Resource Acquisition Research Articles

Seasonal response of soil microbial community structure and life history strategies to winter snow cover change in a temperate forest

Snow cover provides a thermally stable and humid soil environment and thereby regulates soil microbial communities and biogeochemical cycling. A warmer world with large reductions in snow cover and earlier spring snowmelt may disrupt this stability and associated ecosystem functioning. Yet, little is known about the response of soil microbial communities to decreased snowpack and potential carry-over effects beyond the snow cover period. Herein, we tested this response by conducting a snowpack manipulation experiment (control, addition, and removal) in a temperate forest. Our results showed that fungi were more sensitive to changes in snowpack. Thicker snowpack increased the diversity of fungi, but had weak effects on the diversity of bacteria in winter. Thickening snow cover promoted the ratio of fungi to bacteria abundance across the year, and such relative increase in fungi abundance was largely driven by Basidiomycota phyla (Agaricomycetes class). Increased snowpack decreased soil nitrate concentration, and produced carry-over biogeochemical effects evidenced by increased summer β-1,4-glucosidase and N-acetyl-β-glucosaminidase activities. On a seasonal scale, microbial biomass peaked at both winter and summer; winter microbial community was fungi dominated, while bacteria dominated in summer. The abundances of bacterial phyla had greater seasonal variation than fungal phyla. Specifically, Actinobacteria had greater dominance in winter than in summer, while Acidobacteria, Proteobacteria, and Verrucomicrobia had greater abundance in summer than in winter. Microbial high yield-resource acquisition-stress tolerance life history strategies showed significant seasonal tradeoffs, i.e., resource acquisition and stress tolerance strategies dominated in summer, while high yield strategy dominated in winter. Overall, our findings underline that climate-induced reductions in snow cover can disrupt soil biogeochemical cycling also beyond the snow cover period due to shifts in soil microbial community structure and life history strategies.

Microbial life-history strategies and particulate organic carbon mediate formation of microbial necromass carbon and stabilization in response to biochar addition

Microbial necromass carbon (MNC) contributes significantly to the formation of soil organic carbon (SOC). However, the microbial carbon sequestration effect of biochar is often underestimated and influenced by nutrient availability. The mechanisms associated with the formation and stabilization of MNC remain unclear, especially under the combined application of biochar and nitrogen (N) fertilizer. Thus, in a long-term field experiment (11 years) based on biochar application, we utilized bacterial 16S rRNA gene sequencing, fungal ITS amplicon sequencing, metagenomics, and microbial biomarkers to examine the interactions between MNC accumulation and microbial metabolic strategies under combined treatment with biochar and N fertilizer. We aimed to identify the critical microbial modules and species involved, and to analyze the sites where MNC was immobilized from various components. Biochar application increased the MNC content by 13.9 %. Among the MNC components, fungal necromass contributed more to MNC, but bacteria were more readily enriched after biochar application. The microbial life-history strategies that affected MNC formation under the application of various amounts biochar were linked to the N application level. Under N added at 226.5 kg ha−1, communities such as Actinobacteria and Bacteroidetes with high-growth yield strategies were prevalent and contributed to MNC production. By contrast, under N added at 113.25 kg ha−1 with high biochar application, Proteobacteria with strong resource acquisition strategies were dominant and MNC accumulation was lower. The mineral-associated organic carbon pool was rapidly saturated with the addition of biochar, so the contribution of fungal necromass carbon may have been reduced by reutilization, thereby resulting in the more rapid preservation of bacterial necromass carbon in the particulate organic carbon pool. Overall, our findings indicate that microbial life history traits are crucial for linking microbial metabolic processes to the accumulation and stabilization of MNC, thereby highlighting the their importance for SOC accumulation in farmland soils, and the need to tailor appropriate biochar and N fertilizer application strategies for agricultural soils.

