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261 results for “litter decomposition”
Nutrient Network Oak Litter Decomposition:Nutrient Network. A cross-site investigation of bottom-up control over herbaceous plant community dynamics and ecosystem function.
This experiment is one implementation of a globally distributed experiment, known as the Nutrient Network. At Cedar Creek, as in over 70 other sites in grasslands around the world, the experiment aims to describe impacts of increased nutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, sulfur and other metals) and decreased herbivory (removal of mammals by fencing). Two overarching questions are being explored with these manipulations: 1. To what extent are plant production and diversity co-limited by multiple nutrients in herbaceous-dominated communities? 2. Under what conditions do grazers or fertilization control plant biomass, diversity, and composition? By utilizing identical protocols at diverse grassland sites around the world, NutNet aims to uncover both the generalities in ecosystem functioning, and the contingencies or differences which can obscure those common mechanisms. In addition to the standard NutNet protocol, e247 includes an additional low Nitrogen gradient (1 gram Nitrogen per meter squared per year and 5 grams Nitrogen per meter squared per year in addition to the standard 10 grams Nitrogen per meter squared per year).
Effect of calcium addition on litter decomposition; data from reciprocal litter transplant experiment at Hubbard Brook, NH
Cross-site syntheses of litter decomposition studies have shown that litter calcium (Ca) concentration may have a role in controlling the extent of decomposition of tree foliage. We used an ongoing watershed CaSiO4 addition experiment at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest in New Hampshire, USA, to test the hypotheses that increased Ca in litter would have no effect on the initial rates of litter decay but would increase the extent or completeness (limit value) of foliar litter decomposition. We tested these hypotheses with a 6-year litter decomposition experiment using foliar litter of four tree species that are prominent at this site and in the Northern Hardwood forest type of North America: sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marsh), American beech (Fagus grandifolia Ehrh.) yellow birch (Betula alleghaniensis Britt.) and white ash (Fraxinus americana L.). The experiment used a reciprocal transplant design with the Ca-treated watershed and a control site providing two sources of litter and two placement sites. This dataset includes mass loss and changes in nutrient content of litter over the six year period.
Greenfall litter decomposition of three common species in the northern Chihuahuan Desert, 2010-2012
Soil organic carbon (SOC) is derived primarily from the decomposition of plant biomass. Animals that create greenfall, or green leaf litter, influence SOC dynamics by altering the phenological condition and, therefore, nutrient quality of plant litter. Animals that transport greenfall to a microsite with different microhabitat conditions from those where senesced litter would typically be found also influence SOC dynamics by altering the prevalence of various decomposition drivers. Microsite differences are particularly pronounced in arid and semi-arid ecosystems with heterogeneous vegetation cover. We investigated differences in decomposition between greenfall and senesced litter of three common Chihuahuan Desert plants from which animals frequently generate greenfall (Larrea tridentata, Sporobolus flexuosus, Yucca elata), using a litterbag study to quantify differences in mass, carbon (C), and nitrogen (N) losses between green and senesced leaves placed in shrub intercanopy and subcanopy microsites in a desert shrubland. We hypothesized that decomposition would be more rapid in 1) greenfall than naturally senesced litter, because of the higher nutrient concentration in green than senesced leaves, and 2) in intercanopy than shrub subcanopy microsites, because of increased exposure to decomposition drivers like soil-litter mixing and photodegradation in the less vegetated open area between shrub canopies. Using a litterbag study, we quantified differences in litter mass, C, and N losses between green and senesced leaves placed in shrub subcanopy and intercanopy (open) microsites. Measured variables include litter mass and litter ash, carbon, and nitrogen content. We found that there were significant differences in the nutrient concentration of green and senesced leaves of the same species, and that both litter condition and microsite affected decomposition rate. For two of the three litter species, greenfall decomposed more rapidly than senesced litter, and for all
Data from: Evaluating community effects of a keystone ant, Azteca sericeasur, on Inga micheliana leaf litter decomposition in a shaded coffee agro-ecosystem
