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Lin PA, Kansman J, Chuang WP, Robert C, Erb M, Felton GW. Water availability and plant-herbivore interactions. JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL BOTANY 2023; 74:2811-2828. [PMID: 36477789 DOI: 10.1093/jxb/erac481] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2022] [Accepted: 12/04/2022] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
Water is essential to plant growth and drives plant evolution and interactions with other organisms such as herbivores. However, water availability fluctuates, and these fluctuations are intensified by climate change. How plant water availability influences plant-herbivore interactions in the future is an important question in basic and applied ecology. Here we summarize and synthesize the recent discoveries on the impact of water availability on plant antiherbivore defense ecology and the underlying physiological processes. Water deficit tends to enhance plant resistance and escape traits (i.e. early phenology) against herbivory but negatively affects other defense strategies, including indirect defense and tolerance. However, exceptions are sometimes observed in specific plant-herbivore species pairs. We discuss the effect of water availability on species interactions associated with plants and herbivores from individual to community levels and how these interactions drive plant evolution. Although water stress and many other abiotic stresses are predicted to increase in intensity and frequency due to climate change, we identify a significant lack of study on the interactive impact of additional abiotic stressors on water-plant-herbivore interactions. This review summarizes critical knowledge gaps and informs possible future research directions in water-plant-herbivore interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Po-An Lin
- Department of Entomology, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Jessica Kansman
- Department of Entomology, the Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
| | - Wen-Po Chuang
- Department of Agronomy, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | | | - Matthias Erb
- Institute of Plant Science, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Gary W Felton
- Department of Entomology, the Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
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2
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Dutta TK, Phani V. The pervasive impact of global climate change on plant-nematode interaction continuum. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2023; 14:1143889. [PMID: 37089646 PMCID: PMC10118019 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2023.1143889] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2023] [Accepted: 03/24/2023] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
Pest profiles in today's global food production system are continually affected by climate change and extreme weather. Under varying climatic conditions, plant-parasitic nematodes (PPNs) cause substantial economic damage to a wide variety of agricultural and horticultural commodities. In parallel, their herbivory also accredit to diverse ecosystem services such as nutrient cycling, allocation and turnover of plant biomass, shaping of vegetation community, and alteration of rhizospheric microorganism consortium by modifying the root exudation pattern. Thus PPNs, together with the vast majority of free-living nematodes, act as ecological drivers. Because of direct exposure to the open environment, PPN biology and physiology are largely governed by environmental factors including temperature, precipitation, humidity, atmospheric and soil carbon dioxide level, and weather extremes. The negative effects of climate change such as global warming, elevated CO2, altered precipitation and the weather extremes including heat waves, droughts, floods, wildfires and storms greatly influence the biogeographic range, distribution, abundance, survival, fitness, reproduction, and parasitic potential of the PPNs. Changes in these biological and ecological parameters associated to the PPNs exert huge impact on agriculture. Yet, depending on how adaptable the species are according to their geo-spatial distribution, the consequences of climate change include both positive and negative effects on the PPN communities. While assorting the effects of climate change as a whole, it can be estimated that the changing environmental factors, on one hand, will aggravate the PPN damage by aiding to abundance, distribution, reproduction, generation, plant growth and reduced plant defense, but the phenomena like sex reversal, entering cryptobiosis, and reduced survival should act in counter direction. This seemingly creates a contraposition effect, where assessing any confluent trend is difficult. However, as the climate change effects will differ according to space and time it is apprehensible that the PPNs will react and adapt according to their location and species specificity. Nevertheless, the bio-ecological shifts in the PPNs will necessitate tweaking their management practices from the agri-horticultural perspective. In this regard, we must aim for a 'climate-smart' package that will take care of the food production, pest prevention and environment protection. Integrated nematode management involving precise monitoring and modeling-based studies of population dynamics in relation to climatic fluctuations with escalated reliance on biocontrol, host resistance, and other safer approaches like crop rotation, crop scheduling, cover cropping, biofumigation, use of farmyard manure (FYM) would surely prove to be viable options. Although the novel nematicidal molecules are target-specific and relatively less harmful to the environment, their application should not be promoted following the global aim to reduce pesticide usage in future agriculture. Thus, having a reliable risk assessment with scenario planning, the adaptive management strategies must be designed to cope with the impending situation and satisfy the farmers' need.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tushar K. Dutta