A social identity perspective on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) entrepreneurs’ networking behavior

PurposeThis study aims to draw upon entrepreneurial network resource and social identity theories to advance the understanding of LGBT entrepreneurial behavior. The authors focus on what resources are acquired by LGBT entrepreneurs from LGBT-specific networks, such as entrepreneurs’ associations or chambers of commerce, and why they might engage with them.Design/methodology/approachAs an initial scoping exercise, Study 1 quantitatively examined the different resources acquired via a survey of 109 LGBT entrepreneurs from the UK, mainland Europe and North America. Building on these findings, Study 2 qualitatively explored why LGBT entrepreneurs acquire resources from and engage with LGBT-specific networks via interviews with 23 LGBT entrepreneurs (with representation from the UK, Mainland Europe and North America).FindingsStudy 1 indicates that being more involved in LGBT-specific networks is associated with stronger resource acquisition, particularly those that are relational and psychological in nature. Study 2 reveals that such networks can act as psychologically safe holding environments where resources that fulfil needs for belonging and uniqueness are acquired. However, certain challenges and issues arise when trying to meet all members' needs.Practical implicationsThe findings underscore the need for LGBT networks that are run for, and by, LGBT entrepreneurs. Such networks allow LGBT entrepreneurs to be more authentic about, and empowered by, their LGBT identity in their business such that they can develop a stronger sense of individual and collective pride in being part of an LGBT entrepreneurial community. Yet, there is a need to understand the variety of identities and needs across the LGBT community.Originality/valueThe authors advance our understanding of LGBT entrepreneurs by connecting knowledge on entrepreneurship with that on applied psychology. The authors develop an original contribution by focusing on how LGBT entrepreneurs use LGBT-specific networks to meet important psychological and relational needs, thus speaking to the importance of developing an LGBT entrepreneurial community that enables LGBT entrepreneurs to express their LGBT and entrepreneurial identities.

Research on Identification of the Capacity Influencing Factors of Youth Sports Clubs in China

Since the 1970s, nonprofit organizations have identified organizational capacity as the key to improving organizational effectiveness. Youth sports clubs have long been trapped in a predicament that makes it difficult for them to keep non-profit nature, operate independently and maintain high performance for a long time. This study investigates which influencing factors can act on the capacity of youth sports clubs to ensure their non-profit nature whilst achieving healthy and sustainable development. The organizational theory systems view emphasizes the relationship between open internal structures and the role of external environmental factors, therefore the capacity influencing factors of youth sports clubs can be comprehensively considered to achieve this by considering both the internal and external influencing components of organizational capacity. The focus of this study was obtained by searching 11 relevant policy documents, 21 papers, and in-depth interviews with 26 experts including youth sports club managers, coaches, and venue management personnel and scholars studying in the field of youth sports research or practice. The study revealed the internal and external influences on youth sports club capabilities, including strategic leadership, service innovation, resource acquisition, network relationships, policy, social media, and environmental uncertainty; and constructed a relationship between internal and external influences on youth sports club capabilities and organizational effectiveness. In addition, we found that Social media had the highest weight, policy had the lowest weight, and the rest of the influences did not differ significantly by the method of the weight calculation. We recommend that youth sports clubs increase the application of social media, stimulate employees' service and innovation ability, and cultivate the strategic leadership ability of leaders.

Ungulate herbivores promote beta diversity and drive stochastic plant community assembly by selective defoliation and trampling: From a four‐year simulation experiment

Abstract Ungulate herbivores shape grassland plant communities at multiple scales, ultimately affecting ecosystem function. However, ungulates have complex effects on grasslands, including defoliation, trampling, excreta return and their interactions. Moreover, the effects of ungulate density on grasslands are regulated by these three mechanisms. Nevertheless, how these three mechanisms affect biodiversity at multiple scales and community assembly remains poorly understood. Here, we conducted a 4‐year novel field experiment to disentangle the effects of defoliation, trampling, and excreta return by ungulates on plant community assembly in a temperate grassland in Inner Mongolia, China. This experiment set two different scenarios: moderate ungulate density (Moderate, characterised by selective defoliation and moderate trampling) and high ungulate density (Intense, characterised by non‐selective defoliation and heavy trampling), including different combinations of defoliation, trampling and excreta return in each scenario. We found that defoliation and trampling increased stochasticity in community assembly and promoted alpha and beta diversity under both scenarios. Specifically, defoliation promoted the coexistence of species with multiple resource acquisition strategies (higher functional trait diversity) by reducing interspecific competition; trampling tended to facilitate random species colonisation. Conversely, excreta return favoured grasses, promoting deterministic assembly and impacting species coexistence. Notably, selective defoliation in the Moderate scenario led to a dominance of stochastic processes during community assembly, whereas non‐selective defoliation still did not change the dominance of deterministic processes. Further, communities subject to selective defoliation were insensitive to changes in soil properties caused by trampling and excreta return, maintaining a high‐level beta diversity and the stochastic of community assembly. Synthesis: Our study provides important insights into the mechanisms by which ungulate herbivores influence plant community assembly, suggesting that defoliation and trampling have the potential to drive stochastic processes, while excreta return plays the opposite role. Our study also suggests that selective foraging by ungulates acts as stronger stochastic forces during community assembly compared to non‐selective defoliation. These results imply that considering ungulate feeding preferences and foraging behaviour in grassland management will help prevent biodiversity loss and biotic homogenisation.