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"> Our research examined the effect of <i>Azteca sericeasur, </i>a keystone arboreal ant,<i> </i>on the decomposition of leaf litter of the shade tree, <i>Inga micheliana, </i>in coffee agro-ecosystems<i>. </i>This interaction is important in understanding the spatial heterogeneity in decomposition. We hypothesized that <i>A. sericeasur </i>could affect leaf litter decomposition by excluding other ants, which could release decomposers, like collembolans, from predation pressure. Determining the relative strengths of these interactions can illuminate the importance of <i>A. sericeasur </i>in decomposition and nutrient cycling processes.</p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing">We assessed the ant and arthropod communities surrounding 10 pairs of trees, where each pair included one shade tree with an established <i>A. sericeasur </i>nest. Tuna baits were used in conjunction with pitfall traps to assess the ant and arthropod community, and litterbags with <i>I. micheliana </i>leaf litter were used to assess decomposition. The species richness of ants did not change in proximity to <i>A. sericeasur </i>nests, though the ant communities were distinct. Abundance of collembola and community composition of other invertebrates did not change with the presence of an <i>A. sericeasur </i>nest and there were no differences in leaf litter decomposition rates. This contradicts past studies that suggests <i>A. sericeasur </i>reduces species richness in its territory. We suggest that other ants may avoid <i>A. sericeasur </i>by moving within and beneath the leaf litter. Our results indicate there is no net effect of <i>A. sericeasur </i>on leaf litter decomposition.</p>
Data from: Decomposition of leaf litter mixtures across biomes: The role of litter identity, diversity and soil fauna
<p class="CxSpFirst">1. At broad spatial scales, the factors regulating litter decomposition remain ambiguous, with the understanding of these factors largely based on studies investigating site-specific single litter species, whereas studies using multi litter species mixtures across sites are rare.</p> <p class="CxSpMiddle">2. We exposed in microcosms containing single species and all possible mixtures of four leaf litter species differing widely in initial chemical and physical characteristics from a temperate forest to the climatic conditions of four different forests across the northern hemisphere for one year.</p> <p class="CxSpMiddle">3. Calcium, magnesium and condensed tannins predicted litter mass loss of single litter species and mixtures across forest types and biomes, regardless of species richness and microarthropod presence. However, relative mixture effects differed among forest types and varied with the access to the litter by microarthropods. Access to the microcosms by microarthropods modified the decomposition of individual litter species within mixtures, which differed among forest types independent of litter species richness and composition of litter mixtures. However, soil microarthropods generally only little affected litter decomposition.</p> <p>4. <i>Synthesis</i>. We conclude that litter identity is the dominant driver of decomposition across different forest types and the non-additive litter mixture effects vary among biomes despite identical leaf litter chemistry. These results suggest that across large spatial scales the environmental context of decomposing litter mixtures, including microarthropod communities, determine the decomposition of litter mixtures besides strong litter trait based effects.</p>
Data from: Functional diversity of decomposers modulates litter decomposition affected by plant invasion along a climate gradient
<p>1. Litter decomposition is fundamental to carbon (C) and nutrient cycling in ecosystems, which could be altered by plant invasion. The impacts of plant invasion on litter decomposition are generally predicted by traits difference between leaf litters of invasive and non-invasive species. However, plant invasion not only changes litter composition, but might also increase the activity or change the functional diversity of decomposers to alter litter decomposition, which is barely studied, and the effect could be different under varied climate conditions.</p> <p>2. We studied decomposition of litters from non-invasive and invasive native plants, as affected by litter treatments (in a mixture or alone) and decomposer organisms of different functional groups (by controlling the mesh size of litterbags), in sites with or without an invasive woody grass, Moso bamboo (Phyllostachys edulis), at seven locations across a climate gradient.</p> <p>3. We show that greater decomposer functional diversity, particularly the presence of macrofauna, accelerated the cycling of litter C and nitrogen (N), increased the climatic sensitivities of decomposition rates, but decreased the N use efficiency of decomposers (represented by litter C to N loss ratio). Litter decomposed in mixtures decomposed faster (by 9.5%) and had more N loss (by 28.9%) than that of in monoculture, regardless of the functional diversity of decomposers. In contrast, the invasion of Moso bamboo slowed decomposition and decreased N use efficiency; this negative effect could be reversed when macrofauna was excluded from the decomposition process, which challenges the nutrient facilitation hypothesis. Bamboo invasion depressed the climatic sensitivity of decomposer functional groups when macrofauna was present but not when macrofauna was excluded.</p> <p>4. Synthesis. We found that the functional diversity of decomposer organisms modulates and largely determines litter decomposition affected by a woody grass invasion along a climate gradient. These results suggest that, under current and future climate, including the changes in decomposer functional groups, particularly macrofauna, and their interaction with litter traits, would provide a mechanistic and more reliable prediction on ecosystem functions altered by invaders than a functional trait-based framework.</p>