- Division of Nematology, ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi, India
- *Correspondence: Tushar K. Dutta, ;
| | - Victor Phani
- Department of Agricultural Entomology, College of Agriculture, Uttar Banga Krishi Viswavidyalaya, West Bengal, India
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3
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Thakur MP, Risch AC, van der Putten WH. Biotic responses to climate extremes in terrestrial ecosystems. iScience 2022; 25:104559. [PMID: 35784794 PMCID: PMC9240802 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2022.104559] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Anthropogenic climate change is increasing the incidence of climate extremes. Consequences of climate extremes on biodiversity can be highly detrimental, yet few studies also suggest beneficial effects of climate extremes on certain organisms. To obtain a general understanding of ecological responses to climate extremes, we present a review of how 16 major taxonomic/functional groups (including microorganisms, plants, invertebrates, and vertebrates) respond during extreme drought, precipitation, and temperature. Most taxonomic/functional groups respond negatively to extreme events, whereas groups such as mosses, legumes, trees, and vertebrate predators respond most negatively to climate extremes. We further highlight that ecological recovery after climate extremes is challenging to predict purely based on ecological responses during or immediately after climate extremes. By accounting for the characteristics of the recovering species, resource availability, and species interactions with neighboring competitors or facilitators, mutualists, and enemies, we outline a conceptual framework to better predict ecological recovery in terrestrial ecosystems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Madhav P. Thakur
- Institute of Ecology and Evolution and Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research, University of Bern, 3012 Bern, Switzerland
- Department of Terrestrial Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO- KNAW), Wageningen, the Netherlands
- Corresponding author
| | - Anita C. Risch
- Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Switzerland
| | - Wim H. van der Putten
- Department of Terrestrial Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO- KNAW), Wageningen, the Netherlands
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University, Wageningen, the Netherlands
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4
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Birkhofer K, Fliessbach A, Gavín-Centol MP, Hedlund K, Ingimarsdóttir M, Jørgensen HB, Kozjek K, Meyer S, Montserrat M, Moreno SS, Laraño JM, Scheu S, Serrano-Carnero D, Truu J, Kundel D. Conventional agriculture and not drought alters relationships between soil biota and functions. Sci Rep 2021; 11:23975. [PMID: 34907218 PMCID: PMC8671559 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-03276-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2021] [Accepted: 11/22/2021] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Soil biodiversity constitutes the biological pillars of ecosystem services provided by soils worldwide. Soil life is threatened by intense agricultural management and shifts in climatic conditions as two important global change drivers which are not often jointly studied under field conditions. We addressed the effects of experimental short-term drought over the wheat growing season on soil organisms and ecosystem functions under organic and conventional farming in a Swiss long term trial. Our results suggest that activity and community metrics are suitable indicators for drought stress while microbial communities primarily responded to agricultural practices. Importantly, we found a significant loss of multiple pairwise positive and negative relationships between soil biota and process-related variables in response to conventional farming, but not in response to experimental drought. These results suggest a considerable weakening of the contribution of soil biota to ecosystem functions under long-term conventional agriculture. Independent of the farming system, experimental and seasonal (ambient) drought conditions directly affected soil biota and activity. A higher soil water content during early and intermediate stages of the growing season and a high number of significant relationships between soil biota to ecosystem functions suggest that organic farming provides a buffer against drought effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Klaus Birkhofer
- Department of Ecology, Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus-Senftenberg, Konrad-Wachsmann-Allee 6, 03046, Cottbus, Germany.
