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52 results for “litter diversity”
The role of riparian functional and phylogenetic diversity on leaf litter processing in rivers
While taxonomic diversity mediates changes in ecosystem function is well-studied, how deeper dimensions of biodiversity, specifically phylogenetic and functional, independent of taxonomic diversity, drive important processes is understudied. The overarching goal of this work was to determine the role of these dimensions of biodiversity independently and/or interactively explain carbon processing in rivers. Here, we explicitly link community structure and subsequent traits of riparian forests to adjacent ecosystem processing of carbon (e.g., leaf litter). This was accomplished by examining how forests are actually structured in addition to experimental manipulations of phylogenetic and functional diversities of riparian forest community inputs of leaf litter to streams. Experimental field manipulations were carried out in three Piedmont headwater streams to answer the following questions: (1) Does existing variation in taxonomic, functional and phylogenetic diversity of riparian communities differentially drive decomposition in rivers? And (2) Independent of taxonomic diversity, how does functional and phylogenetic diversity of leaf litter assemblages influence rates of decomposition in rivers? We observed significant interspecific variation in breakdown among 30 riparian tree species, in addition to significant relationships between breakdown rate and important foliar tissue chemistries. Breakdown of mixtures that reflected the composition of the riparian species composition did not vary with functional nor phylogenetic diversity, but breakdown of litter mixtures was higher than that of single species. In a separate study, when manipulated independently, functional and phylogenetic diversity were positively related to breakdown, and explained similar degrees of variation. These results are important to understand in light of deepening knowledge of the role different dimensions of biodiversity take in explaining ecosystem function, as well as how these measures can b
UV radiation accelerates litter decomposition in a valley-type savanna by enhancing microbial community diversity and function
<p><span>We present the data of the study by Gao et al. (202</span><span>4</span><span>): <a name="_Hlk179470571"></a><a name="OLE_LINK42"></a><strong><span>UV radiation accelerates litter decomposition in a valley-type savanna by enhancing microbial community diversity and function</span></strong></span><span>.</span><span> The excel file (Raw Data) includes the following sheets: 1- Radiation (w·m<sup>-2</sup>) variation of UV-A and UV-B during the experimental period. 2- Decay constants (<em>K</em>, yr<sup>−1</sup>) and changes in the mass loss rate of litter under different UV conditions during the experimental period<span>. 3- </span>The content of lignin, cellulose, C, N and P of litter under different UV conditions during the experimental period<span>. 4-</span></span><span> </span><span>16S ASVs under different UV conditions<span>. 5-</span></span><span> </span><span>ITS ASVs under different UV conditions.</span></p>
Trait functional diversity explains mixture effects on litter decomposition at the arid end of a climate gradient
<p><span>Litter decomposition is controlled by climate, litter quality and decomposer communities. Because the decomposition of specific litter types is also influenced by the properties of adjacent types, mixing litter types may result in non-additive effects on overall decomposition rates. The strength of these effects seems to depend on the litter functional diversity. However, it is unclear which functional traits or combination of traits explain litter mixture effects and if these depend on the range of trait values and the ecosystems involved. These uncertainties hamper our ability to predict decomposition in plant communities. </span></p> <p><span>We aimed at understanding whether and how functional diversity (measured as functional dispersion, FDis) influences litter decomposition, and how this influence varies among different climates and across decomposition stages. We calculated FDis based on litter traits related to nutrient concentrations or to litter recalcitrance, and tested whether these diversity measures and climatic parameters (soil moisture and temperature) explained litter mixture effects on decomposition. </span></p> <p><span>Additive mixture effects (i.e. decomposition of mixtures equalling the mean decomposition of the single litter types) were common in most of the evaluated climates. Non-additive, negative effects were mainly restricted to the driest and warmest sites, and decreased with time. Non-additive effects increased in magnitude with the mixtures' FDis, with positive effects being related to FDis in nutrient traits and negative effects being related to FDis in recalcitrance traits. </span></p> <p><span>Synthesis: Litter mixing did not have strong effects on decomposition rates across the studied climatic gradient overall, and the direction and intensity of the mixture effects were context-dependent. The effects were stronger and more negative in the dryer ecosystems. Where effects were found, functional diversity calculated from selected groups of traits (related to nutrients or litter recalcitrance) predicted mixture effects, especially where trait ranges were broad, though much of the variation remains unexplained. We propose that functional diversity metrics based on litter traits that are mechanistically relevant, applied to diverse site-specific litter mixtures in different climates, can help to better understand under which conditions and in which direction litter diversity affects decomposition.</span></p>
Figure 1 in Comparative evaluation of taxonomic and functional diversities of leaf-litter ants of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest
Figure 1. Map of the study area in the state of Bahia (A), Brazil (B), showing the locations of the 65 Atlantic Forest sites (C).
