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Bello C, Schleuning M, Graham CH. Analyzing trophic ecosystem functions with the interaction functional space. Trends Ecol Evol 2023; 38:424-434. [PMID: 36599738 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2022.12.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2021] [Revised: 11/18/2022] [Accepted: 12/01/2022] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
Quantifying the vulnerability of ecosystems to global change requires a better understanding of how trophic ecosystem functions emerge. So far, trophic ecosystem functions have been studied from the perspective of either functional diversity or network ecology. To integrate these two perspectives, we propose the interaction functional space (IFS) a conceptual framework to simultaneously analyze the effects of traits and interactions on trophic functions. We exemplify the added value of our framework for seed dispersal and wood decomposition and show how species interactions influence the relationship between functional trait diversity and trophic functions. We propose future applications for a range of functions where the IFS can help to elucidate mechanisms underpinning trophic functions and facilitate understanding of functional changes in ecosystems amidst global change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carolina Bello
- Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL), Zürcherstrasse 111, 8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland; Institute of Integrative Biology, ETH Zürich, Universitätstrasse 2, 8092 Zürich, Switzerland.
| | - Matthias Schleuning
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK-F), Senckenberganlage 25, 60325 Frankfurt, Germany
| | - Catherine H Graham
- Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL), Zürcherstrasse 111, 8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland
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2
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Kane JL, Kotcon JB, Freedman ZB, Morrissey EM. Fungivorous nematodes drive microbial diversity and carbon cycling in soil. Ecology 2023; 104:e3844. [PMID: 35960179 DOI: 10.1002/ecy.3844] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2021] [Revised: 06/06/2022] [Accepted: 07/01/2022] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
Soil bacteria and fungi mediate terrestrial biogeochemical cycling, but we know relatively little about how trophic interactions influence their community composition, diversity, and function. Specifically, it is unclear how consumer populations affect the activity of microbial taxa they consume, and therefore the interaction of those taxa with other members of the microbial community. Due to its extreme diversity, studying trophic dynamics in soil is a complex feat. Seeking to address these challenges, we performed a microcosm-based consumer manipulation experiment to determine the impact of a common fungal-feeding nematode (Aphelenchus avenae) on soil microbial community composition, diversity, and activity (e.g., C cycling parameters). Fungivory decreased fungal and bacterial α-diversity and stimulated C and N cycling, possibly via cascading impacts of fungivory on bacterial communities. Our results present experimental evidence that soil trophic dynamics are intimately linked with microbial diversity and function, factors that are key in understanding global patterns in biogeochemical cycling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer L Kane
- Division of Plant and Soil Science, Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Design, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, USA
| | - James B Kotcon
- Division of Plant and Soil Science, Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Design, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, USA
| | - Zachary B Freedman
- Department of Soil Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
| | - Ember M Morrissey
- Division of Plant and Soil Science, Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Design, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, USA
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3
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Setälä H, Szlavecz K, Pullen JD, Parker JD, Huang Y, Chang C. Acute resource pulses from periodical cicadas propagate to belowground food webs but do not affect tree performance. Ecology 2022; 103:e3773. [PMID: 35633474 PMCID: PMC9786866 DOI: 10.1002/ecy.3773] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2021] [Revised: 03/15/2022] [Accepted: 04/18/2022] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
Acute resource pulses can have dramatic legacies for organismal growth, but the legacy effects of resource pulses on broader aspects of community structure and ecosystem processes are less understood. Mass emergence of periodical cicadas (Magicicada spp.) provides an excellent opportunity to shed light on the influence of resource pulses on community and ecosystem dynamics: the adults emerge every 13 or 17 years in vast numbers over much of eastern North America, with a smaller but still significant number becoming incorporated into forest food webs. To study the potential effects of such arthropod resource pulse on primary production and belowground food webs, we added adult cicada bodies to the soil surface surrounding sycamore trees and assessed soil carbon and nitrogen concentrations, plant-available nutrients, abundance and community composition of soil fauna occupying various trophic levels, decomposition rate of plant litter after 50 and 100 days, and tree performance for 4 years. Contrary to previous studies, we did not find significant cicada effects on tree performance despite observing higher plant-available nutrient levels on cicada addition plots. Cicada addition did change the community composition of soil nematodes and increased the abundance of bacterial- and fungal-feeding nematodes, while plant feeders, omnivores, and predators were not influenced. Altogether, acute resource pulses from decomposing cicadas propagated belowground to soil microbial-feeding invertebrates and stimulated nutrient mineralization in the soil, but these effects did not transfer up to affect tree performance. We conclude that, despite their influence on soil food web and processes they carry out, even massive resource pulses from arthropods do not necessarily translate to NPP, supporting the view that ephemeral nutrient pulses can be attenuated relatively quickly despite being relatively large in magnitude.
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Affiliation(s)
- Heikki Setälä
- Ecosystems and Environment Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental SciencesUniversity of HelsinkiLahtiFinland
| | - Katalin Szlavecz
- Department of Earth and Planetary SciencesJohns Hopkins UniversityBaltimoreMarylandUSA
| | - Jamie D. Pullen
- Smithsonian Environmental Research CenterEdgewaterMarylandUSA
| | - John D. Parker
- Smithsonian Environmental Research CenterEdgewaterMarylandUSA
| | - Yumei Huang
- College of Landscape ArchitectureSichuan Agricultural UniversityChengduChina
| | - Chih‐Han Chang
- Department of Life ScienceNational Taiwan UniversityTaipeiTaiwan,Institute of Ecology and Evolutionary BiologyNational Taiwan UniversityTaipeiTaiwan
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4
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Potapov AM, Rozanova OL, Semenina EE, Leonov VD, Belyakova OI, Bogatyreva VY, Degtyarev MI, Esaulov AS, Korotkevich AY, Kudrin AA, Malysheva EA, Mazei YA, Tsurikov SM, Zuev AG, Tiunov AV. Size compartmentalization of energy channeling in terrestrial belowground food webs. Ecology 2021; 102:e03421. [PMID: 34086977 DOI: 10.1002/ecy.3421] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2020] [Revised: 03/11/2021] [Accepted: 03/21/2021] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
Abstract
Size-structured food webs form integrated trophic systems where energy is channeled from small to large consumers. Empirical evidence suggests that size structure prevails in aquatic ecosystems, whereas in terrestrial food webs trophic position is largely independent of body size. Compartmentalization of energy channeling according to size classes of consumers was suggested as a mechanism that underpins functioning and stability of terrestrial food webs including those belowground, but their structure has not been empirically assessed across the whole size spectrum. Here we used stable isotope analysis and metabolic regressions to describe size structure and energy use in eight belowground communities with consumers spanning 12 orders of magnitude in living body mass, from protists to earthworms. We showed a negative correlation between trophic position and body mass in invertebrate communities and a remarkable nonlinearity in community metabolism and trophic positions across all size classes. Specifically, we found that the correlation between body mass and trophic level is positive in the small-sized (protists, nematodes, arthropods below 1 μg in body mass), neutral in the medium-sized (arthropods of 1 μg to 1 mg), and negative in the large-sized consumers (large arthropods, earthworms), suggesting that these groups form compartments with different trophic organization. Based on this pattern, we propose a concept of belowground food webs being composed of (1) size-structured micro-food web driving fast energy channeling and nutrient release, for example in microbial loop; (2) arthropod macro-food web with no clear correlation between body size and trophic level, hosting soil arthropod diversity and subsidizing aboveground predators; and (3) "trophic whales," sequestering energy in their large bodies and restricting its propagation to higher trophic levels in belowground food webs. The three size compartments are based on a similar set of basal resources, but contribute to different ecosystem-level functions and respond differently to variations in climate, soil characteristics and land use. We suggest that the widely used vision of resource-based energy channeling in belowground food webs can be complemented with size-based energy channeling, where ecosystem multifunctionality, biodiversity, and stability are supported by a balance across individual size compartments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anton M Potapov