Data from: Litter conversion into detritivore faeces reshuffles the quality control over C and N dynamics during decomposition
1. In many terrestrial ecosystems, detritivorous soil organisms ingest large amounts of leaf litter returning most of it to the soil as faeces. Such conversion of leaf litter into faeces may stimulate decomposition by increasing the surface area available for microbial colonization. Yet, experimental support for either the outcome or the mechanism of these conversion effects is lacking. 2. Based on the hypothesis that the identity of plant species from which leaf litter is transformed into faeces has a critical role in how faeces decomposition proceeds, we collected faeces of the widely abundant millipede Glomeris marginata fed with leaf litter from seven distinct tree species. We compared the physical and chemical characteristics and the rates of carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) loss between litter and faeces. 3. We found that after 100 days of exposure under controlled conditions, C loss was on average higher in faeces (40%) than in litter (26.6%), with a significant increase for six out of the seven species. Concurrently, N dynamics switched from a net immobilisation (7.7%) in litter to a net release (14.6%) in faeces, with a significant increase for five out of the seven species. 4. Litter conversion into faeces generally homogenised differences in physical and chemical characteristics among species. Despite such homogenisation, variability in rates of faeces C and N loss among species was similar compared to leaf litter, but correlated with a different set of traits. Specifically, faecal pellet C loss was positively related to compaction (decreased specific area and increased density of faecal pellets), and both C and N loss from faecal pellets were positively related to fragmentation (increased specific area and perimeter of particles within faecal pellets). 5. We conclude that litter fragmentation and compaction into detritivore faecal pellets leads to substantially enhanced decomposition, with a particularly strong impact on N dynamics that changed from immobilisation to net release depending on litter species. Moreover, litter quality control on decomposition is reshuffled by litter conversion into faeces. In ecosystems with high detritivore abundance, this so far largely overlooked pathway of organic matter turnover may strongly affect ecosystem C and N cycling.
Data from: Specific leaf area predicts dryland litter decomposition via two mechanisms
1. Litter decomposition plays important roles in carbon and nutrient cycling. In dryland both microbial decomposition and abiotic degradation (by UV light or other forces) drive variation in decomposition rates, but whether and how litter traits and position determine the balance between these processes is poorly understood. 2. We investigated relationships between litter quality and their decomposition rates among diverse plant species in a desert ecosystem in vertically contrasting positions representing distinct decomposition environments driven by different relative contributions of abiotic and microbial degradation. Thereto, leaf litter samples from 17 desert species were sealed into litterbags and placed on the soil surface under strong solar exposure versus shade conditions, or buried in the soil at 10 cm depth, for a whole year. 3. Litter decomposition rates were 21 and 17 % higher in burial and light-exposed treatments, respectively, than those in shade. Leaf traits, i.e. specific leaf area (SLA), litter C:N ratio and lignin concentration could predict litter decomposition to some degree, but their predictive power was dependent on litter position. However, multiple linear regression showed that SLA, litter C and P significantly affected k values for leaf litter decomposition besides litter position, with SLA standing out as a strong determinant of litter decomposition rate as related either to solar radiation or the environment below the soil surface. Furthermore, the interspecific differences in litter decomposition rate decreased over time, implying that afterlife effects of leaf traits on decomposition were attenuated. 4. Synthesis. These findings suggest that abiotic photodegradation and soil burial mediated microbial decomposition could be responsible for higher than expected litter turnover in dryland. They point to a dual role of specific leaf area as a promotor of decomposition rates: via relative exposure of the leaf surface to abiotic factors such as UV light versus to soil moisture and microbes under soil burial.
