Biochemical and structural controls on the decomposition dynamics of boreal upland forest moss tissues

Philben, Michael; Butler, Sara; Billings, Sharon A.; Benner, Ronald; Edwards, Kate A.; Ziegler, Susan E.

doi:10.5194/bg-15-6731-2018

Cited by 18 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 54 publications

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“…Notably, this study showed that the average SOC and soil TN contents of mosses in the shrub habitat were 133.35 g/kg and 9.99 g/kg, respectively; these values were significantly higher than the SOC and soil TN in the vegetated areas of the Maolan karst forest (54.72 g/kg and 4.67 g/kg) [33] and karst rocky desertification-affected secondary forests (80.40 g/kg and 2.80 g/kg) [32]. Mosses have a slower decomposition rate than vascular plants, resulting in high organic matter content in moss substrates [34]. Moreover, mosses can form symbiotic relationships with blue algae [35].…”

Section: Soil C N and P Contents And Stoichiometric Characteristics Of Different Restoration Stages Of Karst Rocky Desertification Areasmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ecological stoichiometric characteristics of soil-moss C, N, and P in restoration stages of karst rocky desertification

et al. 2021

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Rocky desertification is the most serious ecological disaster in karst areas. Comprehensive control of rocky desertification plays an important role in promoting the economic development of karst areas. Studying the stoichiometric characteristics of mosses and soil can provide a powerful reference for the ecological restoration and evaluation of ecosystems experiencing rocky desertification. Soil and mosses were collected from sites representing different stages of ecological restoration (bare rock, grassland, shrubland, and secondary forest), and the contents of carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P) were detected for ecological stoichiometric analysis. The results indicate that in different restoration stages following karst rocky desertification, the contents of soil organic carbon (SOC), total nitrogen (TN), and total phosphorus (TP) and the stoichiometric ratios in the shrub habitat are higher than those in the bare rock, grassland, and secondary forest habitats. However, the TP and available P contents were low at all stages (0.06 g/kg and 0.62 mg/kg, respectively). The N and P contents and stoichiometric ratios in the mosses showed no significant differences among the succession stages. The C contents in the mosses had a significant positive correlation with SOC and TN and TP content, and the P content had a significant positive correlation with the soil available P. However, there was a significant negative correlation between the C: N and C:P ratios of the bryophytes and soil C: N. In summary, during the process of natural restoration of karst rocky desertification areas, SOC and soil TN contents accumulate with each succession stage. Soil nutrients are higher in shrub habitats than in other succession stages. Mosses have a strong effect on improving soil nutrients in rocky desertification areas.

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Section: Soil C N and P Contents And Stoichiometric Characteristics Of Different Restoration Stages Of Karst Rocky Desertification Areasmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ecological stoichiometric characteristics of soil-moss C, N, and P in restoration stages of karst rocky desertification

et al. 2021

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“…For instance, water retaining and insulating mosses control soil microclimate and microclimate-dependent nitrogen (N) mineralization (Gornall et al 2007;Bernier et al 2011;Elumeeva et al 2011;Soudzilovskaia et al 2013). Mosses also trap N directly from deposition, support biological N fixation and N uptake from soil (DeLuca et al 2002;Rousk et al 2013), and supply soil with litter of varying decomposability that may all influence soil N availability, organic matter pools, and, ultimately, vascular vegetation N availability (van der Wal et al 2001;Bengtsson et al 2018;Chiapusio et al 2018;Philben et al 2018). Additionally, moss effects on ecosystem functions may also vary due to environmental conditions such as changes in air temperature and precipitation (De Long et al 2016a;Lett et al 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Plant and soil nitrogen in oligotrophic boreal forest habitats with varying moss depths: does exclusion of large grazers matter?