| | - Andreas Fliessbach
- Department of Soil Sciences, Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL), 5070, Frick, Switzerland
| | | | | | | | | | - Katja Kozjek
- Department of Biology, Lund University, 22362, Lund, Sweden
| | - Svenja Meyer
- J.F. Blumenbach Institute of Zoology and Anthropology, Animal Ecology, University of Göttingen, 37073, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Marta Montserrat
- Instituto de Hortofruticultura Subtropical y Mediterránea "La Mayora" - Universidad de Málaga- Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Málaga, Spain
| | - Sara Sánchez Moreno
- Department of Environment and Agronomy, National Center Institute for Agricultural and Food Research and Technology, Madrid, Spain
| | - Jordi Moya Laraño
- Estación Experimental de Zonas Áridas, EEZA-CSIC, 04120, Almería, Spain
| | - Stefan Scheu
- J.F. Blumenbach Institute of Zoology and Anthropology, Animal Ecology, University of Göttingen, 37073, Göttingen, Germany
- Centre of Biodiversity and Sustainable Land Use, University of Göttingen, 37077, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Diego Serrano-Carnero
- Instituto de Hortofruticultura Subtropical y Mediterránea "La Mayora" - Universidad de Málaga- Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Málaga, Spain
| | - Jaak Truu
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Tartu, 51010, Tartu, Estonia
| | - Dominika Kundel
- Department of Soil Sciences, Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL), 5070, Frick, Switzerland
- Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, 78315, Radolfzell, Germany
- Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, 78464, Konstanz, Germany
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5
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Climate Change Modulates Multitrophic Interactions Between Maize, A Root Herbivore, and Its Enemies. J Chem Ecol 2021; 47:889-906. [PMID: 34415498 PMCID: PMC8613123 DOI: 10.1007/s10886-021-01303-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2021] [Revised: 07/16/2021] [Accepted: 07/22/2021] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Abstract
How climate change will modify belowground tritrophic interactions is poorly understood, despite their importance for agricultural productivity. Here, we manipulated the three major abiotic factors associated with climate change (atmospheric CO2, temperature, and soil moisture) and investigated their individual and joint effects on the interaction between maize, the banded cucumber beetle (Diabrotica balteata), and the entomopathogenic nematode (EPN) Heterorhabditis bacteriophora. Changes in individual abiotic parameters had a strong influence on plant biomass, leaf wilting, sugar concentrations, protein levels, and benzoxazinoid contents. Yet, when combined to simulate a predicted climate scenario (Representative Concentration Pathway 8.5, RCP 8.5), their effects mostly counter-balanced each other. Only the sharp negative impact of drought on leaf wilting was not fully compensated. In both current and predicted scenarios, root damage resulted in increased leaf wilting, reduced root biomass, and reconfigured the plant sugar metabolism. Single climatic variables modulated the herbivore performance and survival in an additive manner, although slight interactions were also observed. Increased temperature and CO2 levels both enhanced the performance of the insect, but elevated temperature also decreased its survival. Elevated temperatures and CO2 further directly impeded the EPN infectivity potential, while lower moisture levels improved it through plant- and/or herbivore-mediated changes. In the RCP 8.5 scenario, temperature and CO2 showed interactive effects on EPN infectivity, which was overall decreased by 40%. We conclude that root pest problems may worsen with climate change due to increased herbivore performance and reduced top-down control by biological control agents.
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6
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Barnett KL, Johnson SN, Facey SL, Gibson-Forty EVJ, Ochoa-Hueso R, Power SA. Altered precipitation and root herbivory affect the productivity and composition of a mesic grassland. BMC Ecol Evol 2021; 21:145. [PMID: 34266378 PMCID: PMC8283849 DOI: 10.1186/s12862-021-01871-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2021] [Accepted: 06/23/2021] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Climate change models predict changes in the amount, frequency and seasonality of precipitation events, all of which have the potential to affect the structure and function of grassland ecosystems. While previous studies have examined plant or herbivore responses to these perturbations, few have examined their interactions; even fewer have included belowground herbivores. Given the ecological, economic and biodiversity value of grasslands, and their importance globally for carbon storage and agriculture, this is an important knowledge gap. To address this, we conducted a precipitation manipulation experiment in a former mesic pasture grassland comprising a mixture of C4 grasses and C3 grasses and forbs, in southeast Australia. Rainfall treatments included a control [ambient], reduced amount [50% ambient] and reduced frequency [ambient rainfall withheld for three weeks, then applied as a single deluge event] manipulations, to simulate predicted changes in both the size and frequency of future rainfall events. In addition, half of all experimental plots were inoculated with adult root herbivores (Scarabaeidae beetles). RESULTS We found strong seasonal dependence in plant community responses to both rainfall and root herbivore treatments. The largest effects were seen in the cool season with lower productivity, cover and diversity in rainfall-manipulated plots, while root herbivore inoculation increased the relative abundance of C3, compared to C4, plants. CONCLUSIONS This study highlights the importance of considering not only the seasonality of plant responses to altered rainfall, but also the important role of interactions between abiotic and biotic drivers of vegetation change when evaluating ecosystem-level responses to future shifts in climatic conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kirk L Barnett
- Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment, Western Sydney University, Locked Bag 1797, Penrith, NSW, 2751, Australia.