- A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russian Academy of Sciences, Leninsky Prospect 33, 119071, Moscow, Russia.,J. F. Blumenbach Institute of Zoology and Anthropology, University of Goettingen, Untere Karspüle 2, 37073, Goettingen, Germany
| | - Oksana L Rozanova
- A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russian Academy of Sciences, Leninsky Prospect 33, 119071, Moscow, Russia
| | - Eugenia E Semenina
- A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russian Academy of Sciences, Leninsky Prospect 33, 119071, Moscow, Russia
| | - Vladislav D Leonov
- A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russian Academy of Sciences, Leninsky Prospect 33, 119071, Moscow, Russia
| | - Olga I Belyakova
- Penza State University, Krasnaya Street 40, Penza, 440068, Russia
| | - Varvara Yu Bogatyreva
- A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russian Academy of Sciences, Leninsky Prospect 33, 119071, Moscow, Russia
| | - Maxim I Degtyarev
- A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russian Academy of Sciences, Leninsky Prospect 33, 119071, Moscow, Russia.,Lomonosov Moscow State University, Leninskie Gory 1, 119991, Moscow, Russia
| | - Anton S Esaulov
- Penza State University, Krasnaya Street 40, Penza, 440068, Russia
| | - Anastasiya Yu Korotkevich
- Institute of Biology and Chemistry, Moscow State Pedagogical University, Kibalchicha Street 6k3, 129164, Moscow, Russia
| | - Alexey A Kudrin
- Institute of Biology of Komi Scientific Centre, Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Kommunisticheskaja 28, 167000, Syktyvkar, Russia
| | | | - Yuri A Mazei
- A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russian Academy of Sciences, Leninsky Prospect 33, 119071, Moscow, Russia.,Lomonosov Moscow State University, Leninskie Gory 1, 119991, Moscow, Russia.,Faculty of Biology, Shenzhen MSU-BIT University, 1 International University Park Road, Dayun New Town, Longgang District, Shenzhen, 517182, China
| | - Sergey M Tsurikov
- A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russian Academy of Sciences, Leninsky Prospect 33, 119071, Moscow, Russia
| | - Andrey G Zuev
- A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russian Academy of Sciences, Leninsky Prospect 33, 119071, Moscow, Russia
| | - Alexei V Tiunov
- A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russian Academy of Sciences, Leninsky Prospect 33, 119071, Moscow, Russia
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5
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McCary MA, Schmitz OJ. Invertebrate functional traits and terrestrial nutrient cycling: Insights from a global meta-analysis. J Anim Ecol 2021; 90:1714-1726. [PMID: 33782983 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.13489] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2021] [Accepted: 03/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Functional traits are useful for characterizing variation in community and ecosystem dynamics. Most advances in trait-based ecology to date centre on plant functional traits, although there is an increasing recognition that animal traits are also key contributors to processes operating at the community or ecosystem scale. Terrestrial invertebrates are incredibly diverse and ubiquitous animals with important roles in nutrient cycling. Despite their widespread influence on ecosystem processes, we currently lack a synthetic understanding of how invertebrate functional traits affect terrestrial nutrient cycling. We present a meta-analysis of 511 paired observations from 122 papers that examined how invertebrate functional traits affected litter decomposition rates, nitrogen pools and litter C:N ratios. Based on the available data, we specifically assessed the effects of feeding mode (bioturbation, detritus shredding, detritus grazing, leaf chewing, leaf piercing, ambush predators, active hunting predators) and body size (macro- and micro-invertebrates) on nutrient cycling. The effects of invertebrates on terrestrial nutrient cycling varied according to functional trait. The inclusion of both macro- (≥2 mm) and micro-invertebrates (<2 mm) increased litter decomposition by 20% and 19%, respectively. All detritivorous feeding modes enhanced litter decomposition rates, with bioturbators, detritus shredders and detritus grazers increasing decomposition by 28%, 22% and 15%, respectively. Neither herbivore feeding mode (e.g. leaf chewers and leaf piercers) nor predator hunting mode (ambush and active hunting) affected decomposition. We also revealed that bioturbators and detritus grazers increased soil nitrogen availability by 99% and 70%, respectively, and that leaf-chewing herbivores had a weak effect on litterfall stoichiometry via reducing C:N ratios by 11%. Although functional traits might be useful predictors of ecosystem processes, our findings suggest context-dependent effects of invertebrate traits on terrestrial nutrient cycling. Detritivore functional traits (i.e. bioturbators, detritus shredders and detritus grazers) are more consistent with increased rates of nutrient cycling, whereas our currently characterized predator and herbivore traits are less predictive. Future research is needed to identify, standardize and deliberately study the impacts of invertebrate functional traits on nutrient cycling in hopes of revealing the key functional traits governing ecosystem functioning worldwide.
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Laigle I, Moretti M, Rousseau L, Gravel D, Venier L, Handa IT, Messier C, Morris D, Hazlett P, Fleming R, Webster K, Shipley B, Aubin I. Direct and Indirect Effects of Forest Anthropogenic Disturbance on Above and Below Ground Communities and Litter Decomposition. Ecosystems 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s10021-021-00613-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
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7
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Massé A, Tribollet A, Meziane T, Bourguet-Kondracki ML, Yéprémian C, Sève C, Thiney N, Longeon A, Couté A, Domart-Coulon I. Functional diversity of microboring Ostreobium algae isolated from corals. Environ Microbiol 2020; 22:4825-4846. [PMID: 32990394 DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.15256] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2019] [Revised: 09/09/2020] [Accepted: 09/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
The filamentous chlorophyte Ostreobium sp. dominates shallow marine carbonate microboring communities, and is one of the major agents of reef bioerosion. While its large genetic diversity has emerged, its physiology remains little known, with unexplored relationship between genotypes and phenotypes (endolithic versus free-living growth forms). Here, we isolated nine strains affiliated to two lineages of Ostreobium (>8% sequence divergence of the plastid gene rbcL), one of which was assigned to the family Odoaceae, from the fast-growing coral host Pocillopora acuta Lamarck 1816. Free-living isolates maintained their bioerosive potential, colonizing pre-bleached coral carbonate skeletons. We compared phenotypes, highlighting shifts in pigment and fatty acid compositions, carbon to nitrogen ratios and stable isotope compositions (δ13 C and δ15 N). Our data show a pattern of higher chlorophyll b and lower arachidonic acid (20:4ω6) content in endolithic versus free-living Ostreobium. Photosynthetic carbon fixation and nitrate uptake, quantified via 8 h pulse-labeling with 13 C-bicarbonate and 15 N-nitrate, showed lower isotopic enrichment in endolithic compared to free-living filaments. Our results highlight the functional plasticity of Ostreobium phenotypes. The isotope tracer approach opens the way to further study the biogeochemical cycling and trophic ecology of these cryptic algae at coral holobiont and reef scales.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anaïs Massé
- Molécules de Communication et Adaptation des Microorganismes (MCAM), Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN), CNRS (UMR7245); CP54 63 Rue Buffon, Paris, 75005, France.,IRD-Sorbonne Université (UPMC-CNRS-MNHN), Laboratoire IPSL-LOCEAN, 4 Place Jussieu, Tour 46-00, 5éme étage, Paris Cedex, 75005, France
| | - Aline Tribollet
- IRD-Sorbonne Université (UPMC-CNRS-MNHN), Laboratoire IPSL-LOCEAN, 4 Place Jussieu, Tour 46-00, 5éme étage, Paris Cedex, 75005, France
| | - Tarik Meziane
- Biologie des Organismes et Ecosystèmes Aquatiques (BOREA), Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN), SU, UNICAEN, UA, CNRS (UMR7208), IRD; CP53, 61 rue Buffon, Paris, 75005, France
| | - Marie-Lise Bourguet-Kondracki
- Molécules de Communication et Adaptation des Microorganismes (MCAM), Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN), CNRS (UMR7245); CP54 63 Rue Buffon, Paris, 75005, France
| | - Claude Yéprémian
- Molécules de Communication et Adaptation des Microorganismes (MCAM), Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN), CNRS (UMR7245); CP54 63 Rue Buffon, Paris, 75005, France
| | - Charlotte Sève
- Molécules de Communication et Adaptation des Microorganismes (MCAM), Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN), CNRS (UMR7245); CP54 63 Rue Buffon, Paris, 75005, France
| | - Najet Thiney
- Biologie des Organismes et Ecosystèmes Aquatiques (BOREA), Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN), SU, UNICAEN, UA, CNRS (UMR7208), IRD; CP53, 61 rue Buffon, Paris, 75005, France
| | - Arlette Longeon
- Molécules de Communication et Adaptation des Microorganismes (MCAM), Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN), CNRS (UMR7245); CP54 63 Rue Buffon, Paris, 75005, France
| | - Alain Couté
- Molécules de Communication et Adaptation des Microorganismes (MCAM), Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN), CNRS (UMR7245); CP54 63 Rue Buffon, Paris, 75005, France
| | - Isabelle Domart-Coulon