Figure 3 in Comparative evaluation of taxonomic and functional diversities of leaf-litter ants of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest
Figure 3. Relationship between number of functional groups (classifications A: FC-A and B: FC-B) with ant richness in 65 localities of the Atlantic Forest biome in Bahia state, Brazil. Appendix 1. List of ant species registered in 26 municipalities and 65 localities of Atlantic Forest in Bahia state, Brazil. Municipalities: A–Z; number in parentheses represents the number of locations sampled by municipality.
Figure 2 in Comparative evaluation of taxonomic and functional diversities of leaf-litter ants of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest
Figure 2. Species accumulation curves based on the number of ant species (observed richness) sampled in different localities of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. Filled circle = all data; filled diamond = all data except singletons and doubletons; unfilled circle = singletons and doubletons only.
Trait functional diversity explains mixture effects on litter decomposition at the arid end of a climate gradient
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Phospholipid fatty acids (PFLA) on decomposed litter: An evolutionary perspective on functional diversity in co-occuring willow(salix) species
Thirteen willow (Salix) species occur in southeastern Minnesota and often co-occur within the same wetlands. This high local diversity is challenging to explain since closely related species are often functionally similar and density-dependent interactions such as competition and susceptibility to pests and pathogens should limit their co-occurrence. However, if willow species are partitioning resources, or if they are phylogenetically structured so that closely related species rarely co-occur, then the impact of these density-dependent processes could be reduced. In this study, I examined the role of niche partitioning in maintaining local willow diversity by comparing species physiology in a greenhouse.
Seasonal leaf litter mass (2000 - 2010) for the Functional Diversity project, Coweeta Hydrologic Laboratory, Otto, North Carolina
The importance of the herbaceous layer in regulating ecosystem processes in deciduous forests is generally unknown. We use a manipulative study in a rich, mesophytic cove forest in the southern Appalachians to test the following hypotheses: (i) the herbaceous functional group (HFG) in mesophytic coves accelerates carbon and nutrient cycling, (ii) high litter quality input and rapid nutrient turnover associated with HFG will have a positive effect on overstory tree growth, and (iii) the HFG regulates tree regeneration with negative effects on seedling establishment due to competition for resources. We established treatment plots in a mesic, cove-hardwoods forest and removed the herbaceous flora (HR, removed twice per year) or added herbaceous organic material (OMA, once per year) for comparison to a no removal (NR) reference for a total of 14 years. The OMA treatment stimulated soil N-mineralization and increased litterfall mass and N content. OMA N-mineralization rates were more than two times greater than both the NR and HR treatments; however, we did not detect significant differences in soil CO2 efflux among treatments. Higher overstory litterfall mass and N in the OMA treatment plots indicated that overstory trees were benefiting from the enhanced soil N-mineralization. Higher overstory leaf mass and N suggests an important linkage between HR and aboveground net primary production even though this did not translate into greater tree basal area increment. We found an increase in regeneration of all tree species with HFG removal, and the response was particularly evident for Acer rubrum seedlings.
Data from: A tale of scale: plot but not neighbourhood tree diversity increases leaf litter ant diversity
1. Diversity of producers (e.g. plants) usually increases the diversity of associated organisms, but the scale (i.e. the spatial area of plant diversity considered) at which plant diversity acts on other taxa has rarely been studied. Most evidence for cross-taxon diversity relations come from aboveground consumers that directly interact with plants. 2. Experimental tests of plant diversity effects on elusive organisms inhabiting the leaf litter layer, which are important for nutrient cycling and decomposition, are rare. 3. Using a large tree diversity experiment, we tested whether tree diversity at the larger plot (i.e. community) or the smaller neighbourhood scale relates to the abundance, species richness, functional, and phylogenetic diversity of leaf litter ants, which are dominant organisms in brown food webs. 4. Contrary to our expectations of scale-independent positive tree diversity effects, ant diversity increased only with plot but not neighbourhood tree diversity. While the exact causal mechanisms are unclear, nest relocation or small-scale competition among ants may explain the stronger tree diversity effects at the plot scale. 5. Our results indicate that even for small and less mobile organisms in the leaf litter, effects of tree diversity are stronger at relatively larger scales. The finding emphasize the importance of diverse forest stands, in which mixing of tree species is not restricted to small patches, for supporting arthropod diversity in the leaf litter.