Migrating ripples create streambed heterogeneity altering microbial diversity and metabolic activity

AbstractSandy sediments of lowland streams are typically transported at low flow in the form of migrating ripples. In these bedforms, microbial communities spanning all trophic guilds (heterotrophic bacteria, fungi, photoautotrophic and phagotrophic protists) are exposed to highly frequent moving–resting cycles of sediment grains. Up to date, it is unknown to what extent ripple migration impacts community metabolism and composition as well as the vertical zonation of sediment‐associated multitrophic microbial communities compared to stationary sediments. We hypothesize that, as a result of mechanical abrasion and limited light supply, migrating ripple sediments have lower microbial abundance, diversity, metabolism and resource acquisition and no vertical zonation compared to stationary sediments. We collected samples from five lowland streams in north‐eastern Germany between May and June 2020. The coarser and better sorted sediments of migrating ripples had a higher oxygen concentration and less organic matter than stationary sediments. Photosynthetic pigments, potential extracellular enzyme activities, bacterial cell counts, and fungal gene copies were lower in migrating ripples than in stationary sediments. In contrast, cell‐specific bacterial production was higher in migrating ripples. Metabarcoding revealed that bedform migration was important in shaping the community structure of bacteria, fungi, and phagotrophic protists. Dry mass‐related net community production, respiration, and bacterial production were higher in superficial compared to underlying layers irrespective of sediment transport. By modulating the abundance, diversity, and structure of different trophic guilds of microbial communities and their resource acquisition, migrating bedforms create streambed heterogeneity, shaping regional biodiversity and the flow of matter through the benthic food web.

Manning Agencies Recruitment Process in Tanzania: Challenges and Strategies

The shortage of qualified seafarers has already been identified as a global issue that is more likely to worsen in the immediate future. Thus, increasing attention needs to be given to the challenges that recruitment process of qualified seafarers encounter in order to stabilize the flow of skilled crew to the global shipping industry. Therefore, the aim this paper is to discuss the challenges facing manning agencies in recruitment process which is one of the key emerging sources of crew supply to the global shipping industry and finally to propose some strategies for the solutions. This study used a descriptive and interpretive research design, employing both quantitative and qualitative techniques. Various data collection methods, including interviews, questionnaires, and document analysis, were used. Specifically, a case study research involving the DMI manning agency is used to highlight the challenges confronting the current recruitment process of Seafarers in Tanzania. With regards to recruitments it was found out that skills shortage, competition from other industries, document's validity as well as new technologies and regulations are pertinent issues that need to be addressed by manning agencies in Tanzania. This study recommends that the manning agencies should launch joint training programs with various maritime Institutes and Universities involved in the training of seafarers by investing in the acquisition of learning resources and equipment. This will enable manning agencies to obtain competent and qualified seafarers as will feed information to institutes on the market need hence training institutes to train with respect to the market needs.

Social network effect on land transfer willingness of the rural elders: Evidence from China

The elders in China’s rural areas are facing challenges in maintaining agricultural production due to the outflow of rural laborers. The Transfer of land could alleviate the burden of land-based livelihoods for rural elders, but their decisions regarding land transfer are influenced by their social networks within the context of Chinese rural society. This study investigates how social networks impact the willingness of rural elders to transfer land. Using survey data from 782 rural elders in 32 villages across 11 provinces in China, this paper applies multilinear and binary logistic regression models. The results indicate that the willingness of rural elders to transfer land is affected by their social neteork: (1) Internal network scale, network heterogeneity, and frequency of external network relationships have a significantly positive influence on rural elders’ willingness to transfer land, while frequency of internal network relationships has a significantly negative influence. (2) There are group differences in the above impacts, and these significant impacts occur only among male elderly individuals aged 60–69 years old or living in central and western regions. (3) Social networks primarily influence rural elders’ willingness to transfer land through three mechanisms: information consultation, interpersonal trust, and material resource acquisition. A larger internal social network scale, higher heterogeneity within the network, and more frequent interactions with members of external networks lead to greater access to useful information, higher levels of trust in others, increased material resources availability, and an increased likelihood of transferring land. These findings can inform government policies aimed at improving practices related to land transfers and old age security for rural elders.