- Molécules de Communication et Adaptation des Microorganismes (MCAM), Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN), CNRS (UMR7245); CP54 63 Rue Buffon, Paris, 75005, France
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8
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De Gruyter J, Weedon JT, Bazot S, Dauwe S, Fernandez-Garberí PR, Geisen S, De La Motte LG, Heinesch B, Janssens IA, Leblans N, Manise T, Ogaya R, Löfvenius MO, Peñuelas J, Sigurdsson BD, Vincent G, Verbruggen E. Patterns of local, intercontinental and interseasonal variation of soil bacterial and eukaryotic microbial communities. FEMS Microbiol Ecol 2020; 96:5719567. [DOI: 10.1093/femsec/fiaa018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2019] [Accepted: 01/29/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
ABSTRACT
Although ongoing research has revealed some of the main drivers behind global spatial patterns of microbial communities, spatio-temporal dynamics of these communities still remain largely unexplored. Here, we investigate spatio-temporal variability of both bacterial and eukaryotic soil microbial communities at local and intercontinental scales. We compare how temporal variation in community composition scales with spatial variation in community composition, and explore the extent to which bacteria, protists, fungi and metazoa have similar patterns of temporal community dynamics. All soil microbial groups displayed a strong correlation between spatial distance and community dissimilarity, which was related to the ratio of organism to sample size. Temporal changes were variable, ranging from equal to local between-sample variation, to as large as that between communities several thousand kilometers apart. Moreover, significant correlations were found between bacterial and protist communities, as well as between protist and fungal communities, indicating that these microbial groups change in tandem, potentially driven by interactions between them. We conclude that temporal variation can be considerable in soil microbial communities, and that future studies need to consider temporal variation in order to reliably capture all drivers of soil microbiome changes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Johan De Gruyter
- Centre of Excellence PLECO (Plants and Ecosystems), Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - James T Weedon
- Centre of Excellence PLECO (Plants and Ecosystems), Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
- Department of Ecological Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, 1081 HV Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Stéphane Bazot
- Ecologie Systématique Evolution, University of Paris-Sud, CNRS, AgroParisTech, Université Paris-Saclay, 91400 Orsay, France
| | - Steven Dauwe
- Centre of Excellence PLECO (Plants and Ecosystems), Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Pere-Roc Fernandez-Garberí
- CREAF, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona 08193, Catalonia, Spain
- CSIC, Global Ecology Unit CREAF-CSIC-UAB, Bellaterra, Barcelona 08193, Catalonia, Spain
| | - Stefan Geisen
- Department of Terrestrial Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), 6708 PB Wageningen, the Netherlands
| | - Louis Gourlez De La Motte
- TERRA Teaching and Research Centre, Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech, University of Liege, B-5030 Gembloux, Belgium
| | - Bernard Heinesch
- TERRA Teaching and Research Centre, Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech, University of Liege, B-5030 Gembloux, Belgium
| | - Ivan A Janssens
- Centre of Excellence PLECO (Plants and Ecosystems), Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Niki Leblans
- Centre of Excellence PLECO (Plants and Ecosystems), Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Tanguy Manise
- AGROBIOCHEM Research Unit, Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech, University of Liege, B-5030 Gembloux, Belgium
| | - Romà Ogaya
- CREAF, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona 08193, Catalonia, Spain
- CSIC, Global Ecology Unit CREAF-CSIC-UAB, Bellaterra, Barcelona 08193, Catalonia, Spain
| | - Mikaell Ottosson Löfvenius
- Department of Forest Ecology and Management, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), SE-901 83 Umeå, Sweden
| | - Josep Peñuelas
- CREAF, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona 08193, Catalonia, Spain
- CSIC, Global Ecology Unit CREAF-CSIC-UAB, Bellaterra, Barcelona 08193, Catalonia, Spain
| | - Bjarni D Sigurdsson
- Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Agricultural University of Iceland, Hvanneyri, IS-311 Borgarnes, Iceland
| | - Gaëlle Vincent
- Ecologie Systématique Evolution, University of Paris-Sud, CNRS, AgroParisTech, Université Paris-Saclay, 91400 Orsay, France
| | - Erik Verbruggen
- Centre of Excellence PLECO (Plants and Ecosystems), Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
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Magilton M, Maraun M, Emmerson M, Caruso T. Oribatid mites reveal that competition for resources and trophic structure combine to regulate the assembly of diverse soil animal communities. Ecol Evol 2019; 9:8320-8330. [PMID: 31380092 PMCID: PMC6662270 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.5409] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2018] [Revised: 05/13/2019] [Accepted: 06/12/2019] [Indexed: 01/23/2023] Open
Abstract
The role of niche partitioning in structuring species-rich soil animal communities has been debated for decades and generated the "enigma of soil animal diversity." More recently, resource-based niche partitioning has been hypothesized to play a very limited role in the assembly of soil animal communities. To test this hypothesis, we applied a novel combination of stable isotopes and null models of species co-occurrence to quantify the extent of resource niche partitioning on a diverse oribatid mite community sampled from mature oak woodland.We asked whether species aggregate or segregate spatially and how these patterns correlated with the abundance of estimated trophic guilds. We also estimated the effects of environmental variables on community structure.All measured environmental variables accounted for 12% of variance in community structure, including 8% of pure spatial structure unrelated to measured environmental factors and 2% of pure environmental variance unrelated to spatial variation. Co-occurrence analysis revealed 10 pairs of species that aggregated and six pairs of species that were spatially segregated. Values of δ15N indicated that five out of the 10 pairs of aggregated species occupied the same trophic guild, while values of δ13C indicated that species in these five pairs consumed resources of different quality, supporting a significant role of resource-based niche partitioning. Also, one of the five pairs of segregated species occupied the same trophic guild but had overlapping δ13C values suggesting that these species do not co-occur locally and thus minimize competition for shared resources.Partitioning of resources plays an underestimated role in soil microarthropod communities and different local communities consisted of the same trophic guilds with species identity changing from place to place. The sum of resource partitioning, multi-trophic interactions, and microscale environmental variability in the environment is a viable solution to the enigma of soil animal diversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew Magilton
- School of Biological Sciences and Institute for Global Food SecurityQueen's University of BelfastBelfastUK
| | - Mark Maraun
- JFB Institute of Zoology and AnthropologyGeorg August University GöttingenGöttingenGermany
| | - Mark Emmerson
- School of Biological Sciences and Institute for Global Food SecurityQueen's University of BelfastBelfastUK
| | - Tancredi Caruso
- School of Biological Sciences and Institute for Global Food SecurityQueen's University of BelfastBelfastUK
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10
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Hagner M, Mikola J, Saloniemi I, Saikkonen K, Helander M. Effects of a glyphosate-based herbicide on soil animal trophic groups and associated ecosystem functioning in a northern agricultural field. Sci Rep 2019; 9:8540. [PMID: 31189896 PMCID: PMC6561955 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-44988-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2018] [Accepted: 05/29/2019] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Despite an increasing concern of consequences of using vast amounts of glyphosate-based herbicides in agroecosystems, their potential effects on non-target soil organisms and soil functioning are mostly unknown. It has also been argued that fields in northern latitudes should be under special surveillance as the short active period of decomposers may restrict glyphosate degradation. We investigated the effects of a glyphosate-based herbicide, Roundup, on the abundance of enchytraeids and nematodes, both essential groups in decomposer food webs, and plant litter mass loss and soil availability of mineral N in a two-year agricultural field setting in south-west Finland. Our experiment consisted of (1) non-treated weed plots, (2) plots, where weeds were killed by hoeing, and (3) plots treated with both Roundup and hoeing. We found that killing plants by hoeing had drastic effects on soil fauna and functioning, and apparently, distinguishing these effects from direct glyphosate effects is profoundly important when evaluating glyphosate risks in soils. In contrast, the effects of Roundup on soil fauna and functioning were minor and transient and no glyphosate remains were found in the soil at the end of the experiment. These results suggest that side-effects can be minor and glyphosate degradation effective also in soil under northern climatic conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marleena Hagner
- Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Ecosystems and Environment Research Programme, University of Helsinki, Niemenkatu 73, 15140, Lahti, Finland.
