Biotic interactions mediate soil microbial feedbacks to climate change

Crowther, Thomas W.; Thomas, S.; Maynard, Daniel S.; Baldrián, Petr; Covey, Kristofer; Frey, Serita D.; Diepen, Linda T. A. van; Bradford, Mark A.

doi:10.1073/pnas.1502956112

Cited by 209 publications

(146 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…Moreover, the response of soil respiration to temperature is not consistent across all temperature ranges, because the temperature sensitivity of respiration typically decreases under warmer conditions (21,22). As a result, the interaction between soil respiration and climate warming remains one of the greatest sources of uncertainty in climate projections, despite being an important boundary condition in current Earth system models (ESMs) (4,23,24).…”

Section: Significancementioning

confidence: 99%

Temperature response of soil respiration largely unaltered with experimental warming

Carey

Tang

Templer

et al. 2016

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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344

268

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The respiratory release of carbon dioxide (CO2) from soil is a major yet poorly understood flux in the global carbon cycle. Climatic warming is hypothesized to increase rates of soil respiration, potentially fueling further increases in global temperatures. However, despite considerable scientific attention in recent decades, the overall response of soil respiration to anticipated climatic warming remains unclear. We synthesize the largest global dataset to date of soil respiration, moisture, and temperature measurements, totaling >3,800 observations representing 27 temperature manipulation studies, spanning nine biomes and over 2 decades of warming. Our analysis reveals no significant differences in the temperature sensitivity of soil respiration between control and warmed plots in all biomes, with the exception of deserts and boreal forests. Thus, our data provide limited evidence of acclimation of soil respiration to experimental warming in several major biome types, contrary to the results from multiple single-site studies. Moreover, across all nondesert biomes, respiration rates with and without experimental warming follow a Gaussian response, increasing with soil temperature up to a threshold of ∼25 °C, above which respiration rates decrease with further increases in temperature. This consistent decrease in temperature sensitivity at higher temperatures demonstrates that rising global temperatures may result in regionally variable responses in soil respiration, with colder climates being considerably more responsive to increased ambient temperatures compared with warmer regions. Our analysis adds a unique cross-biome perspective on the temperature response of soil respiration, information critical to improving our mechanistic understanding of how soil carbon dynamics change with climatic warming.

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Section: Significancementioning

confidence: 99%

Temperature response of soil respiration largely unaltered with experimental warming

Carey

Tang

Templer

et al. 2016

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

Self Cite

344

268

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“…Last, basidiomycete fungi comprise an important functional guild from a carbon cycle perspective, being the dominant decomposers of recalcitrant organic material in forested ecosystems (26)(27)(28)(29). Understanding how and when diversity affects function in basidiomycete communities therefore has important secondary implications for terrestrial carbon storage (30).…”

Section: Ecologymentioning

confidence: 99%

Competitive network determines the direction of the diversity–function relationship

Maynard

Crowther

Bradford

2017

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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116

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The structure of the competitive network is an important driver of biodiversity and coexistence in natural communities. In addition to determining which species survive, the nature and intensity of competitive interactions within the network also affect the growth, productivity, and abundances of those individuals that persist. As such, the competitive network structure may likewise play an important role in determining community-level functioning by capturing the net costs of competition. Here, using an experimental system comprising 18 wood decay basidiomycete fungi, we test this possibility by quantifying the links among competitive network structure, species diversity, and community function. We show that species diversity alone has negligible impacts on community functioning, but that diversity interacts with two key properties of the competitive networkcompetitive intransitivity and average competitive ability-to ultimately shape biomass production, respiration, and carbon use efficiency. Most notably, highly intransitive communities comprising weak competitors exhibited a positive diversity-function relationship, whereas weakly intransitive communities comprising strong competitors exhibited a negative relationship. These findings demonstrate that competitive network structure can be an important determinant of community-level functioning, capturing a gradient from weakly to strongly competitive communities. Our research suggests that the competitive network may therefore act as a unifying link between diversity and function, providing key insight as to how and when losses in biodiversity will impact ecosystem function.competitive intransitivity | basidiomycete | interference | community assembly | ecosystem function T he relationship between biological diversity and ecosystem functioning is a central question in ecology and conservation, providing tangible links between natural systems and the provision of ecosystem services to humans. In recent decades, a wealth of studies have explored how ecosystem functioning responds to changes in various types of diversity (e.g., species, trait, or phylogenetic diversity), revealing the highly idiosyncratic nature of this relationship across systems (1). Functionally unique species with mutually exclusive resource requirements can exhibit greater productivity in diverse communities (2), whereas highly similar species with overlapping niches exhibit minimal increases in functioning as diversity increases (1, 3). Although the field of biodiversity-ecosystem function (BEF) research continues to gain momentum, the sheer complexity of ecological communities complicates the search for unifying patterns (1). As such, in most systems, we still lack the ability to predict a priori how changes in biodiversity will alter ecosystem function.The BEF relationship is often linked to the degree of functional redundancy, complementarity, or niche overlap among species (4-6). Yet this relationship can alternatively be formulated in terms of the nature, variability, and intensity of ...

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“…Recent research has found that plant diversity may play a more important role than temperature in determining the communities of microbes involved in carbon, nitrogen and phosphorous cycles (Steinauer et al, 2015), and that the expected increase in soil carbon emissions arising from higher temperatures may be mediated by consumption of fungi by soil invertebrates (Crowther et al, 2015). These findings highlight the importance of considering biotic and abiotic processes together.…”

Section: Modelling Nutrient Cycles and Ghg Balancesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Key challenges and priorities for modelling European grasslands under climate change

Kipling

Virkajärvi

Breitsameter

et al. 2016

Science of The Total Environment

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Grassland-based ruminant production systems are integral to sustainable food production in Europe, converting plant materials indigestible to humans into nutritious food, while providing a range of environmental and cultural benefits. Climate change poses significant challenges for such systems, their productivity and the wider benefits they supply. In this context, grassland models have an important role in predicting and understanding the impacts of climate change on grassland systems, and assessing the efficacy of potential adaptation and mitigation strategies. In order to identify the key challenges for European grassland modelling under climate change, modellers and researchers from across Europe were consulted via workshop and questionnaire. Participants identified fifteen challenges and considered the current state of modelling and priorities for future research in relation to each. A review of literature was undertaken to corroborate and enrich the information provided during the horizon scanning activities. Challenges were in four categories relating to: 1) the direct and indirect effects of climate change on the sward 2) climate change effects on grassland systems outputs 3) mediation of climate change impacts by site, system and management and 4) cross-cutting methodological issues. While research priorities differed between challenges, an underlying theme was the need for accessible, shared inventories of models, approaches and data, as a resource for stakeholders and to stimulate new research. Developing grassland models to effectively support efforts to tackle climate change impacts, while increasing productivity and enhancing ecosystem services, will require engagement with stakeholders and policy-makers, as well as modellers and experimental researchers across many disciplines. The challenges and priorities identified are intended to be a resource 1) for grassland modellers and experimental researchers, to stimulate the development of new research directions and collaborative opportunities, and 2) for policy-makers involved in shaping the research agenda for European grassland modelling under climate change.

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Biotic interactions mediate soil microbial feedbacks to climate change

Cited by 209 publications

References 36 publications

Temperature response of soil respiration largely unaltered with experimental warming

Temperature response of soil respiration largely unaltered with experimental warming

Competitive network determines the direction of the diversity–function relationship

Key challenges and priorities for modelling European grasslands under climate change

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