New insights into the role of the root system of epiphytic bromeliads: comparison of root and leaf trichome functions in acquisition of water and nutrients.

In epiphytic bromeliads, the roots used to be considered poorly functional organs in the processes of absorption and metabolization of water and nutrients, while the leaves always acted as protagonists in both functions. More recent discoveries have been changing this old view of the root system. In this review, we will address the old thoughts of the scientific community regarding the function performed by the roots of epiphytic bromeliads (mere holdfast structures with low physiological activity) and the importance of a reduced or lack of root system for the emergence of epiphytism. We will present indirect and direct evidence that contradicts this older hypothesis. Furthermore, the importance of the root absorptive function mainly for juvenile tankless epiphytic bromeliads and the characteristics of the root absorption process of adult epiphytic tank bromeliads will be thoroughly discussed in physiological aspects. Finally, some factors (species, substrate, environmental conditions) that influence the absorptive capability of the roots of epiphytic tank bromeliads will also be considered in this review, highlighting the importance that the absorptive role of the roots have for the plasticity of bromeliads that live on trees, which is an environment characterized by the intermittent availability of water and nutrients. The roots of tank-forming epiphytic bromeliads play important roles in the absorption and metabolization of nutrients and water. The importance of roots stands out mainly for juvenile tankless bromeliads since the root is the main absorptive organ. In larger plants with tank, although the leaves become the protagonists in the resource acquisition process, the roots complement the absorptive function of the leaf trichomes, resulting in a better growth of the bromeliad. The physiological and biochemical properties of the processes of absorption and distribution of resources in the tissues seem to differ between absorption by trichomes and roots.

The acquisition of foreign science and technology literature resources in specialized libraries amidst the challenges posed by science and technology blockade

Confronted with significant challenges in procuring foreign scientific and technological literature resources due to a global science and technology blockade, professional libraries are facing severe limitations imposed by the United States on China. These export control measures have severely hampered domestic scientific research institutions and universities from accessing foreign scientific and technological documents, thereby impeding China's progress in the field of scientific and technological innovation. To effectively address this predicament and enhance the ability to secure resources of foreign language scientific and technological literature, professional libraries should focus on the following five aspects: Firstly, diversify funding sources while expanding channels for procuring foreign periodicals; Secondly, increase procurement of English-language scientific and technological literature from non-American countries while organizing and categorizing these materials; Thirdly, strengthen access to non-English language scientific journals; Fourthly, promote collaborative construction and sharing of scientific and technological documents; Fifthly, develop localized versions of foreign digital resources. Ultimately, it is emphasized that bolstering one's own capabilities is key to overcoming barriers in accessing scientific and technological literature. Therefore, China should prioritize national-level development of digital academic platforms.

HIARA study protocol: impacts of artificial coral reef development on fisheries, human livelihoods and health in southwestern Madagascar.

The Health Impacts of Artificial Reef Advancement (HIARA; in the Malagasy language, "together") study cohort was set up in December 2022 to assess the economic and nutritional importance of seafood for the coastal Malagasy population living along the Bay of Ranobe in southwestern Madagascar. Over the course of the research, which will continue until at least 2026, the primary question we seek to answer is whether the creation of artificial coral reefs can rehabilitate fish biomass, increase fish catch, and positively influence fisher livelihoods, community nutrition, and mental health. Through prospective, longitudinal monitoring of the ecological and social systems of Bay of Ranobe, we aim to understand the influence of seasonal and long-term shifts in marine ecological resources and their benefits to human livelihoods and health. Fourteen communities (12 coastal and two inland) were enrolled into the study including 450 households across both the coastal (n = 360 households) and inland (n = 90 households) ecosystems. In the ecological component, we quantify the extent and health of coral reef ecosystems and collect data on the diversity and abundance of fisheries resources. In the social component, we collect data on the diets, resource acquisition strategies, fisheries and agricultural practices, and other social, demographic and economic indicators, repeated every 3 months. At these visits, clinical measures are collected including anthropometric measures, blood pressure, and mental health diagnostic screening. By analyzing changes in fish catch and consumption arising from varying distances to artificial reef construction and associated impacts on fish biomass, our cohort study could provide valuable insights into the public health impacts of artificial coral reef construction on local populations. Specifically, we aim to assess the impact of changes in fish catch (caused by artificial reefs) on various health outcomes, such as stunting, underweight, wasting, nutrient intake, hypertension, anxiety, and depression.

