The Selective Effects of Environmental Change on the Functional Diversity of Soil Decomposers

H.a Verhoef

doi:10.3390/f12121650

Abstract

Whether decomposition can be affected by the biodiversity of soil organisms is an important question. Biodiversity is commonly expressed through indices that are based on species richness and abundances. Soil processes tend to saturate at low levels of species richness. A component of biodiversity is functional diversity, and we have shown that the absence of the influence of species richness on decomposition switched into a positive relationship between fauna diversity and decomposition when we expressed biodiversity in terms of interspecific functional dissimilarity. Communities with functionally dissimilar species are characterized by complementary resource use and facilitative interactions among species. It is suggested that the effects of environmental changes on ecosystem functions such as decomposition can be better understood if we have more knowledge about the selective effect of these changes on specific facets of soil biodiversity, such as functional diversity.

Highlights

Background and History of the TopicOne of the early attempts to synthesize the knowledge that was obtained from studies determining the interrelationships between specific groups of organisms on plant litter decomposition was the publication of Biology of Plant Litter Decomposition
In 1989–1992, my group at the VU University Amsterdam was linked to two big European projects on forest litter decomposition, DECO and CORE, in which the effects of climate change on decomposition were studied, a study that was financed by the Commission of the European Communities and the European Science
Referring to our novel experimental design [14] which has been proven to be powerful for the detection of diversity effects of litter-consuming soil fauna on decomposition, Frainer et al [17] created a continuous gradient of litter chemistry trait variability within species mixtures to assess the effects of litter dissimilarity on three related processes in a natural stream: litter decomposition and the dynamics of fungal decomposers and nutrients

Summary

Background and History of the Topic

The 17th Symposium of the British Ecological Society was devoted to The Role of Terrestrial and Aquatic Organisms in Decomposition Processes. The editors [2] stipulated the general emphasis should be placed on the functional roles of organisms in nutrient cycling processes rather than on detailed aspects of their biology. In 1989–1992, my group at the VU University Amsterdam was linked to two big European projects on forest litter decomposition, DECO and CORE, in which the effects of climate change on decomposition were studied, a study that was financed by the Commission of the European Communities and the European Science. Using a community food web model [6,7], the contribution of functionally defined groups of organisms to decomposition was determined [8]. Only be understood with more knowledge of the position, composition, and functional diversity of the soil decomposer community [9]

Diversity and Decomposition

Functional Diversity

Environmental Change and Diversity

Findings

Conclusions