| | - Scott N Johnson
- Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment, Western Sydney University, Locked Bag 1797, Penrith, NSW, 2751, Australia
| | - Sarah L Facey
- Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment, Western Sydney University, Locked Bag 1797, Penrith, NSW, 2751, Australia
| | - Eleanor V J Gibson-Forty
- Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment, Western Sydney University, Locked Bag 1797, Penrith, NSW, 2751, Australia
| | - Raul Ochoa-Hueso
- Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment, Western Sydney University, Locked Bag 1797, Penrith, NSW, 2751, Australia.,Department of Biology, University of Cádiz, Avenida República Árabe Saharaui, 11510, Puerto Real, Cádiz, Spain
| | - Sally A Power
- Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment, Western Sydney University, Locked Bag 1797, Penrith, NSW, 2751, Australia
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7
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van Doan C, Pfander M, Guyer AS, Zhang X, Maurer C, Robert CA. Natural enemies of herbivores maintain their biological control potential under short-term exposure to future CO 2, temperature, and precipitation patterns. Ecol Evol 2021; 11:4182-4192. [PMID: 33976802 PMCID: PMC8093683 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.7314] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Climate change will profoundly alter the physiology and ecology of plants, insect herbivores, and their natural enemies, resulting in strong effects on multitrophic interactions. Yet, manipulative studies that investigate the direct combined impacts of changes in CO2, temperature, and precipitation on the third trophic level remain rare. Here, we assessed how exposure to elevated CO2, increased temperature, and decreased precipitation directly affect the performance and predation success of species from four major groups of herbivore natural enemies: an entomopathogenic nematode, a wolf spider, a ladybug, and a parasitoid wasp. A four-day exposure to future climatic conditions (RCP 8.5), entailing a 28% decrease in precipitation, a 3.4°C raise in temperature, and a 400 ppm increase in CO2 levels, slightly reduced the survival of entomopathogenic nematodes, but had no effect on the survival of other species. Predation success was not negatively affected in any of the tested species, but it was even increased for wolf spiders and entomopathogenic nematodes. Factorial manipulation of climate variables revealed a positive effect of reduced soil moisture on nematode infectivity, but not of increased temperature or elevated CO2. These results suggest that natural enemies of herbivores may be well adapted to short-term changes in climatic conditions. These findings provide mechanistic insights that will inform future efforts to disentangle the complex interplay of biotic and abiotic factors that drive climate-dependent changes in multitrophic interaction networks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cong van Doan
- Institute of Plant SciencesUniversity of BernBernSwitzerland
- Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research (OCCR)University of BernBernSwitzerland
| | - Marc Pfander
- Institute of Plant SciencesUniversity of BernBernSwitzerland
| | - Anouk S. Guyer
- Institute of Plant SciencesUniversity of BernBernSwitzerland
- Present address:
AgroscopeWädenswilSwitzerland
| | - Xi Zhang
- Institute of Plant SciencesUniversity of BernBernSwitzerland
- Present address:
Key Laboratory of Plant Stress BiologyState Key Laboratory of Cotton BiologySchool of Life SciencesHenan UniversityKaifengChina
| | - Corina Maurer
- Institute of Plant SciencesUniversity of BernBernSwitzerland
- Present address:
Agroecology and EnvironmentAgroscopeZürichSwitzerland
| | - Christelle A.M. Robert
- Institute of Plant SciencesUniversity of BernBernSwitzerland
- Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research (OCCR)University of BernBernSwitzerland
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8
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Primacy of plants in driving the response of arthropod communities to drought. Oecologia 2021; 195:833-842. [PMID: 33449208 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-020-04844-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2020] [Accepted: 12/23/2020] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
Abstract
Drought threatens arthropod communities worldwide. Water limitation affects the quantity and quality of plants available to herbivores as food, and can also affect higher trophic-level consumers through variability in prey quality and reduced availability of suitable habitats. Our study assessed the response of an arthropod community to water limited wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) in a field setting. We used rainout shelters to exclude precipitation, irrigated raised bed plots to create three levels of water availability, and monitored arthropod community development over 8 weeks. First, we compared arthropod communities in habitats with different levels of water limitation and found that community composition was reliant on the magnitude of the water stress. This difference was largely due to the loss of piercing-sucking herbivores and predators in high-stress environments. Next, we focused on aphids and their natural enemies to investigate the underlying mechanisms driving community responses using structural equation modeling (SEM). Aphid abundance was negatively affected by water limitation, and this response was primarily associated with stress-induced plant physiological changes and not plant biomass or natural enemy abundance. Natural enemy abundance was also reduced in water-limited habitats, but natural enemies responded to plant biomass and not prey availability. These effects were exacerbated as water stress increased. The absence of natural enemy effects on aphids indicates that top-down predation effects were dampened by strong bottom-up effects of plant water limitation. This study revealed the importance of considering water stress intensity when predicting outcomes of droughts for arthropod communities.