Soil heavy metal pollution promotes extracellular enzyme production by mediating microbial community structure during vegetation restoration of metallic tailing reservoir

Vegetation restoration in metallic tailing reservoirs is imperative to restore the post-mining degraded ecosystems. Extracellular enzymes determine microbial resource acquisition in soils, yet the mechanisms controlling the enzyme activity and stoichiometry during vegetation restoration in metallic tailing reservoirs remain elusive. Here, we investigated the variations and drivers of C-, N- and P-acquiring enzymes together with microbial community along a 50-year vegetation restoration chronosequence in the China's largest vanadium titano-magnetite tailing reservoir. We found a parabolic pattern in the enzyme activity and efficiency along the chronosequence, peaking at the middle restoration stage (∼30 years) with approximately six-fold increase relative to the initial 1-year site. The enzyme ratios of C:P and N:P decreased by 33 % and 68 % along the chronosequence, respectively, indicating a higher microbial demand of C and N at the early stage and a higher demand of P at the later stage. Soil nutrients directly determined the enzyme activities and stoichiometry, whereas microbial biomass and community structure regulated the temporal pattern of the enzyme efficiency. Surprisingly, increased heavy metal pollution imposed a positive effect on the enzyme efficiency indirectly by altering microbial community structure. This was evidenced by the increased microbial diversity and the conversion of copiotrophic to oligotrophic and stress-tolerant taxa along the chronosequence. Our findings provide new insights into microbial functioning in soil nutrient dynamics during vegetation restoration under increasing heavy metal pollution.

Improving Pediatric Hypertension Screening in an Academic Primary Care Setting.

Adherence to the American Academy of Pediatrics clinical practice guidelines for screening and managing high blood pressure (BP) is low. This team sought to improve recognition and documentation of relevant diagnoses in patients aged 13-20 years who presented to general pediatric clinics. The primary outcome measure was the proportion of office visits for patients ages 13-20 with a BP ≥ 120/80 with a visit or problem list diagnosis of hypertension or elevated BP. Secondary measures included (1) the proportion of patients who had their BP measured in the right arm, (2) the proportion of patients who had a mid-arm circumference measurement recorded, and (3) the proportion of patients who had a second BP reading measured at the visit. Interventions addressed key drivers for evidence-based high BP screening: standard BP measurement, electronic health record clinical decision support, and clinical pathway adoption. Data were collected over a twenty-seven-month period and plotted using the Laney p' chart. Provider documentation of elevated BP or hypertension improved from a baseline mean of 24% in April 2020 through January 2022 to 41% in February 2021 through June 2022. All secondary outcome measures also demonstrated significant improvement. This project demonstrates the feasibility of improving adherence to best practices of BP measurement in primary care clinics through education, acquisition of resources, and implementation of electronic health record flags for abnormal values.

Tropical root responses to global changes: A synthesis.

Tropical ecosystems face escalating global change. These shifts can disrupt tropical forests' carbon (C) balance and impact root dynamics. Since roots perform essential functions such as resource acquisition and tissue protection, root responses can inform about the strategies and vulnerabilities of ecosystems facing present and future global changes. However, root trait dynamics are poorly understood, especially in tropical ecosystems. We analyzed existing research on tropical root responses to key global change drivers: warming, drought, flooding, cyclones, nitrogen (N) deposition, elevated (e) CO2, and fires. Based on tree species- and community-level literature, we obtained 266 root trait observations from 93 studies across 24 tropical countries. We found differences in the proportion of root responsiveness to global change among different global change drivers but not among root categories. In particular, we observed that tropical root systems responded to warming and eCO2 by increasing root biomass in species-scale studies. Drought increased the root: shoot ratio with no change in root biomass, indicating a decline in aboveground biomass. Despite N deposition being the most studied global change driver, it had some of the most variable effects on root characteristics, with few predictable responses. Episodic disturbances such as cyclones, fires, and flooding consistently resulted in a change in root trait expressions, with cyclones and fires increasing root production, potentially due to shifts in plant community and nutrient inputs, while flooding changed plant regulatory metabolisms due to low oxygen conditions. The data available to date clearly show that tropical forest root characteristics and dynamics are responding to global change, although in ways that are not always predictable. This synthesis indicates the need for replicated studies across root characteristics at species and community scales under different global change factors.