- Plant Health, Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke), 31600, Jokioinen, Finland.
| | - Juha Mikola
- Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Ecosystems and Environment Research Programme, University of Helsinki, Niemenkatu 73, 15140, Lahti, Finland
| | - Irma Saloniemi
- Department of Biology, University of Turku, 20014, Turku, Finland
- Biodiversity Unit, University of Turku, 20014, Turku, Finland
| | - Kari Saikkonen
- Biodiversity Unit, University of Turku, 20014, Turku, Finland
| | - Marjo Helander
- Department of Biology, University of Turku, 20014, Turku, Finland
- Biodiversity Unit, University of Turku, 20014, Turku, Finland
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11
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Shelef O, Hahn PG, Getman-Pickering Z, Martinez Medina A. Coming to Common Ground: The Challenges of Applying Ecological Theory Developed Aboveground to Rhizosphere Interactions. Front Ecol Evol 2019. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2019.00058] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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12
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Yang B, Pang X, Bao W, Qi L, Liang W, Shao Y, Fu S, Liu X, Ge F. The interactions between soil microbes and microbial feeding nematodes correlate with fruit productivity of Illicium verum Hook. Glob Ecol Conserv 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.gecco.2018.e00511] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
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13
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Moura GS, Franzener G. Biodiversity of nematodes biological indicators of soil quality in the agroecosystems. ARQUIVOS DO INSTITUTO BIOLÓGICO 2017. [DOI: 10.1590/1808-1657000142015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
ABSTRACT: Nematodes can be associated with the soil ecological condition, thus being associated with this sustainability condition of agricultural production. Studies of their diversity can be applied with the purpose of using them as bioindicators of environmental changes and the productive impacts. However, these organisms have been neglected in the agroecosystems, only assuming status of pathogen when their population is very high, with considerable losses in productivity. It is estimated that approximately 10% of the nematodes cause damage to plants, 25% are nematodes grouped into trophic levels of fungivores or fungal feeders, bacterivorous, and omnivores, according to the type of their food. In many cases it is not known the ratio of population level of the nematode with the level of damage in plants. For this reason, the use of pesticides and fertilizers is still part of the most common practices by farmers, causing loss of soil organic matter, soil erosion and groundwater contamination, in addition to an imbalance in the microbiote. The objective of this work was to make a brief review about the diversity of nematodes in the soil in the agroecosystems that can be used in studies of sustainability, as soil quality bioindicators. Several species of nematodes have the potential to be used as biological indicators of soil quality. In this sense, the knowledge and use of bioindicators by rural producers are important, in order to encourage practices of sustainable management systems that do not cause the soil biodiversity imbalance.
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Zhang X, Johnston ER, Barberán A, Ren Y, Lü X, Han X. Decreased plant productivity resulting from plant group removal experiment constrains soil microbial functional diversity. GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY 2017; 23:4318-4332. [PMID: 28585356 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.13783] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2017] [Accepted: 05/30/2017] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Anthropogenic environmental changes are accelerating the rate of biodiversity loss on Earth. Plant diversity loss is predicted to reduce soil microbial diversity primarily due to the decreased variety of carbon/energy resources. However, this intuitive hypothesis is supported by sparse empirical evidence, and most underlying mechanisms remain underexplored or obscure altogether. We constructed four diversity gradients (0-3) in a five-year plant functional group removal experiment in a steppe ecosystem in Inner Mongolia, China, and quantified microbial taxonomic and functional diversity with shotgun metagenome sequencing. The treatments had little effect on microbial taxonomic diversity, but were found to decrease functional gene diversity. However, the observed decrease in functional gene diversity was more attributable to a loss in plant productivity, rather than to the loss of any individual plant functional group per se. Reduced productivity limited fresh plant resources supplied to microorganisms, and thus, intensified the pressure of ecological filtering, favoring genes responsible for energy production/conversion, material transport/metabolism and amino acid recycling, and accordingly disfavored many genes with other functions. Furthermore, microbial respiration was correlated with the variation in functional composition but not taxonomic composition. Overall, the amount of carbon/energy resources driving microbial gene diversity was identified to be the critical linkage between above- and belowground communities, contrary to the traditional framework of linking plant clade/taxonomic diversity to microbial taxonomic diversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ximei Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Dryland Agriculture, MOA, Institute of Environment and Sustainable Development in Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
- Institute of Applied Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang, China
| | - Eric R Johnston
- School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Albert Barberán
- Department of Soil, Water, and Environmental Science, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - Yi Ren
- Shanghai Majorbio Bio-pharm Biotechnology Co., Ltd, Shanghai, China
| | - Xiaotao Lü
- Institute of Applied Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang, China
| | - Xingguo Han
- Institute of Applied Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang, China
- State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
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15
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Hickerson CAM, Anthony CD, Walton BM. Eastern Red-backed Salamanders Regulate Top-Down Effects in a Temperate Forest-Floor Community. HERPETOLOGICA 2017. [DOI: 10.1655/herpetologica-d-16-00081.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Carl D. Anthony
- Department of Biology, John Carroll University, University Heights, OH 44118, USA
| | - B. Michael Walton
- Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OH 44115, USA
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16
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17
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Devlin SP, Saarenheimo J, Syväranta J, Jones RI. Top consumer abundance influences lake methane efflux. Nat Commun 2015; 6:8787. [PMID: 26531291 PMCID: PMC4659926 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms9787] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2015] [Accepted: 10/02/2015] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Lakes are important habitats for biogeochemical cycling of carbon. The organization and structure of aquatic communities influences the biogeochemical interactions between lakes and the atmosphere. Understanding how trophic structure regulates ecosystem functions and influences greenhouse gas efflux from lakes is critical to understanding global carbon cycling and climate change. With a whole-lake experiment in which a previously fishless lake was divided into two treatment basins where fish abundance was manipulated, we show how a trophic cascade from fish to microbes affects methane efflux to the atmosphere. Here, fish exert high grazing pressure and remove nearly all zooplankton. This reduction in zooplankton density increases the abundance of methanotrophic bacteria, which in turn reduce CH4 efflux rates by roughly 10 times. Given that globally there are millions of lakes emitting methane, an important greenhouse gas, our findings that aquatic trophic interactions significantly influence the biogeochemical cycle of methane has important implications. How aquatic communities influence biogeochemical cycling is not well understood. Here, Devlin et al. manipulate the abundance of fish in a whole-lake experiment and show that methane efflux is reduced by the presence of top predators, via a trophic cascade from zooplankton to methanotrophic bacteria.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shawn P Devlin
- Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, PO Box 35, 40014 Jyväskylä, Finland
| | - Jatta Saarenheimo
- Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, PO Box 35, 40014 Jyväskylä, Finland
| | - Jari Syväranta
- Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, PO Box 35, 40014 Jyväskylä, Finland
| | - Roger I Jones
- Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, PO Box 35, 40014 Jyväskylä, Finland
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18
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Shao Y, Wang X, Zhao J, Wu J, Zhang W, Neher DA, Li Y, Lou Y, Fu S. Subordinate plants sustain the complexity and stability of soil micro-food webs in natural bamboo forest ecosystems. J Appl Ecol 2015. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2664.12538] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Yuanhu Shao
- Key Laboratory of Vegetation Restoration and Management of Degraded Ecosystems; South China Botanical Garden; Chinese Academy of Sciences; Guangzhou 510650 China
| | - Xiaoli Wang
- Key Laboratory of Vegetation Restoration and Management of Degraded Ecosystems; South China Botanical Garden; Chinese Academy of Sciences; Guangzhou 510650 China
- University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences; Beijing 100049 China
| | - Jie Zhao
- Key Laboratory of Agro-ecological Processes in Subtropical Region; Institute of Subtropical Agriculture; Chinese Academy of Sciences; Changsha 410125 China
| | - Jianping Wu
- Institute of Ecology and Environmental Sciences; Nanchang Institute of Technology; Nanchang 330099 China
| | - Weixin Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Vegetation Restoration and Management of Degraded Ecosystems; South China Botanical Garden; Chinese Academy of Sciences; Guangzhou 510650 China
| | - Deborah A. Neher
- Department of Plant & Soil Science; University of Vermont; Burlington VT 05405 USA
| | - Yanxia Li
- International Network of Bamboo and Rattan; Beijing 100102 China
- Research Institute of Subtropical Forestry; Chinese Academy of Forestry; Fuyang 311400 China
| | - Yiping Lou
- International Network of Bamboo and Rattan; Beijing 100102 China
- Research Institute of Subtropical Forestry; Chinese Academy of Forestry; Fuyang 311400 China
| | - Shenglei Fu
- Key Laboratory of Vegetation Restoration and Management of Degraded Ecosystems; South China Botanical Garden; Chinese Academy of Sciences; Guangzhou 510650 China
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19
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Thakur MP, Herrmann M, Steinauer K, Rennoch S, Cesarz S, Eisenhauer N. Cascading effects of belowground predators on plant communities are density-dependent. Ecol Evol 2015; 5:4300-14. [PMID: 26664680 PMCID: PMC4667818 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.1597] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2015] [Revised: 06/10/2015] [Accepted: 06/14/2015] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Soil food webs comprise a multitude of trophic interactions that can affect the composition and productivity of plant communities. Belowground predators feeding on microbial grazers like Collembola could decelerate nutrient mineralization by reducing microbial turnover in the soil, which in turn could negatively influence plant growth. However, empirical evidences for the ecological significance of belowground predators on nutrient cycling and plant communities are scarce. Here, we manipulated predator density (Hypoaspis aculeifer: predatory mite) with equal densities of three Collembola species as a prey in four functionally dissimilar plant communities in experimental microcosms: grass monoculture (Poa pratensis), herb monoculture (Rumex acetosa), legume monoculture (Trifolium pratense), and all three species as a mixed plant community. Density manipulation of predators allowed us to test for density‐mediated effects of belowground predators on Collembola and lower trophic groups. We hypothesized that predator density will reduce Collembola population causing a decrease in nutrient mineralization and hence detrimentally affect plant growth. First, we found a density‐dependent population change in predators, that is, an increase in low‐density treatments, but a decrease in high‐density treatments. Second, prey suppression was lower at high predator density, which caused a shift in the soil microbial community by increasing the fungal: bacterial biomass ratio, and an increase of nitrification rates, particularly in legume monocultures. Despite the increase in nutrient mineralization, legume monocultures performed worse at high predator density. Further, individual grass shoot biomass decreased in monocultures, while it increased in mixed plant communities with increasing predator density, which coincided with elevated soil N uptake by grasses. As a consequence, high predator density significantly increased plant complementarity effects indicating a decrease in interspecific plant competition. These results highlight that belowground predators can relax interspecific plant competition by increasing nutrient mineralization through their density‐dependent cascading effects on detritivore and soil microbial communities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Madhav Prakash Thakur
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig Deutscher Platz 5e 04103 Leipzig Germany ; Institute of Biology University of Leipzig Johannisallee 21 04103 Leipzig Germany
| | - Martina Herrmann
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig Deutscher Platz 5e 04103 Leipzig Germany ; Institute of Ecology Friedrich Schiller Jena University Dornburger Str. 159 07743 Jena Germany
| | - Katja Steinauer
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig Deutscher Platz 5e 04103 Leipzig Germany ; Institute of Biology University of Leipzig Johannisallee 21 04103 Leipzig Germany
| | - Saskia Rennoch
- Institute of Ecology Friedrich Schiller Jena University Dornburger Str. 159 07743 Jena Germany
| | - Simone Cesarz
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig Deutscher Platz 5e 04103 Leipzig Germany ; Institute of Biology University of Leipzig Johannisallee 21 04103 Leipzig Germany
| | - Nico Eisenhauer
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig Deutscher Platz 5e 04103 Leipzig Germany ; Institute of Biology University of Leipzig Johannisallee 21 04103 Leipzig Germany
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20
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Higher Trophic Levels Overwhelm Climate Change Impacts on Terrestrial Ecosystem Functioning. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0136344. [PMID: 26292214 PMCID: PMC4546271 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0136344] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2015] [Accepted: 07/31/2015] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Forest floor food webs play pivotal roles in carbon cycling, but they are rarely considered in models of carbon fluxes, including soil carbon dioxide emissions (respiration), under climatic warming. The indirect effects of invertebrates on heterotrophic (microbial and invertebrate) respiration through interactions with microbial communities are significant and will be altered by warming. However, the interactive effects of invertebrates and warming on heterotrophic respiration in the field are poorly understood. In this study we combined field and common garden laboratory approaches to examine relationships between warming, forest floor food web structure, and heterotrophic respiration. We found that soil animals can overwhelm the effects of warming (to 5 degrees Celsius above ambient) on heterotrophic respiration. In particular, the presence of higher trophic levels and burrowing detritivores strongly determined heterotrophic respiration rates in temperate forest soils. These effects were, however, context-dependent, with greater effects in a lower-latitude site. Without isolating and including the significant impact of invertebrates, climate models will be incomplete, hindering well-informed policy decisions.