Data from: Nutrient limitation or home field advantage: does microbial community adaptation overcome nutrient limitation of litter decomposition in a tropical peatland?
Litter decomposition is an important control on carbon accumulation in tropical peatlands. Stoichiometric theory suggests that decomposition is regulated by elemental ratios in litter while the home field advantage (HFA) hypothesis predicts that decomposer communities are adapted to local conditions. To date, the relative importance of these contrasting theories for litter decomposition and therefore the carbon balance of tropical peatlands remain poorly understood. We conducted two in situ litter decomposition experiments in a lowland tropical peatland. The first experiment tested the importance of the stoichiometric theory using a factorial nutrient addition experiment at two sites with contrasting vegetation (Raphia taedigera and Campnosperma panamensis) to assess how nutrient addition affected microbial enzyme activity and litter mass loss at the peat surface and at 50 cm depth. The second experiment tested the importance of HFA by reciprocal translocation of leaf litter from R. taedigera and C. panamensis forests, which differed in both litter chemistry and soil nutrient availability, to separate the influence of litter chemistry and soil/site properties on litter mass loss. The activities of hydrolytic enzymes involved in the decomposition of large plant polymers were stimulated by nitrogen addition only where nitrogen availability was low relative to phosphorus, and were stimulated by phosphorus addition where phosphorus availability was low. The addition of nitrogen, but not phosphorus, increased leaf litter decomposition under waterlogged conditions at 50 cm depth, but not at the peat surface. Decomposition was greatest for autochthonous litter irrespective of site nutrient status, indicating that adaptation of the microbial community to low nutrients can partly overcome nutrient limitation, and suggesting that HFA can influence litter decomposition rates. Synthesis. Our study shows that leaf litter decomposition and the activity of microbial enzymes in tropical peatlands are constrained in part by nutrient availability. However, such nutrient limitation of litter decomposition can be overcome by adaptation of the microbial community.
Data from: Leaf litter diversity and structure of microbial decomposer communities modulate litter decomposition in aquatic systems
1. Leaf litter decomposition is a major ecosystem process that can link aquatic to terrestrial ecosystems by flows of nutrients. Biodiversity and ecosystem functioning research hypothesizes that the global loss of species leads to impaired decomposition rates and thus to slower recycling of nutrients. Especially in aquatic systems an understanding of diversity effects on litter decomposition is still incomplete. 2. Here we conducted an experiment to test two main factors associated with global species loss that might influence leaf litter decomposition. Firstly, we tested whether mixing different leaf species alters litter decomposition rates compared to decomposition of these species in monoculture. Secondly, we tested the effect of the size structure of a lotic decomposer community on decomposition rates. 3. Overall, leaf litter identity strongly affected decomposition rates, and the observed decomposition rates matched measures of metabolic activity and microbial abundances. While we found some evidence of a positive leaf litter diversity effect on decomposition, this effect was not coherent across all litter combinations and the effect was generally additive and not synergistic. 4. Microbial communities, with a reduced functional and trophic complexity, showed a small but significant overall reduction in decomposition rates compared to communities with the naturally complete functional and trophic complexity, highlighting the importance of a complete microbial community on ecosystem functioning. 5. Our results suggest that top-down diversity effects of the decomposer community on litter decomposition in aquatic systems are of comparable importance as bottom-up diversity effects of primary producers.