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9
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Yin R, Siebert J, Eisenhauer N, Schädler M. Climate change and intensive land use reduce soil animal biomass via dissimilar pathways. eLife 2020; 9:54749. [PMID: 32718434 PMCID: PMC7386910 DOI: 10.7554/elife.54749] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/27/2019] [Accepted: 07/11/2020] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Global change drivers, such as climate change and land use, may profoundly influence body size, density, and biomass of soil organisms. However, it is still unclear how these concurrent drivers interact in affecting ecological communities. Here, we present the results of an experimental field study assessing the interactive effects of climate change and land-use intensification on body size, density, and biomass of soil microarthropods. We found that the projected climate change and intensive land use decreased their total biomass. Strikingly, this reduction was realized via two dissimilar pathways: climate change reduced mean body size and intensive land use decreased density. These findings highlight that two of the most pervasive global change drivers operate via different pathways when decreasing soil animal biomass. These shifts in soil communities may threaten essential ecosystem functions like organic matter turnover and nutrient cycling in future ecosystems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rui Yin
- Department of Community Ecology, Helmholtz-Centre for Environmental Research-UFZ, Halle, Germany.,German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv), Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.,Institute for Biology, Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Julia Siebert
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv), Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.,Institute for Biology, Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Nico Eisenhauer
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv), Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.,Institute for Biology, Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Martin Schädler
- Department of Community Ecology, Helmholtz-Centre for Environmental Research-UFZ, Halle, Germany.,German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv), Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
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10
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Ankrom KE, Franco ALC, Fonte SJ, Gherardi LA, de Tomasel CM, Andriuzzi WS, Shaw EA, Sala OE, Wall DH. Ecto- and endoparasitic nematodes respond differently across sites to changes in precipitation. Oecologia 2020; 193:761-771. [PMID: 32656605 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-020-04708-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2019] [Accepted: 07/08/2020] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Plant parasitic nematodes are among the greatest consumers of primary production in terrestrial ecosystems. Their feeding strategies can be divided into endoparasites and ectoparasites that differ substantially, not only in their damage potential to host tissue and primary production, but also in their susceptibility to environmental changes. Climate change is predicted to increase variability of precipitation in many systems, yet the effects on belowground biodiversity and associated impacts on primary productivity remain poorly understood. To examine the impact of altered precipitation on endo- and ectoparasitic soil nematodes, we conducted a 2-year precipitation manipulation study across an arid, a semiarid, and a mesic grassland. Plant parasite feeding type abundance, functional guilds, and herbivory index in response to precipitation were evaluated. Responses of endo- and ectoparasites to increased precipitation varied by grassland type. There was little response of ectoparasites to increased precipitation although their population declined at the mesic site with increased precipitation. The abundance of endoparasites remained unchanged with increasing precipitation at the arid site, increased at the semiarid, and decreased at the mesic site. The herbivory index followed closely the trends seen in the endoparasites response by stagnating at the arid site, increasing at the semiarid, and decreasing at the mesic site. Our findings suggest that altered precipitation has differing effects on plant parasite feeding strategies as well as functional guilds. This may have important implications for grassland productivity, as plant parasite pressure may exacerbate the effects of climate change on host plants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katharine E Ankrom
- Department of Biology, Colorado State University, 1878 Biology, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA.