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21
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Buchkowski RW, Schmitz OJ. Detritivores ameliorate the enhancing effect of plant-based trophic cascades on nitrogen cycling in an old-field system. Biol Lett 2015; 11:20141048. [PMID: 25878045 PMCID: PMC4424612 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2014.1048] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2014] [Accepted: 03/22/2015] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Nitrogen (N) cycling is a fundamental process central to numerous ecosystem functions and services. Accumulating evidence suggests that species within detritus- and plant-based food chains can play an instrumental role in regulating this process. However, the effects of each food chain are usually examined in isolation of each other, so it remains uncertain if their effects are equally important or if one chain exerts predominant control. We experimentally manipulated the species composition of detritus-based (isopods and spiders) and plant-based (grasshoppers and spiders) food chains individually and in combination within mesocosms containing plants and microbes from an old-field ecosystem. We tested: (i) their relative impact on N cycling, and (ii) whether interactions between them moderated the influence of one group or the other. We found that spiders in plant-based food chains exerted the only positive effect on N cycling. Detritus-based food chains had no net effects on N cycling but, when combined with plant-based food chains, ameliorated the positive effects of plant-based species. Our results suggest that detritus-based food chains may ultimately limit rates of N cycling by eroding the enhancing effects of plant-based food chains when antagonistic interactions between detritus- and plant-based species exist.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert W Buchkowski
- School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, Yale University, 370 Prospect Street, New Haven CT 06511, USA
| | - Oswald J Schmitz
- School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, Yale University, 370 Prospect Street, New Haven CT 06511, USA
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22
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Haig SJ, Schirmer M, D'Amore R, Gibbs J, Davies RL, Collins G, Quince C. Stable-isotope probing and metagenomics reveal predation by protozoa drives E. coli removal in slow sand filters. THE ISME JOURNAL 2015; 9:797-808. [PMID: 25279786 PMCID: PMC4817707 DOI: 10.1038/ismej.2014.175] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2014] [Revised: 07/15/2014] [Accepted: 08/17/2014] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Stable-isotope probing and metagenomics were applied to study samples taken from laboratory-scale slow sand filters 0.5, 1, 2, 3 and 4 h after challenging with (13)C-labelled Escherichia coli to determine the mechanisms and organisms responsible for coliform removal. Before spiking, the filters had been continuously operated for 7 weeks using water from the River Kelvin, Glasgow as their influent source. Direct counts and quantitative PCR assays revealed a clear predator-prey response between protozoa and E. coli. The importance of top-down trophic-interactions was confirmed by metagenomic analysis, identifying several protozoan and viral species connected to E. coli attrition, with protozoan grazing responsible for the majority of the removal. In addition to top-down mechanisms, indirect mechanisms, such as algal reactive oxygen species-induced lysis, and mutualistic interactions between algae and fungi, were also associated with coliform removal. The findings significantly further our understanding of the processes and trophic interactions underpinning E. coli removal. This study provides an example for similar studies, and the opportunity to better understand, manage and enhance E. coli removal by allowing the creation of more complex trophic interaction models.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Rosalinda D'Amore
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
| | - Joseph Gibbs
- Microbial Ecophysiology Laboratory, School of Natural Sciences and Ryan Institute, National University of Ireland, Galway, Ireland
| | - Robert L Davies
- Institute of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
| | - Gavin Collins
- School of Engineering, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
- Microbial Ecophysiology Laboratory, School of Natural Sciences and Ryan Institute, National University of Ireland, Galway, Ireland
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23
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Hines J, van der Putten WH, De Deyn GB, Wagg C, Voigt W, Mulder C, Weisser WW, Engel J, Melian C, Scheu S, Birkhofer K, Ebeling A, Scherber C, Eisenhauer N. Towards an Integration of Biodiversity–Ecosystem Functioning and Food Web Theory to Evaluate Relationships between Multiple Ecosystem Services. ADV ECOL RES 2015. [DOI: 10.1016/bs.aecr.2015.09.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
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24
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Mancinelli G, Mulder C. Detrital Dynamics and Cascading Effects on Supporting Ecosystem Services. ADV ECOL RES 2015. [DOI: 10.1016/bs.aecr.2015.10.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
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25
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26
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Kulmatiski A, Anderson-Smith A, Beard KH, Doucette-Riise S, Mazzacavallo M, Nolan NE, Ramirez RA, Stevens JR. Most soil trophic guilds increase plant growth: a meta-analytical review. OIKOS 2014. [DOI: 10.1111/oik.01767] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Andrew Kulmatiski
- Dept of Wildland Resources and the Ecology Center; Utah State Univ.; Logan UT 84322-5230 USA
| | | | - Karen H. Beard
- Dept of Wildland Resources and the Ecology Center; Utah State Univ.; Logan UT 84322-5230 USA
| | | | | | - Nicole E. Nolan
- Dept of Wildland Resources and the Ecology Center; Utah State Univ.; Logan UT 84322-5230 USA
| | | | - John R. Stevens
- Dept of Mathematics and Statistics; Utah State Univ.; Logan UT 84322-3900 USA
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27
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Lang B, Rall BC, Scheu S, Brose U. Effects of environmental warming and drought on size-structured soil food webs. OIKOS 2013. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1600-0706.2013.00894.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Birgit Lang
- J.F. Blumenbach Inst. of Zoology and Anthropology, Georg-August Univ.; Beriner Str. 28 DE-37037 Göttingen Germany
| | - Björn C. Rall
- J.F. Blumenbach Inst. of Zoology and Anthropology, Georg-August Univ.; Beriner Str. 28 DE-37037 Göttingen Germany
| | - Stefan Scheu
- J.F. Blumenbach Inst. of Zoology and Anthropology, Georg-August Univ.; Beriner Str. 28 DE-37037 Göttingen Germany
| | - Ulrich Brose
- J.F. Blumenbach Inst. of Zoology and Anthropology, Georg-August Univ.; Beriner Str. 28 DE-37037 Göttingen Germany
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28
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Mulder C, Ahrestani FS, Bahn M, Bohan DA, Bonkowski M, Griffiths BS, Guicharnaud RA, Kattge J, Krogh PH, Lavorel S, Lewis OT, Mancinelli G, Naeem S, Peñuelas J, Poorter H, Reich PB, Rossi L, Rusch GM, Sardans J, Wright IJ. Connecting the Green and Brown Worlds. ADV ECOL RES 2013. [DOI: 10.1016/b978-0-12-420002-9.00002-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 81] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
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29
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Schneider FD, Brose U. Beyond diversity: how nested predator effects control ecosystem functions. J Anim Ecol 2012; 82:64-71. [PMID: 23173560 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.12010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2012] [Accepted: 09/10/2012] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
The global decline in biodiversity is especially evident in higher trophic levels as predators display higher sensitivity to environmental change than organisms from lower trophic levels. This is even more alarming given the paucity of knowledge about the role of individual predator species in sustaining ecosystem functioning. The effect of predator diversity on lower trophic level prey is often driven by the increasing chance of including the most influential species. Furthermore, intraguild predation can cause trophic cascades with net positive effects on basal prey. As a consequence, the effects of losing a predator species appear to be idiosyncratic and it becomes unpredictable how the community's net effect on lower trophic levels changes when species number is declining. We performed a full factorial microcosm experiment with litter layer arthropods to measure the effects of predator diversity and context-dependent identity effects on a detritivore population and microbial biomass. We show that major parts of the observed diversity effect can be assigned to the increasing likelihood of including the most influential predator. Further, the presence of a second predator feeding on the first predator dampens this dominant effect. Including this intraguild predator on top of the first predator is more likely with increasing predator diversity as well. Thus, the overall pattern can be explained by a second identity effect, which is nested into the first. When losing a predator from the community, the response of the lower trophic level is highly dependent on the remaining predator species. We mechanistically explain the net effects of the predator community on lower trophic levels by nested effects of predator identities. These identity effects become predictable when taking the species' body masses into account. This provides a new mechanistic perspective describing ecosystem functioning as a consequence of species composition and yields an understanding beyond simple effects of biodiversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Florian Dirk Schneider
- J.F. Blumenbach Institute of Zoology and Anthropology, Georg August University Göttingen, Berliner Str. 28, 37073, Göttingen, Germany
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30