Phylogenetic α- and β-diversities jointly reveal leaf-litter ant community assembly mechanisms along a tropical elevational gradient
<p>This study was conducted along the eastern slope of the Cofre de Perote mountain, in Veracruz, Mexico. This region is located at the junction of the Trans-Mexican volcanic belt and the Sierra Madre Oriental. We selected eight study sites spanning an elevational gradient of 3500 meters of altitude. Regardless of the geographical distance, all sites were systematically separated with an elevational difference of 500 meters on average between each other. We placed our study sites at the following elevations above sea level: 30-50 m, 610-670 m, 900-1010 m, 1470-1650 m, 2020-2230 m, 2470-2600 m, 3070-3160 m and 3480-3540 m, however, for simplicity, we will refer to each site as discrete units (i.e. 0, 600, 1000, 1500, 2100, 2500, 3100, 3500 m).</p> <p>Sampling sites were old-growth forests characterized by no obvious forest use and highly dominance of mature forests, except in the case of the lowest site (i.e., La Mancha), where most of its original vegetation has been transformed. To overcome the effect of perturbation in the studied patterns, we sampled La Mancha in a secondary forest with up to 30 years of regeneration. All sampling sites were closed-canopy forests in which a leaf-litter layer could be guaranteed. During the rainy season (July-September) of 2018 one 300-m transversal transect was located at each one of the eight study locations where we established 10 equidistantly sampling points (i.e., 30 meters between each other). Two independent 1-m2 samples were taken perpendicularly to each sampling point: one 10 meters on the right side and the other 10 meters from the left side. This procedure was repeated in a second transect placed during the dry season (March-May) of 2019 to increase community characterization as well as reduce any seasonality effect on our diversity patterns. Transects within an elevational site were separated at least 1 km away from each other. Thus, we obtained 320 m<sup>2</sup> leaf-litter samples characterized the whole mountain (8 study sites x 20 m<sup>2 </sup>per transect x 2 transects = 320 m<sup>2</sup>). In each 1-m<sup>2</sup> quadrat, we collected the leaf litter inside and sifted it through a coarse mesh screen of 1-cm grid size to remove the largest fragments and concentrate the fine litter. The concentrated fine litter from each sample was suspended in independent mini-Winkler sacks for 3 days in the laboratory. Falling arthropods were collected into a container with 95% ethanol. Ant workers were removed from each container for identification. When possible, specimens were identified at the species level. If not, we assigned a morphospecies number.</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Phylogenetic tree constructions</strong></p> <p>Ideally, one would use a complete, species-level phylogeny of all ant species present in your study area to calculate phylogenetic diversity, yet our current understanding of ant relationships is still limited. As an alternative, we built a genus-level phylogeny based on the tree by Moreau & Bell, (2013), but using the phylogenetic relationships and divergence times within Myrmicinae from Ward et al. (2015). This phylogeny was then pruned to keep only a single species per genus to generate a genus-level phylogeny. To maximize taxonomic coverage, we replaced genera that were missing from those studies by closely-related lineages that were not present in our dataset using other phylogenetic studies (Borowiec, 2016; Lapolla et al., 2010; Schmidt & Shattuck, 2014). We then used the list of species (Supporting Information Table S1) in our dataset to simulate a species-level phylogeny in which the relationships within genera were obtained from a Yule (pure-birth) process using the <em>genus.to.species.tree</em> function in the “phytools” package (Revell, 2012). A total of 1000 simulated trees were obtained to account for phylogenetic uncertainty [see Arnan et al. (2018) and Divieso et al. (2020) for similar approach]. Additionally, we constructed a maximum clade credibility tree (hereafter MCC tree) which was used to summarize the uncertainty of the 1000 simulated trees. The MCC tree was constructed from the sample of the 1000 trees with the <em>maxCladeCred</em> function incorporated in the “ape” package (Paradis et al., 2019). Both the 1000 hypothetical trees and the MCC tree were used in downstream analyses (Supporting Information Fig. 1).</p>
Data for: Whole-of-community invertebrate rewilding: Leaf litter transplants rapidly increase beetle diversity during restoration
<p><span>Restoration of degraded areas is now a central tool in humanity's response to continued species loss. However, restoration projects often report exceedingly slow or failed recolonization of fauna, especially dispersal-constrained groups such as invertebrates. Active interventions via reintroducing or "rewilding" invertebrates may assist recolonization and speed up the restoration of communities towards a desired target. However, invertebrate rewilding is rarely implemented during ecological restoration. Here, we studied the efficacy of invertebrate rewilding as a means of improving diversity and compositional similarities to remnant communities during restoration. Rewilding was conducted by transplanting leaf litter and soil, including associated communities of invertebrates from species-rich remnant sites into species-poor and geographically isolated revegetated farmland sites. We sampled pre- and post-rewilding invertebrate communities in remnant, rewilded revegetation, and control revegetation sites. Our data contains mesoinvertebrate (<5mm in size) community samples from 6 sites within each of our 3 treatments. We took 8 subsamples measuring 25 cm by 25 cm containing the entire mesoinvertebrate leaf litter community from each site across 4 different seasons. The first season was a pre-treatment