilitate more shade tolerant species with higher specific leaf areas than would be expected in resource poor environments. Additionally, we found a high degree of specialization (low functional diversity) in the wettest, most flood-prone, lowest <em>Tamarix </em>cover sites as well as in the driest, most stable, highest <em>Tamarix </em>cover sites. These guilds can be used to anticipate plant community response to restoration efforts and in selecting appropriate species for revegetation.</p>
Ectomycorrhizal fungal community assembly on seedlings of a Neotropical monodominant tree
<p>Ectomycorrhizal tree species may benefit from positive plant-soil feedbacks, where soil environments near adult trees enhance conspecific seedling growth and survival. In tropical monodominant forests seedling survival is particularly important, as seedling banks help maintain stand-level dominance over generations. Positive plant-soil feedbacks may be mediated by diverse ectomycorrhizal fungal communities, which improve nutrient acquisition of heavily shaded seedlings. Despite the potential importance of these fungi, little is known about ectomycorrhizal fungal community development on seedlings of tropical monodominant trees. In Guyana, we sequentially monitored percent colonization and species composition of ectomycorrhizal fungi on an even-age cohort of seedlings of the tropical monodominant tree <i>Dicymbe corymbosa </i>(Fabaceae subfamily Detarioideae). Ectomycorrhizal fungi found on <i>D. corymbosa </i>seedlings over a twelve-month period of early development were compared to those of conspecific adults and four other ectomycorrhizal tree species in the region. Species turnover was high (80%) between six- and twelve-month-old seedlings, though the /russula-lactarius, /clavulina, and /tomentella-thelephora lineages were species-rich on seedlings at all ages. The number of ectomycorrhizal morphotypes per seedling increased with age, but extent of fungal colonization did not. Seedling ectomycorrhizal fungi were shared with sympatric conspecific adults (55%) and, to a lesser extent, regional heterospecific adults (27%), but numerous species were previously unrecorded for Guyana<i>.<b> </b></i>Over their development<b> </b><i>D. corymbosa </i>seedlings did not rely strictly on adult trees for their mycobionts but appeared to foster unique assemblages of ectomycorrhizal fungi.</p>
Data from: BIOVERA-Tree: tree diversity, community composition, forest structure and functional traits along gradients of forest-use intensity and elevation in Veracruz, Mexico
<p>Here, we describe BIOVERA-Tree, a database on tree diversity, community composition, forest structure, and functional traits collected in 120 forest plots distributed along an extensive elevational gradient in Veracruz State, Mexico. BIOVERA-Tree includes information on forest structure from three levels of forest-use intensity, namely old-growth, degraded, and secondary forest, replicated across eight elevations from sea-level to near the tree line at 3500 m and on size and location of 4549 tree individuals with a diameter at breast height ≥ 5 cm belonging to 216 species, 154 genera, and 80 families. We also report measurements of eight functional traits, namely wood density for 143 species, maximum height for 216 species and leaf traits including: specific leaf area, lamina density, leaf thickness, chlorophyll content, and leaf area for 148 species and leaf dry matter content for 145 species.</p>
The contribution of environmental and dispersal filters on beta diversity patterns in Amazonian tree communities
<p>Environmental filters (e.g. climate, geomorphology and soils) and dispersal filters are key determinants of species distributions of Amazonian tree communities. However, a comprehensive analysis of the role of environmental and dispersal filters is needed to understand the ecological and evolutionary processes that drive phylogenetic and taxonomic turnover of Amazonian tree communities. We compare measures of taxonomic and phylogenetic beta diversity in 40 one-hectare plots to test the relative importance of climate, soils, geology, geomorphology, pure spatial variables and the spatial variation of environmental drivers of phylogenetic and taxonomic turnover in Ecuadorian Amazon tree communities. We found low phylogenetic and high taxonomic turnover with respect to environmental and dispersal filters. In addition, our results suggest that climate is a significantly better predictor of phylogenetic turnover and species turnover than geomorphology and soils at all spatial scales. The influence of climate as a predictor of phylogenetic turnover was stronger at broader spatial scales (50 km<sup>2</sup>) whereas geomorphology and soils appear to be better predictors of taxonomic turnover at mid (5 km<sup>2</sup>) and fine spatial scales (0.5 km<sup>2</sup>) but a weak predictor of phylogenetic turnover at broad spatial scales. We also found that the combined effect of geomorphology and soils was significantly higher for species turnover at all spatial scales but not for phylogenetic turnover at large spatial scales. Geographic distances as proxy of dispersal limitation was a better predictor of phylogenetic turnover at distances of 50<500 km. Our findings suggest that climatic variation at local and regional scales can better predict phylogenetic and taxonomic turnover than geomorphology and soils.</p>
Tree community composition stabilizes ecosystem functions in response to drought
In summer 2018, Central Europe was hit by an extreme drought event that widely impacted ecosystems and markedly increased tree mortality in forest ecosystems across the continent. As climate models predict an increase in frequency and severity of such events, there is an urgent need to adapt forests in order to maintain the diverse benefits they provide. Soil processes play an essential role in this context and are key for a plethora of terrestrial ecosystem functions but are strongly dependent on water availability. Here we investigated how tree species richness, composition, and identity in a 13-year-old temperate tree diversity experiment influenced selected ecosystem functions (as important representatives of different ecosystem processes) during the 2018 summer drought. We focused on the stability of soil microbial biomass and standard litter decomposition, as well as tree species-specific mortality rates. Contrary to our expectations, tree species richness did not generally increase the resistance of soil functions and decrease tree mortality rates. However, the resistance of these functions was determined by tree species identity and community composition. For the resistance of both soil functions (microbial biomass and litter decomposition), we found that tree species richness effects depended on the presence of certain tree species. Moreover, we found that the performance of a specific tree species in monoculture, Norway Spruce, was a poor predictor of its response to drought in tree species mixtures. Taken together, the results of our study demonstrate that the species composition of tree stands determines tree mortality and the resistance of soil functions under drought. This indicates that enhancing multiple ecosystem functions under environmental disturbance requires maintaining diverse forests.
Data from: Tree functional strategies and soil microbial communities regulate forest ecosystem services
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Data from: Partitioning the effect of composition and diversity of tree communities on leaf litter decomposition and soil respiration
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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.
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