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Shao Y, Zhang W, Liu Z, Sun Y, Chen D, Wu J, Zhou L, Xia H, Neher DA, Fu S. Responses of soil microbial and nematode communities to aluminum toxicity in vegetated oil-shale-waste lands. ECOTOXICOLOGY (LONDON, ENGLAND) 2012; 21:2132-2142. [PMID: 22732942 DOI: 10.1007/s10646-012-0966-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/09/2012] [Indexed: 06/01/2023]
Abstract
Both soil nematodes and microorganisms have been shown to be sensitive bioindicators of soil recovery in metal-contaminated habitats; however, the underlying processes are poorly understood. We investigated the relationship among soil microbial community composition, nematode community structure and soil aluminum (Al) content in different vegetated aluminum-rich ecosystems. Our results demonstrated that there were greater soil bacterial, fungal and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal biomass in Syzygium cumini plantation, greater abundance of soil nematodes in Acacia auriculiformis plantation, and greater abundance of soil predatory and herbivorous nematodes in Schima wallichii plantation. The concentration of water-soluble Al was normally greater in vegetated than non-vegetated soil. The residual Al and total Al concentrations showed a significant decrease after planting S. cumini plantation onto the shale dump. Acid extractable, reducible and oxidisable Al concentrations were greater in S. wallichii plantation. Stepwise linear regression analysis suggests the concentrations of water-soluble Al and total Al content explain the most variance associated with nematode assembly; whereas, the abundance of early-successional nematode taxa was explained mostly by soil moisture, soil organic C and total N rather than the concentrations of different forms of Al. In contrast, no significant main effects of either Al or soil physico-chemical characteristics on soil microbial biomass were observed. Our study suggests that vegetation was the primary driver on soil nematodes and microorganisms and it also could regulate the sensitivity of bio-indicator role mainly through the alteration of soil Al and physico-chemical characteristics, and S. cumini is effective for amending the Al contaminated soils.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuanhu Shao
- Key Laboratory of Vegetation Restoration and Management of Degraded Ecosystems, South China Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 723 Xingke Road, Tianhe District, Guangzhou, 510650, China
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31
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Baynes MA, Russell DM, Newcombe G, Carta LK, Rossman AY, Ismaiel A. A mutualistic interaction between a fungivorous nematode and a fungus within the endophytic community of Bromus tectorum. FUNGAL ECOL 2012. [DOI: 10.1016/j.funeco.2012.03.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
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32
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Peay KG, Dickie IA, Wardle DA, Bellingham PJ, Fukami T. Rat invasion of islands alters fungal community structure, but not wood decomposition rates. OIKOS 2012. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1600-0706.2012.20813.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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33
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34
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Morriën E, Duyts H, Van der Putten WH. Effects of native and exotic range-expanding plant species on taxonomic and functional composition of nematodes in the soil food web. OIKOS 2011. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1600-0706.2011.19773.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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35
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Wu X, Duffy JE, Reich PB, Sun S. A brown-world cascade in the dung decomposer food web of an alpine meadow: effects of predator interactions and warming. ECOL MONOGR 2011. [DOI: 10.1890/10-0808.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 91] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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36
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Abstract
Predators are predominantly valued for their ability to control prey, as indicators of high levels of biodiversity and as tourism attractions. This view, however, is incomplete because it does not acknowledge that predators may play a significant role in the delivery of critical life-support services such as ecosystem nutrient cycling. New research is beginning to show that predator effects on nutrient cycling are ubiquitous. These effects emerge from direct nutrient excretion, egestion or translocation within and across ecosystem boundaries after prey consumption, and from indirect effects mediated by predator interactions with prey. Depending on their behavioural ecology, predators can create heterogeneous or homogeneous nutrient distributions across natural landscapes. Because predator species are disproportionately vulnerable to elimination from ecosystems, we stand to lose much more from their disappearance than their simple charismatic attractiveness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Oswald J Schmitz
- School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA.
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37
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Sackett TE, Classen AT, Sanders NJ. Linking soil food web structure to above- and belowground ecosystem processes: a meta-analysis. OIKOS 2010. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1600-0706.2010.18728.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
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38
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Hargrave CW, Hamontree S, Gary KP. Direct and indirect food web regulation of microbial decomposers in headwater streams. OIKOS 2010. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1600-0706.2010.18537.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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39
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Staddon P, Lindo Z, Crittenden PD, Gilbert F, Gonzalez A. Connectivity, non-random extinction and ecosystem function in experimental metacommunities. Ecol Lett 2010; 13:543-52. [PMID: 20236160 DOI: 10.1111/j.1461-0248.2010.01450.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 112] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
The spatial insurance hypothesis indicates that connectivity is an important attribute of natural ecosystems that sustains both biodiversity and ecosystem function. We tested the hypothesis by measuring the impact of manipulating connectivity in experimental metacommunties of a natural and diverse microecosystem. Isolation led to the extinction of large-bodied apex predators, subsequently followed by increases in prey species abundance. This trophic cascade was associated with significantly altered carbon and nitrogen fluxes in fragmented treatments. The ecosystem impacts were characteristic of a function debt because they persisted for several generations after the initial loss of connectivity. Local extinctions and disruption of ecosystem processes were mitigated, and even reversed, by the presence of corridors in the connected metacommunities, although these beneficial effects were unexpectedly delayed. We hypothesized that corridors maintained grazer movement between fragments, which enhanced microbial activity, and decomposition in comparison to isolated fragments. Our results indicate that knowledge of habitat connectivity and spatial processes is essential to understand the magnitude and timing of ecosystem perturbation in fragmented landscapes.
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40
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Peltzer DA, Bellingham PJ, Kurokawa H, Walker LR, Wardle DA, Yeates GW. Punching above their weight: low-biomass non-native plant species alter soil properties during primary succession. OIKOS 2009. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1600-0706.2009.17244.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 128] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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41
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Bohan DA, Hawes C, Haughton AJ, Denholm I, Champion GT, Perry JN, Clark SJ. Statistical models to evaluate invertebrate-plant trophic interactions in arable systems. BULLETIN OF ENTOMOLOGICAL RESEARCH 2007; 97:265-80. [PMID: 17524158 DOI: 10.1017/s0007485307004890] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/15/2023]
Abstract
Over the past 40 years there have been marked shifts in arable farmland management that are widely believed to have had a considerable impact on flowering plants and invertebrates and the small mammals and birds that rely upon them. It is not yet possible to predict the dynamics of plants and invertebrates either with past or future changes in farmland management. This study investigates whether a basic invertebrate classification, formed of broad trophic groups, can be used to describe interactions between invertebrates and their resource plants and evaluate management impacts for genetically modified, herbicide-tolerant (GMHT) and conventional herbicide management in both spring- and winter-sown oilseed rape. It is argued that the analyses validate trophic-based approaches for describing the dynamics of invertebrates in farmland and that linear models might be used to describe the changes in invertebrate trophic group abundance in farmland when driven by primary producer abundance or biomass and interactions between invertebrates themselves. The analyses indicate that invertebrate dynamics under GMHT management are not unique, but similar to conventional management occurring over different resource ranges, and that dynamics differed considerably between spring- and winter-sown oilseed rape. Thus, herbicide management was of much lower impact on trophic relationships than sowing date. Results indicate that invertebrate dynamics in oilseed rape are regulated by a combination of top-down and bottom-up trophic processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- D A Bohan
- Rothamsted Research, Harpenden, Herts, AL5 2JQ, UK.