| | - André L C Franco
- Department of Biology, Colorado State University, 1878 Biology, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Steven J Fonte
- Department of Soil and Crop Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Laureano A Gherardi
- School of Life Sciences and Global Drylands Center, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287, USA
| | | | - Walter S Andriuzzi
- Department of Biology, Colorado State University, 1878 Biology, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - E Ashley Shaw
- Department of Biology, Colorado State University, 1878 Biology, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Osvaldo E Sala
- School of Life Sciences, School of Sustainability and Global Drylands Center, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287, USA
| | - Diana H Wall
- Department of Biology and School of Global Environmental Sustainability, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
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11
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Aguirrebengoa M, Menéndez R, Müller C, González‐Megías A. Altered rainfall patterns reduce plant fitness and disrupt interactions between below‐ and aboveground insect herbivores. Ecosphere 2020. [DOI: 10.1002/ecs2.3127] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
| | - Rosa Menéndez
- Lancaster Environment Centre Lancaster University Lancaster LAI 4YW UK
| | - Caroline Müller
- Department of Chemical Ecology Bielefeld University Bielefeld 33501 Germany
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12
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Prather RM, Castillioni K, Welti EAR, Kaspari M, Souza L. Abiotic factors and plant biomass, not plant diversity, strongly shape grassland arthropods under drought conditions. Ecology 2020; 101:e03033. [PMID: 32112407 DOI: 10.1002/ecy.3033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2019] [Revised: 01/30/2020] [Accepted: 02/24/2020] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
Arthropod abundance and diversity often track plant biomass and diversity at the local scale. However, under altered precipitation regimes and anthropogenic disturbances, plant-arthropod relationships are expected to be increasingly controlled by abiotic, rather than biotic, factors. We used an experimental precipitation gradient combined with human management in a temperate mixed-grass prairie to examine (1) how two drivers, altered precipitation and biomass removal, can synergistically affect abiotic factors and plant communities and (2) how these effects can cascade upward, impacting the arthropod food web. Both drought and hay harvest increased soil surface temperature, and drought decreased soil moisture. Arthropod abundance decreased with low soil moisture and, contrary to our predictions, decreased with increased plant biomass. Arthropod diversity increased with soil moisture, decreased with high surface temperatures, and tracked arthropod abundance but was unaffected by plant diversity or quality. Our experiment demonstrates that arthropod abundance is directly constrained by abiotic factors and plant biomass, in turn constraining local arthropod diversity. If robust, this result suggests climate change in the southern Great Plains may directly reduce arthropod diversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rebecca M Prather
- Department of Biology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, Oklahoma, 73019, USA
| | - Karen Castillioni
- Department of Microbiology and Plant Biology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, Oklahoma, 73019, USA
| | - Ellen A R Welti
- Department of Biology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, Oklahoma, 73019, USA
| | - Michael Kaspari
- Department of Biology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, Oklahoma, 73019, USA
| | - Lara Souza
- Department of Microbiology and Plant Biology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, Oklahoma, 73019, USA
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13
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Abstract
Soils are home to more than 25% of the earth’s total biodiversity and supports life on land and water, nutrient cycling and retention, food production, pollution remediation, and climate regulation. Accumulating evidence demonstrates that multiple sustainability goals can be simultaneously addressed when soil biota are put at the center of land management assessments; this is because the activity and interactions of soil organisms are intimately tied to multiple processes that ecosystems and society rely on. With soil biodiversity at the center of multiple globally relevant sustainability programs, we will be able to more efficiently and holistically achieve the Sustainable Development Goals and Aichi Biodiversity Targets. Here we review scenarios where soil biota can clearly support global sustainability targets, global changes and pressures that threaten soil biodiversity, and actions to conserve soil biodiversity and advance sustainability goals. This synthesis shows how the latest empirical evidence from soil biological research can shape tangible actions around the world for a sustainable future.
