Assessing insect herbivory on broadleaf canopy trees at 19 natural forest sites across Japan

Abstract

We present the largest freely available herbivory dataset for Japan representing data collected from a network of 19 natural forest sites across the country. Sampled network sites were part of the Monitoring Sites 1000 Project organized by the Ministry of the Environment. Sites were located across a range of climate zones, from subarctic to subtropical, and broadleaf trees (both evergreen and deciduous) were targeted at each site. Litterfall traps were used to assess leaf damage caused by leaf‐chewing insects in 2014 and 2015. Using a standardized protocol, we assessed herbivory on 117,918 leaves of 39 dominant tree species. Preliminary analyses suggest that insect herbivory increases with increasing latitude for deciduous broadleaf species. In particular, oak (Quercus crispula) and beech (Fagus crenata) were subject to increased insect herbivory with increasing latitude. In contrast, insect herbivory decreased with increasing latitude in evergreen broadleaf species. The latitudinal gradient of herbivory differed according to leaf type (i.e., evergreen or deciduous). This dataset offers excellent opportunities for meta‐analysis and comparative studies of herbivory among various forest types. The complete dataset for this abstract published in the Data Paper section of the journal is available in electronic format in MetaCat in JaLTER at http://db.cger.nies.go.jp/JaLTER/metacat/metacat/ERDP-2021-01.1/jalter-en.

Response of Background Herbivory in Mature Birch Trees to Global Warming

“…Specifically, we showed that global warming will increase background herbivory in mature birch trees by decreasing tannin concentrations in the canopy. In contrast to mature birch trees (B. ermanii), an early successional species (pioneer), mature oak trees (Quercus crispula), a late successional species (climax), showed decreased herbivory in response to soil warming (Nakamura et al, 2014) and toward lower elevations (Takafumi et al, 2021). These combined results suggest that global warming is likely to decrease background herbivory in mature oak trees.…”

Evaluating the soil microbe community‐level physiological profile using EcoPlate and soil properties at 33 forest sites across Japan

“…EcoPlate data offer an opportunity for comparative studies among forest types and for testing community ecology and ecosystem function hypotheses at broad spatial scales (e.g., testing for a latitudinal gradient in multifunctionality in soil microbial communities and elucidating the relative importance of microbial communities in forest ecosystem function). The data can also be analyzed together with the results of associated projects in the same plots (e.g., tree census, Ishihara et al, 2011; litter fall, Suzuki et al, 2012; ground‐dwelling beetles, Niwa et al, 2016; tea bag decomposition, Suzuki et al, 2019; herbivory, Takafumi et al, 2021). Furthermore, if the EcoPlate is remeasured at the same plots in a few years or decades, we can assess the impact of recent climate change on soil microbial communities.…”