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42
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Waldrop MP, Zak DR, Blackwood CB, Curtis CD, Tilman D. Resource availability controls fungal diversity across a plant diversity gradient. Ecol Lett 2006; 9:1127-35. [PMID: 16972876 DOI: 10.1111/j.1461-0248.2006.00965.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 145] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Despite decades of research, the ecological determinants of microbial diversity remain poorly understood. Here, we test two alternative hypotheses concerning the factors regulating fungal diversity in soil. The first states that higher levels of plant detritus production increase the supply of limiting resources (i.e. organic substrates) thereby increasing fungal diversity. Alternatively, greater plant diversity increases the range of organic substrates entering soil, thereby increasing the number of niches to be filled by a greater array of heterotrophic fungi. These two hypotheses were simultaneously examined in experimental plant communities consisting of one to 16 species that have been maintained for a decade. We used ribosomal intergenic spacer analysis (RISA), in combination with cloning and sequencing, to quantify fungal community composition and diversity within the experimental plant communities. We used soil microbial biomass as a temporally integrated measure of resource supply. Plant diversity was unrelated to fungal diversity, but fungal diversity was a unimodal function of resource supply. Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) indicated that plant diversity showed a relationship to fungal community composition, although the occurrence of RISA bands and operational taxonomic units (OTUs) did not differ among the treatments. The relationship between fungal diversity and resource availability parallels similar relationships reported for grasslands, tropical forests, coral reefs, and other biotic communities, strongly suggesting that the same underlying mechanisms determine the diversity of organisms at multiple scales.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark P Waldrop
- School of Natural Resources and Environment, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1115, USA.
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43
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Lövgren J, Reinikainen M, Persson L. Allochtonous input and trophic level heterogeneity: impact on an aquatic food web. OIKOS 2006. [DOI: 10.1111/j.2006.0030-1299.13737.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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44
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Abstract
Historically, terrestrial food web theory has been compartmentalized into interactions among aboveground or belowground communities. In this study we took a more synthetic approach to understanding food web interactions by simultaneously examining four trophic levels and investigating how nutrient (nitrogen and carbon) and detrital subsidies impact the ability of the belowground microbial community to alter the abundance of aboveground arthropods (herbivores and predators) associated with the intertidal cord grass Spartina alterniflora. We manipulated carbon, nitrogen, and detrital resources in a field experiment and measured decomposition rate, soil nitrogen pools, plant biomass and quality, herbivore density, and arthropod predator abundance. Because carbon subsidies impact plant growth only indirectly (microbial pathways), whereas nitrogen additions both directly (plant uptake) and indirectly (microbial pathways) impact plant primary productivity, we were able to assess the effect of both belowground soil microbes and nutrient availability on aboveground herbivores and their predators. Herbivore density in the field was suppressed by carbon supplements. Carbon addition altered soil microbial dynamics (net potential ammonification, litter decomposition rate, DON [dissolved organic N] concentration), which limited inorganic soil nitrogen availability and reduced plant size as well as predator abundance. Nitrogen addition enhanced herbivore density by increasing plant size and quality directly by increasing inorganic soil nitrogen pools, and indirectly by enhancing microbial nitrification. Detritus adversely affected aboveground herbivores mainly by promoting predator aggregation. To date, the effects of carbon and nitrogen subsidies on salt marshes have been examined as isolated effects on either the aboveground or the belowground community. Our results emphasize the importance of directly addressing the soil microbial community as a factor that influences aboveground food web structure by affecting plant size and aboveground plant nitrogen.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jes Hines
- Department of Entomology, University of Maryland, College Park 20742, USA.
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45
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Allison SD. Brown Ground: A Soil Carbon Analogue for the Green World Hypothesis? Am Nat 2006; 167:619-27. [PMID: 16671007 DOI: 10.1086/503443] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2005] [Accepted: 02/10/2006] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
For many decades, ecologists have asked what prevents herbivores from consuming most of the plant biomass in terrestrial ecosystems, or "Why is the world green?" Here I ask the analogous question for detritivores: what prevents them from degrading most of the organic material in soils, or "Why is the ground brown?" For fresh plant detritus, constraints on decomposition closely parallel constraints on herbivory: both herbivore and decomposer populations may be controlled by plant tissue chemistry from the bottom up and predators from the top down. However, the majority of soil carbon is not plant litter but carbon that has been consumed by detritivores and reprocessed into humic compounds with complex and random chemical structures. This carbon persists mainly because the chemical properties of humic compounds and interactions with soil minerals constrain decomposition by extracellular enzymes in soil. Other constraints on decomposers, such as nutrient limitation of enzyme production and competition with opportunistic microbes, also contribute to brown ground. Ultimately, the oldest soil carbon persists via transformation into complex molecules that are impervious to enzymatic attack and effectively decoupled from processing by the soil food web.
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Affiliation(s)
- Steven D Allison
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Irvine, California 92697, USA.
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46
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Miyashita T, Niwa S. A test for top-down cascade in a detritus-based food web by litter-dwelling web spiders. Ecol Res 2006. [DOI: 10.1007/s11284-006-0155-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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47
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Shurin JB, Gruner DS, Hillebrand H. All wet or dried up? Real differences between aquatic and terrestrial food webs. Proc Biol Sci 2006; 273:1-9. [PMID: 16519227 PMCID: PMC1560001 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2005.3377] [Citation(s) in RCA: 252] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2005] [Accepted: 10/17/2005] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Ecologists have greatly advanced our understanding of the processes that regulate trophic structure and dynamics in ecosystems. However, the causes of systematic variation among ecosystems remain controversial and poorly elucidated. Contrasts between aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems in particular have inspired much speculation, but only recent empirical quantification. Here, we review evidence for systematic differences in energy flow and biomass partitioning between producers and herbivores, detritus and decomposers, and higher trophic levels. The magnitudes of different trophic pathways vary considerably, with less herbivory, more decomposers and more detrital accumulation on land. Aquatic-terrestrial differences are consistent across the global range of primary productivity, indicating that structural contrasts between the two systems are preserved despite large variation in energy input. We argue that variable selective forces drive differences in plant allocation patterns in aquatic and terrestrial environments that propagate upward to shape food webs. The small size and lack of structural tissues in phytoplankton mean that aquatic primary producers achieve faster growth rates and are more nutritious to heterotrophs than their terrestrial counterparts. Plankton food webs are also strongly size-structured, while size and trophic position are less strongly correlated in most terrestrial (and many benthic) habitats. The available data indicate that contrasts between aquatic and terrestrial food webs are driven primarily by the growth rate, size and nutritional quality of autotrophs. Differences in food-web architecture (food chain length, the prevalence of omnivory, specialization or anti-predator defences) may arise as a consequence of systematic variation in the character of the producer community.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan B Shurin
- Department of Zoology, University of British Columbia, 6270 University Boulevard, Vancouver BC, Canada.
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48
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Wardle DA, Williamson WM, Yeates GW, Bonner KI. Trickle-down effects of aboveground trophic cascades on the soil food web. OIKOS 2005. [DOI: 10.1111/j.0030-1299.2005.14092.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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49
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O'Connor NE, Crowe TP. BIODIVERSITY LOSS AND ECOSYSTEM FUNCTIONING: DISTINGUISHING BETWEEN NUMBER AND IDENTITY OF SPECIES. Ecology 2005. [DOI: 10.1890/04-1172] [Citation(s) in RCA: 192] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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50
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Stiling P, Moon D. ARE TROPHODYNAMIC MODELS WORTH THEIR SALT? TOP-DOWN AND BOTTOM-UP EFFECTS ALONG A SALINITY GRADIENT. Ecology 2005. [DOI: 10.1890/04-1384] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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