Tasks, Knowledge, and Practice: Long-Distance Resource Acquisition at Goat Spring Pueblo (LA285), Central New Mexico

AbstractWe examine provenance data collected from three types of geological resources recovered at Goat Spring Pueblo in central New Mexico. Our goal is to move beyond simply documenting patterns in compositional data; rather, we develop a narrative that explores how people's knowledge and preferences resulted in culturally and materially determined choices as revealed in those patterns. Our analyses provide evidence that residents of Goat Spring Pueblo did not rely primarily on local geological sources for the creation of their glaze paints or obsidian tools. They did, however, utilize a locally available blue-green mineral for creation of their ornaments. We argue that village artisans structured their use of raw materials at least in part according to multiple craft-specific and community-centered ethnomineralogies that likely constituted the sources of these materials as historically or cosmologically meaningful places through their persistent use. Consequently, the surviving material culture at Goat Spring Pueblo reflects day-to-day beliefs, practices, and social relationships that connected this village to a broader mosaic of interconnected Ancestral Pueblo taskscapes and knowledgescapes.

A dataset of surface water area with 12-day resolution in Lijiang River Basin from 2015 to 2022

Widely distributed in Guangxi, Karst landforms are characterized by heavy rainfall during the flood season, rapid hydrological dynamics, and notable spatiotemporal variations. A water is an important ecological foundation and natural resource, the timely and accurate acquisition of spatiotemporal changes in surface water bodies holds practical significance for the protection and management of water resources, rapid assessment of drought and flood disasters, and the realization of sustainable development across various economic industries. This dataset takes the Lijiang River Basin in Guilin, Guangxi as the research area. Addressing prevalent challenges such as infrequenct surface water monitoring, limited water body extraction methods due to sparse sample information, and low extraction accuracy in complex terrain areas, we combined the data from Sentinel-1 radar and Sentinel-2 in the study. Considering the different imaging principles of radar and optical sensors, we developed a vector classification method based on empirical thresholds for optical and other multi-source remote sensing data. The method can effectively eliminate interference of most ground object shadows, allowing for the construction of dataset of surface water area with 12-day resolution in Lijiang River Basin from 2015 to 2022. The dataset comprises a total of 196 periods of surface water body vector data. According to the results after verifying the spatial distribution and quantitative accuracy of the dataset, the dataset demonstrates its capability to accurately extract inlets and outlets of rivers, lakes and reservoirs, as well as small water bodies in complex terrain areas. The overall accuracy reaches 92.73%,with a Kappa coefficient of 0.85. This dataset can be used to support water resources protection and sustainable management of the ecological environment in the Lijiang River Basin. Additionally, it can provide reliable data for decision-making in areas such as emergency management, disaster prevention, water conservancy development, and economic development.

Technology start-ups in tourism and hospitality: A networked social capital theory perspective from early-stage start-up founders

Technology start-up entrepreneurship serves as the backbone of innovations within the tourism and hospitality industry. However, there is a lack of comprehensive research investigating the perspectives of founders who are the original innovators. Via social capital theory, this study aims to explore the entrepreneurial processes of founders during the critical early stages, determining the survival of technology start-ups. The research adopts a qualitative in-depth interviewing approach with seventeen early-stage tourism and hospitality start-up founders in Hong Kong and Thailand. By employing abductive thematic analysis, the study develops a novel conceptualization of the networked social capital, comprising four interconnected themes: team building, fundraising and resource acquisition, collaboration and partnerships, and credibility building. Also, the study highlights the evolving social dynamics among start-up ecosystem actors influenced by cutting-edge technologies. This study contributes to the tourism and hospitality literature and offers practical implications for start-up entrepreneurs, public policymakers, and tourism and hospitality firms.

Mode of carbon gain and fungal associations of Neuwiedia malipoensis within the evolutionarily early-diverging orchid subfamily Apostasioideae.