Data from: Nutrient scarcity strengthens soil fauna control over leaf litter decomposition in tropical rainforests
Soil fauna is a key control of the decomposition rate of leaf litter, yet its interactions with litter quality and the soil environment remain elusive. We conducted a litter decomposition experiment across different topographic levels within the landscape replicated in two rainforest sites providing natural gradients in soil fertility to test the hypothesis that low nutrient availability in litter and soil increases the strength of fauna control over litter decomposition. We crossed these data with a large dataset of 44 variables characterizing the biotic and abiotic microenvironment of each sampling point and found that microbe-driven Carbon (C) and Nitrogen (N) losses from leaf litter were 10.1 and 17.9 % lower, respectively, in the nutrient-poorest site but this among-site difference was equalized when meso- and macrofauna had access to the litterbags. Further, on average soil fauna enhanced the rate of litter decomposition by 22.6%, and this contribution consistently increased as nutrient availability in the microenvironment declined. Our results indicate that nutrient scarcity increases the importance of soil fauna on C and N cycling in tropical rainforests. Further, soil fauna is able to equalize differences in microbial decomposition potential thus buffering to a remarkable extent nutrient shortages at an ecosystem level.
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: Plant-fungal symbiosis affects litter decomposition during primary succession
Microbial symbionts of plants can affect decomposition by altering the quality or quantity of host plant tissue (substrate) or the micro-environment where decomposition occurs (conditioning). In C3 grasses, foliar fungal endophytes (Clavicipitaceae) can increase plant resistance to drought and/or produce alkaloids that reduce herbivory – effects that may also influence host litter composition and subsequent litter decomposition. We studied the effect of the endophyte Epichloë sp. on litter decomposition in the Great Lakes dunes (USA) using a reciprocal design altering endophyte presence/absence in both American beachgrass Ammophila breviligulata substrate (litter bags) and its conditioning of the decomposition microenvironment. Symbiont treatments were crossed with rain-out shelters that altered growing season precipitation. The first year of decomposition, senesced leaf substrate from A. breviligulata with Epichloë decomposed 21% faster than endophyte-free substrate. By the third year, conditioning by live symbiotic plants reduced cumulative decomposition by 33% compared to plots planted with endophyte-free plants. Of the traits we examined – litter quantity, C:N ratio, mineral composition, fungal colonization, and carbon chemistry – increased litter quantity via greater tiller production was the primary trait shift associated with endophyte symbiosis. Epichloë in A. breviligulata litter also altered litter nitrogen decomposition dynamics, as evidenced by lower nitrogen and protein content in decomposed tissue from plants that hosted the endophyte. Differences in initial litter quality and subsequent colonization by saprotrophic fungi were ruled out as key drivers. Altered precipitation had negligible effects on decomposing processes in the dunes. Grass–Epichloë symbiosis altered nutrient cycling through increasing the rate of litter decomposition when present in the litter and through reducing litter decomposition by conditioning the decomposition microenvironment. Epichloë are widespread symbionts of grasses. Thus, their effects on decomposition could be an important, but often overlooked, driver of nutrient cycling in grass-dominated ecosystems.
Data from: Leaf-litter decomposition and macroinvertebrate assemblages along an urban stream gradient in Puerto Rico
Urbanization is a major land use form that has large impacts on ecosystems. Urban development in the watershed impacts stream ecosystems by increasing nutrient and organic matter loads, altering hydrology, and reducing biodiversity. Puerto Rico is an ideal location to assess and monitor the effects of urbanization on streams, because it is increasingly urbanized and streams do not receive inputs of untreated sewage, characteristic of many other tropical urban areas. The objective of this study was to determine how leaf-litter decomposition and aquatic macroinvertebrate assemblages varied along a tropical urban gradient. We conducted the study in the Río Piedras watershed, San Juan Metropolitan Area, in six low order streams that formed an urban gradient ranging from 10 to 70% urban land cover. At each stream, we placed six 5g leaf bags of Ficus longifolia in three different pools and collected one bag on each sampling date. Decomposition rates were fast in forested streams (range 0.021 – 0.039 day-1) and decreased with increasing urbanization (range 0.007 – 0.008 day-1). Rates were strongly and negatively correlated with percent impervious surface cover (R= 0.81, p=0.01). Functional feeding group diversity was higher in forested streams, with the presence of shredders. Decomposition rates were significantly and positively correlated with functional feeding group diversity and abundance (R= 0.66, p= 0.04). Overall, our results show that urbanization affected the environment and macroinvertebrate diversity resulting in large negative effects on stream ecosystem function.