et al. 2021

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The boreal forest consists of drier sunlit and moister-shaded habitats with varying moss abundance. Mosses control vascular plant–soil interactions, yet they all can also be altered by grazers. We determined how 2 decades of reindeer (Rangifer tarandus) exclusion affect feather moss (Pleurozium schreberi) depth, and the accompanying soil N dynamics (total and dissolvable inorganic N, δ15N), plant foliar N, and stable isotopes (δ15N, δ13C) in two contrasting habitats of an oligotrophic Scots pine forest. The study species were pine seedling (Pinus sylvestris L.), bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus L.), lingonberry (V. vitis-idaea L.), and feather moss. Moss carpet was deeper in shaded than sunlit habitats and increased with grazer exclusion. Humus N content increased in the shade as did humus δ15N, which also increased due to exclusion in the sunlit habitats. Exclusion increased inorganic N concentration in the mineral soil. These soil responses were correlated with moss depth. Foliar chemistry varied due to habitat depending on species identity. Pine seedlings showed higher foliar N content and lower foliar δ15N in the shaded than in the sunlit habitats, while bilberry had both higher foliar N and δ15N in the shade. Thus, foliar δ15N values of co-existing species diverged in the shade indicating enhanced N partitioning. We conclude that despite strong grazing-induced shifts in mosses and subtler shifts in soil N, the N dynamics of vascular vegetation remain unchanged. These indicate that plant–soil interactions are resistant to shifts in grazing intensity, a pattern that appears to be common across boreal oligotrophic forests.

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“…Moss N may for instance be lost via denitrification or via leeching to deeper soil layers (Johnson et al, 2007). Moss N has also been found to be more rapidly lost from moss litter than C during decomposition (Philben et al, 2018). Nevertheless, as moss mat coverage and shoot length increased with succession, moss TN per square meter will increase.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Moss and underlying soil bacterial community structures are linked to moss functional traits

et al. 2023

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Mosses are among the first colonizing organisms after glacier retreat and can develop into thick moss mats during later successional stages. They are key players in N 2 fixation through their microbiome, which is an important process for nutrient buildup during primary succession. How these moss-microbe interactions develop during succession is not well studied and is relevant in the light of climate change and increased glacier retreat. We examined how the bacterial communities associated with two moss species of the genus Racomitrium and the underlying soil, as well as moss traits and nitrogen fixation, develop along a successional gradient in the glacier forefield of Fl aajökull in southeast Iceland. In addition, we tested whether moss functional traits, such as total carbon (TC) and total nitrogen (TN) contents, moss moisture content, and moss shoot length are drivers of moss and underlying soil bacterial communities. Although time since deglaciation did not affect TN and moss moisture contents, TC and shoot length increased with time since deglaciation.Moss and underlying soil bacterial communities were distinct. While the soil bacterial community structure was driven by moss C/N ratios, the moss bacterial community structure was linked to time since deglaciation, moss C/N ratio, and moss moisture content. Moss N 2 -fixation rates were linked to bacterial community composition and nifH gene abundance rather than moss TN or time since deglaciation. This was accompanied by a shift from autotrophic to heterotrophic diazotrophs. Overall, our results suggest that there is little lateral transfer between moss and soil bacterial communities and that moss traits affect moss and soil bacterial community structure. Only moss bacterial community changed with time since deglaciation. In addition, moss N 2 -fixation rates are determined by bacterial community structure, rather than moss traits or time since deglaciation. This study on the interplay between succession, mosses, soils, and their bacterial communities will inform future work on the fate of newly exposed areas as a result of glacier retreat.

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Biochemical and structural controls on the decomposition dynamics of boreal upland forest moss tissues

Cited by 18 publications

References 54 publications

Ecological stoichiometric characteristics of soil-moss C, N, and P in restoration stages of karst rocky desertification

Ecological stoichiometric characteristics of soil-moss C, N, and P in restoration stages of karst rocky desertification

Plant and soil nitrogen in oligotrophic boreal forest habitats with varying moss depths: does exclusion of large grazers matter?

Moss and underlying soil bacterial community structures are linked to moss functional traits

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