The earliest-diverging orchid lineage, Apostasioideae, consists only of two genera: Apostasia and Neuwiedia. Previous reports of Apostasia nipponica indicated a symbiotic association with an ectomycorrhiza-forming Ceratobasidiaceae clade and partial utilization of fungal carbon during the adult stage. However, the trophic strategy of Neuwiedia throughout its development remains unidentified. To further improve our understanding of mycoheterotrophy in the Apostasioideae, this study focused on Neuwiedia malipoensis examining both the mycorrhizal association and the physiological ecology of this orchid species across various development stages. We identified the major mycorrhizal fungi of N. malipoensis protocorm, leafy seedling and adult stages using molecular barcoding. To reveal nutritional resources utilized by N. malipoensis, we compared stable isotope natural abundances (δ13C, δ15N, δ2H, δ18O) of different developmental stages with those of autotrophic reference plants. Protocorms exhibited an association with saprotrophic Ceratobasidiaceae rather than ectomycorrhiza-forming Ceratobasidiaceae and the 13C signature was characteristic of their fully mycoheterotrophic nutrition. Seedlings and adults were predominantly associated with saprotrophic fungi belonging to the Tulasnellaceae. While 13C and 2H stable isotope data revealed partial mycoheterotrophy of seedlings, it is unclear to what extent the fungal carbon supply is reduced in adult N. malipoensis. However, the 15N enrichment of mature N. malipoensis suggests partially mycoheterotrophic nutrition. Our data indicated a transition in mycorrhizal partners during ontogenetic development with decreasing dependency of N. malipoensis on fungal nitrogen and carbon. The divergence in mycorrhizal partners between N. malipoensis and A. nipponica indicates different resource acquisition strategies and allows various habitat options in the earliest-diverging orchid lineage, Apostasioideae. While A. nipponica relies on the heterotrophic carbon gain from its ectomycorrhizal fungal partner and thus on forest habitats, N. malipoensis rather relies on own photosynthetic carbon gain as an adult, allowing it to establish in habitats as widely distributed as those where Rhizoctonia fungi occur.

A trait-based root acquisition-defence-decomposition framework in angiosperm tree species

To adapt to the complex belowground environment, plants make trade-offs between root resource acquisition and defence ability. This includes forming partnerships with different types of root associating microorganisms, such as arbuscular mycorrhizal and ectomycorrhizal fungi. These trade-offs, by mediating root chemistry, exert legacy effects on nutrient release during decomposition, which may, in turn, affect the ability of new roots to re-acquire resources, thereby generating a feedback loop. However, the linkages at the basis of this potential feedback loop remain largely unquantified. Here, we propose a trait-based root ‘acquisition-defence-decomposition’ conceptual framework and test the strength of relevant linkages across 90 angiosperm tree species. We show that, at the plant species level, the root-fungal symbiosis gradient within the root economics space, root chemical defence (condensed tannins), and root decomposition rate are closely linked, providing support to this framework. Beyond the dichotomy between arbuscular mycorrhizal-dominated versus ectomycorrhizal-dominated systems, we suggest a continuous shift in feedback loops, from ‘high arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis-low defence-fast decomposition-inorganic nutrition’ by evolutionarily ancient taxa to ‘high ectomycorrhizal symbiosis-high defence-slow decomposition-organic nutrition’ by more modern taxa. This ‘acquisition-defence-decomposition’ framework provides a foundation for testable hypotheses on multidimensional linkages between species’ belowground strategies and ecosystem nutrient cycling in an evolutionary context.

Spatial distribution and drivers of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi on the Tibetan Plateau.

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) are pivotal in plant resource acquisition, mediating plant interactions, and influencing soil carbon dynamics. However, their biogeographical distribution in Tibetan alpine grasslands remains understudied. In this research, we examined the distribution pattern of AMF communities and their key determinants along a 2000-km transect across the Tibetan plateau, encompassing 7 alpine meadows and 8 alpine steppes. Our findings indicate that AMF community diversity and composition exhibit similarities between alpine meadows and alpine steppes, primarily influenced by latitude and evapotranspiration. At the genus level, Glomus predominated in both alpine meadow (36.49%±2.67%) and alpine steppe (41.87%±2.36%) soils, followed by Paraglomus (27.14%±3.69%, 32.34%±3.28%). Furthermore, a significant decay relationship of AMF community was observed over geographical distance. Null model analyses revealed that random processes predominantly (>50%) drove the assembly of AMF communities. In summary, our study elucidates the spatial distribution pattern of AMF in Tibetan plateau grasslands and underscores the significant influence of geographical and climatic factors on AMF community dynamics.