baseline measurement and was taken in November 2018. Thereafter, we sampled 7-, 18-, and 27- months post-rewilding. Our data contains a range of traits for each morphospecies (Size in mm, trophic group, and whether they were winged or flightless) and two environmental variables measured at each site (Volumetric water content and elevation). We included these for our Hierarchical Modelling of Species Community (HMSC) approach to determine whether biological properties of species or environmental variables were driving species distributions. Beetle (Coleoptera) morphospecies richness increased rapidly in rewilded sites and was indistinguishable from remnant communities as early as 7 months post-rewilding. Beetle community similarity in the rewilding sites significantly deviated from the control sites 27 months post-rewilding, however, remnant communities remained distinct over the study timeframe. Establishment success varied as other taxa did not respond as consistently as beetles within the study timeframe. Our results demonstrate that the relatively simple act of transplanting leaf litter can result in comparatively large increases in morphospecies richness during restoration in a short timeframe.</span></p>
Tree diversity effects on litter decomposition are mediated by litterfall and microbial processes
<p>Forest ecosystems are critical for their carbon sequestration potential. Increasing tree diversity was shown to enhance both forest productivity and litter decomposition. Litter diversity increases litter decomposability by increasing the diversity of substrates offered to decomposers. However, the relative importance of litter decomposability and decomposer community in mediating tree diversity effects on decomposition remains unknown. Moreover, tree diversity modulation of litterfall spatial distribution, consequently, litter decomposition has rarely been tested. We studied tree diversity effects on leaf litter decomposition and its mediation by the amount of litterfall, litter species richness and decomposability, and soil microorganisms in a large-scale tree diversity experiment in subtropical China. Furthermore, we examined how litter functional identity and diversity affect leaf litter decomposability. Finally, we tested how leaf functional traits, tree biomass, and forest spatial structure drive the litterfall spatial distribution. We found evidence that tree species richness increased litter decomposition by increasing litter species richness and the amount of litterfall. We showed that soil microorganisms in this subtropical forest perform 84–87% of litter decomposition. Moreover, changes in the amount of litterfall and microbial decomposition explained 19–37% of the decomposition variance. Additionally, up to 20% of the microbial decomposition variance was explained by litter decomposability, while litter decomposability itself was determined by litter functional identity, diversity, and species richness. Tree species richness increased litter species richness and the amount of litterfall (+200% from monoculture to 8-species neighborhood). We further demonstrated that the amount of species-specific litterfall increased with increasing tree proximity and biomass and was modulated by leaf functional traits. These litterfall drivers increased the spatial heterogeneity of litter distribution, thus, litter decomposition. We highlighted multiple biomass- and diversity-mediated effects of tree diversity on ecosystem properties driving forest nutrient cycling. We conclude that considering spatial variability in biotic properties will improve our mechanistic understanding of ecosystem functioning.</p>
Data from: Tree litter functional diversity and nitrogen concentration enhance litter decomposition via changes in earthworm communities
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Data from: Litter nutrient release and allelopathy jointly contribute to the diversity–invasibility relationship
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Data for: Whole-of-community invertebrate rewilding: Leaf litter transplants rapidly increase beetle diversity during restoration
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Tree diversity effects on litter decomposition are mediated by litterfall and microbial processes
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Data from: A tale of scale: plot but not neighbourhood tree diversity increases leaf litter ant diversity
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Data from: Litter addition decreases plant diversity by suppressing seeding in a semi-arid grassland, Northern China
Plant community diversity is conducive to maintain the regional ecosystems stability and ecosystem services. Seed germination is one of the main ways to regulate plant diversity, owing to seedling recruitment as a basis for plant community renewal. However, the exact mechanism of how plant litter affects seedling recruitment and species richness is not yet fully understood. Therefore, a litter addition and removal experiment were established in a semiarid grassland to study the effects of plant litter on seedling recruitment and species richness from April to August in 2016 and 2017 in Northern China. The positive correlation between species richness and seedling recruitment indicated that a guarantee of seedling recruitment was the main precondition to protect species richness. Adding rather than removing litter significantly reduced species richness. Litter addition inhibited species richness by directly increasing mechanical damage or indirectly reducing photosynthetically active radiation and seedling recruitment. The results of this study are conducive to understand the evolutionary and regulatory mechanisms of community species richness and seedling recruitment in grassland ecosystems after adding or removing plant litter.
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>
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