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Thakur MP. Climate warming and trophic mismatches in terrestrial ecosystems: the green–brown imbalance hypothesis. Biol Lett 2020. [DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2019.0770] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Anthropogenic climate change can give rise to trophic mismatches in food webs owing to differential responses of consumer and resource organisms. However, we know little about the community and ecosystem level consequences of trophic mismatches in food webs. Terrestrial food webs are broadly comprised of two types of food webs: green food webs aboveground and brown food webs belowground between which mass and energy flow mainly via plants. Here, I highlight that the extent of warming-induced trophic mismatches in green and brown food webs differ owing to a greater stasis in brown food webs, which could trigger an imbalance in mass and energy flow between the two food webs. I then discuss the consequences of green–brown imbalance on terrestrial ecosystems and propose research avenues that can help understand the relationships between food webs and ecosystem functions in a warmer world.
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Affiliation(s)
- Madhav P. Thakur
- Department of Terrestrial Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), Wageningen, The Netherlands
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Jia Y, Sun Y, Zhang T, Shi Z, Maimaitiaili B, Tian C, Feng G. Elevated precipitation alters the community structure of spring ephemerals by changing dominant species density in Central Asia. Ecol Evol 2020; 10:2196-2212. [PMID: 32128149 PMCID: PMC7042772 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.6057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2019] [Revised: 07/16/2019] [Accepted: 07/23/2019] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Global climate change is one of the most pressing conservation challenges; in particular, changes in precipitation regimes have already substantially influenced terrestrial ecosystems. However, the mechanisms influencing precipitation changes on individual plants and the plant communities in desert grasslands have yet to be fully elucidated. We therefore examine the influence of increased precipitation on plant community compositions in the Gurbantunggut Desert, Xinjiang, northwestern China, from 2005 to 2009. We found that growth of all plant species and the community productivities increased markedly with enhanced water input. Cover of ephemeral synusia also significantly increased due to increased precipitation, implying that the role of the ephemeral community for stabilization of sand dunes was strengthened by increased precipitation. The response of plant community compositions to increased precipitation was primarily reflected as changes in plant density, while increased precipitation did not affect plant species richness and the diversity index. Dominant species drove the response of plant density to increasing precipitation during the five-year study period. However, the relative responses of rare species were stronger than those of the dominant species, thereby potentially driving species turnover with long-term increased precipitation. This finding improved our understanding of how increased precipitation drives the changes in plant community composition in desert grasslands and will help to better predict changes in the community composition of ephemerals under future global climate change scenarios.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yangyang Jia
- College of Resources and Environmental SciencesChina Agricultural UniversityBeijingChina
| | - Yu Sun
- Cultivation and Farming Research InstituteHeilongjiang Academy of Agriculture ScienceHarbinChina
| | - Tao Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Vegetation EcologyMinistry of EducationInstitute of Grassland SciencesNortheast Normal UniversityChangchunChina
| | - Zhaoyong Shi
- College of AgricultureHenan University of Science and TechnologyLuoyangChina
| | - Baidengsha Maimaitiaili
- Institute of Nuclear Technology and BiotechnologyXinjiang Academy of Agricultural ScienceUrumqiChina
| | - Changyan Tian
- Xinjiang Institute Ecology and GeographyChinese Academy of SciencesUrumqiChina
| | - Gu Feng
- College of Resources and Environmental SciencesChina Agricultural UniversityBeijingChina
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