Data from: A shady business: pine afforestation alters the primary controls on litter decomposition along a precipitation gradient in Patagonia, Argentina
Our understanding of the principal controls on litter decomposition is critical for our capacity to predict how global changes will impact terrestrial ecosystems. Although climate, litter quality and soil organisms clearly modulate carbon (C) and nutrient turnover, land-use change affecting plant species composition and structure can alter the relative importance of such controls. We took advantage of prior land-use changes of intentional planting of exotic forest species along a broad precipitation gradient [250–2200 mm mean annual precipitation (MAP)] in Patagonia, South America, where we established five paired sites in natural vegetation and adjacent 35-year-old pine plantations. We explored direct and interactive effects of precipitation and plant community structure on litter decomposition with in situ decomposition, common litters and reciprocal transplants, in addition to an evaluation of microenvironmental changes. Surface litter decomposition in natural vegetation (NV) was similar in all sites along the gradient, independent of litter quality, MAP or soil characteristics, while mass loss demonstrated a significant positive linear relationship with MAP in pine plantations (PP). Decomposition of common litters in PP was markedly reduced with respect to NV, which was > 50% faster at the arid extreme of the gradient. C:N ratios predicted decomposition only in PP, and differences in decomposition were highly correlated with impacts of vegetative cover on incident solar radiation. Synthesis. Concurrent changes in plant cover in NV with increasing MAP resulted in reduced incident solar radiation at the soil surface and decreased the relative importance of photodegradation as a control on surface mass loss. These changes eclipsed direct effects of water availability, litter quality and soil nutrients. In contrast, increased shade and recalcitrant litter with afforestation in PP sites combined such that photodegradation was entirely eliminated as a control and biotic decomposition was much reduced. While afforestation projects are promoted as a strategy to mitigate increased atmospheric carbon dioxide due to human activity, our results highlight that primary controls of litter decomposition were substantially altered with unexpected consequences for the C balance of these ecosystems.
Data from: Decomposition of coarse woody debris in a long-term litter manipulation experiment: a focus on nutrient availability
1.The majority of aboveground carbon in tropical forests is stored in wood, which is returned to the atmosphere during decomposition of coarse woody debris. However, the factors controlling wood decomposition have not been experimentally manipulated over time scales comparable to the length of this process. 2.We hypothesized that wood decomposition is limited by nutrient availability and tested this hypothesis in a long-term litter addition and removal experiment in a lowland tropical forest in Panama. Specifically, we quantified decomposition using a 15 year chronosequence of decaying boles, and measured respiration rates and nutrient limitation of wood decomposer communities. 3.The long-term probability that a dead tree completely decomposed was decreased in plots where litter was removed, but did not differ between litter addition and control treatments. Similarly, respiration rates of wood decomposer communities were greater in control treatments relative to litter removal plots; litter addition treatments did not differ from either of the other treatments. Respiration rates increased in response to nutrient addition (nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium) in the litter removal and addition treatments, but not in the controls. 4.Established decreases in concentrations of soil nutrients in litter removal plots and increased respiration rates in response to nutrient addition suggest that reduced rates of wood decomposition after litter removal were caused by decreased nutrient availability. The effects of litter manipulations differed directionally from a previous short-term decomposition study in the same plots, and reduced rates of bole decomposition in litter removal plots did not emerge until after more than 6 years of decomposition. These differences suggest that litter-mediated effects on nutrient dynamics have complex interactions with decomposition over time.
Data from: Lodato et al. (2021) Functional importance and diversity of fungi during standing grass litter decomposition
<p>Although microbial participation in litter decomposition is widely known within terrestrial soils, the role and significance of microorganisms during the aerial standing litter phase of decomposition remains poorly investigated. We examined the fungi inhabiting standing leaf litter of <i>Schizachyrium scoparium</i> and <i>Schizachyrium tenerum</i> in a Longleaf Pine savanna ecosystem and estimated their contribution to litter decomposition. We identified fungal phylotypes associated with leaf litter and quantified leaf C mass loss, fungal biomass production, and microbial respiration during decomposition. These data were used to construct budgets estimating C flow into and through fungi. Significant losses in <i>S. scoparium</i> (55%) and <i>S. tenerum</i> (67%) leaf C mass were observed during standing decomposition along with concomitant increases in fungal biomass, which reached a maximum of 36 and 33 mgC/g detrital C, respectively. Cumulative fungal production during decomposition totaled 99±6 mgC/g initial detrital C in <i>S. scoparium</i> and 73±5 mgC/g initial detrital C in <i>S. tenerum</i>, indicating that 18 and 11% of the litter C was converted into fungal biomass, respectively. Corresponding estimates of cumulative fungal respiration totaled 106±7 and 174±11 mgC/g initial detrital C in <i>S. scoparium</i> and <i>S. tenerum</i>, respectively. Next generation sequencing identified several fungal phylotypes, with the majority of sequences belonging to the Ascomycota (Dothideomycetes) and Basidiomycota (Agaricomycetes). Fungal phylotypes were similar between litter species and changed over time, showing a successional pattern. These findings extend our understanding of fungal processes to standing litter in terrestrial ecosystems, and highlight the quantitative importance of fungi in C cycling processes.</p>
Data from: Altered leaf litter quality exacerbates the negative impact of climate change on decomposition
1.Leaf litter decomposition is a key component of global biogeochemical cycles that influences soil carbon storage, nutrient availability and plant productivity. Ongoing climate change will lead to warmer and drier conditions in many dryland regions, potentially affecting litter decomposition and nutrient dynamics. Climate change effects can be direct and/or indirect, e.g. through changes in litter quality, yet their relative importance on litter decomposition remains unclear. 2. We conducted a manipulative study in a semiarid shrubland to assess the effects of leaf litter quality, forecasted climate change, i.e. +2.5°C warming (W), 30% rainfall reduction (RR), as well as their interaction (W+RR) to elucidate their relative effects on litter decomposition. 3. Climatic effects alone reduced decomposition of a homogeneous control leaf litter collected from Helianthemum squamatum shrubs growing in unmanipulated plots by 23.4%, 18.1%, and 29.8% in the W, RR and W+RR treatments, respectively. Leaf litter quality was lower in shrubs that had been growing in warmed plots (W and W+RR), as they had lower nutrient concentrations (P, Fe) and higher C:N and C:P ratios than leaf litter produced under ambient (control) conditions. Lignin concentration was significantly lower in litter from W+RR plots, yet when both climate and litter quality were considered simultaneously, decomposition rates were 32.0%, 26.3% and 39.9% lower in W, RR and W+RR plots compared to controls. In addition, we found greater microbial N immobilization in leaf litter incubated within warmed (W and W+RR) than within non‐warmed plots (Control and RR). Structural equation modelling showed that higher litter moisture and microbial biomass contents stimulated decomposition. Simulated climate change (W, RR and W+RR) reduced decomposition indirectly by negatively affecting litter moisture contents and litter microbial biomass. Microbial nitrogen immobilization was stimulated by the lower quality (i.e. high C:N ratios) of the leaf litter collected in shrubs from warmed plots (W and W+RR). 4. Synthesis Our findings indicate that forecasted climate change conditions slow down C and N cycling in a dryland ecosystem, an effect that is further exacerbated by climate change‐induced reductions in litter quality and related reductions in bacterial and fungal biomass in litter.
Initial litter quality drives the consistent negative effects of fauna exclusion on litter decomposition in diverse ecosystems: A global meta-analysis
<p class="MsoNormal"><strong><span>Aim:</span></strong> <span>Despite the extensive research done on the consequences of faunal impacts on litter decomposition in different experimental contexts, a thorough assessment of their impacts and causes in various habitats around the world is still missing. Here, we aimed to explore general patterns and key drivers (e.g.,</span> <span>climate, environment, litter quality) of faunal effects on litter decomposition in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><strong><span>Location: </span></strong><span>Global.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><strong><span>Time period: </span></strong><span>1980-2022.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><strong><span>Major taxa studied: </span></strong><span>Plant litter and fauna.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><strong><span>Methods: </span></strong><span>We investigate the effects of fauna exclusion on litter decomposition in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems through a meta-analysis of 819 pairs of observations from 110 studies on terrestrial litter decomposition and 402 pairs of observations from 60 studies on aquatic litter decomposition.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><strong><span>Results: </span></strong><span>Fauna exclusion reduced litter decomposition rates in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems by 34% and 46% on average, respectively. In terrestrial ecosystems, the faunal effects differed among climate zone, precipitation level, and decomposition duration. Faunal effects were larger in warmer and moister climates, and decreased with the extension of decomposition time. However, in aquatic ecosystems, these moderating variables did not affect the negative effects of fauna exclusion. We also found that the faunal effects on litter decomposition were mainly associated with the initial litter quality and climate in terrestrial ecosystems, and with the initial litter quality in aquatic ecosystems.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><strong><span>Main conclusions: </span></strong><span>Fauna exclusion had consistent negative effects on litter decay in both terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, and </span><span>initial litter </span><span>quality was the main factor that determined the extent of faunal effects on litter decomposition. Our findings highlight the significance of fauna diversity</span><span> </span><span><span>conservation worldwide, and underscore the need to incorporate fauna effects into dynamic models of litter decomposition in order to examine the effects and processes of land-water-atmosphere carbon fluxes.</span></span></p>
Data from: Effects of mixing litter on decomposition under three exposure scenarios
<p>The effect of mixing litter on decomposition has received considerable attention in terrestrial and aquatic (but rarely in both) ecosystems, with a striking lack of consensus in the obtained results. We studied the decomposition of a mixture of poplar and alder in three terrestrial:aquatic exposures to determine (1) if the effect of mixing litter on mass loss, associated decomposers (fungal biomass, sporulation rates, and richness) and detritivores (abundance, biomass, and richness of invertebrate shredders) differs between the stream (fully aquatic exposure) and when litter is exposed to a period of terrestrial exposure prior to immersion and (2) the effect of the mixture across exposure scenarios. The effect of the mixture was additive on mass loss and synergistic on decomposers and detritivores across exposure scenarios. Within scenarios, mass loss and decomposers showed synergistic effects only in the fully aquatic exposure, detritivores showed synergistic effects only when the period of terrestrial was shorter than the period of aquatic exposure, and when the period of terrestrial was equal to the period of aquatic exposure the effect of the mixture was additive on mass loss, decomposers, and detritivores. The species-specific effects also differed among exposure scenarios. Alder affected poplar only when there was a period of terrestrial exposure, with increased sporulation rates and fungal richness in exposure 25:75, and increased mass loss in exposure 50:50. Poplar affected alder only under fully aquatic exposure, with increased mass loss. In conclusion, the synergistic effects of the mixture changed with a period of terrestrial exposure prior to immersion. These results provide a cross-boundary perspective on the effect of mixing litter, showing a legacy effect of exposure to terrestrial decomposition on the fate of plant litter in aquatic ecosystems and highlighting the importance of assessing the effect of mixing litter on the associated biota and not only on mass loss.</p>
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